San Diego Padres Blogs

Chipper Jones is out for the year with a torn ACL, but let’s hope this isn’t it for the man who has played his entire major league career for manager Bobby Cox.  Chipper has made it known since last season that retirement could be around the corner, but like Baseball Tonight’s Eduardo Perez, I don’t see Chipper calling it quits now that his season has ended unexpectedly.  He wants to go out on his own terms, and these aren’t them.  At 38, his career is nearing the end, but I find it hard to believe that he will be able to say good-bye after watching from the bench as his team battles for the National League crown.

Continue reading "Will Chipper hang 'em up?"

Okay Giants' fans, it's time to get over Wednesday's loss, and get ready for the Rockies Friday night. Hey, I can be just as greedy as anyone, especially when it comes to a potential three-game sweep of the defending N.L. Champion Phillies. Everything was looking good: Lincecum on the mound, a three-run lead in the top of the 9th, and Brian Wilson getting loose in the pen should Timmy run out of gas. Then, with one out, a four-pitch walk to Shane Victorino, Bochy yanks Lincecum after 106 pitches, and Wilson cannot close the door. Jayson Werth's bases-clearing bloop double down the right field line tied the game at 4-4. In my opinion, total fluke! Wilson had not allowed a single run all season, and actually retired the first batter he faced. There were two outs before Utley singled and Howard walked to load the bases. Listen, if Wilson had finished off the game as he usually does, we wouldn't be having this endless discussion about Bochy's ill-fated pitching change. If he had left Timmy finish the game and he blew it, the same people would be criticizing Bochy FOR NOT making a move. It's really an impossible position for the skipper. I don't mind seeing Lincecum throw 120 pitches, but you have to figure it will make a difference later in the season once he exceeds the 200-inning plateau. If Bochy can save him, and limit the pitch count here and there, it could keep him fresher into September, and that's really the big picture. Don't pound your horses into the ground in April. Yes, it would have been nice to see the complete game, but IT IS Wilson's job to slam the door, and Wednesday just wasn't his day.

Continue reading ""Time for the Giants to Focus on ..."

    After two consecutive years of winning the National League Central Division, the Chicago Cubs watched their hated rivals the St. Louis Cardinals win it. In order for this not happen again, the Cubs have some concerns they have to address in order to get back to their winning ways.

Continue reading "The Chicago cubs 2010"

  

  Do we really blame Carney Lansford for a bunch of over-anxious, free-swinging hitters?  The stats certainly don't lie.  Only the Padres, Pirates, and Astros scored fewer runs than the Giants' 657 runs in 2009.  San Francisco's 122 home runs was second-to-last in the N.L., behind only the Mets, who stroked just 95 homers with a half-injured team in their brand-new, spacious Citi Field. Walks: 392 for the Giants was dead last in the league (the Rockies had 660 walks to lead the league). And that leads us to on-base percentage; where the Giants ranked last at .309!  That is just dismal, anemic, pitiful....any other good adjectives to throw in there?

Continue reading ""Carney Lansford the Scape Goat for ..."

Of course we all know by now that Barmes' unbelievable catch was just that. More of an acting job than catching. To his credit, he did make an outstanding defensive play, getting two outs off the pop-up by Cardinals outfielder Ryan Ludwick, that would have otherwise tied the game.  Seeing this catch brought back bad memories from two years ago, when the Rockies beat the Padres in a tie-breaker game for a play-off spot, because of a bad call at home plate.  Did Holliday really touch home plate or not?  I think not, after they showed the play over and over again.  Those dang Rockies are always gettin' lucky.  I'm real close to rooting for the Dodgers in this last series coming up between them and the Rockies.  The bad call at home plate from two years ago just stings too much still.  So what do you think?  Should the MLB use instant-replay challenges like they do in the NFL? At least during post-season games? Hmmm.

Continue reading "Barmes' Unbelievable Catch - Was It Real?"

Woohoo! Lovin' my Pads these days!  After taking three out of four games against the Pirates to win their fourth consecutive series, the Padres are headed to Colorado to hopefully continue their role as spoiler in the NL West.  What a difference from last season, when the Padres were hard-pressed to come back in a game, any time they were down by two or more runs.  This season, how many times have they been down by four, five, even six runs, and they fight back to win a game. I love it! 

Continue reading "San Diego Padres - Lookin' Good!"

  I went to Sunday's game, and enjoyed another strong outing from Brad Penny - this time against his former team the Dodgers in a 7-2 Giants' win.  Penny is now 3-0 in the orange-

Continue reading ""Brad Penny to the Rescue as Giants ..."

Wow! It was another nail-biter last night between the Padres and Rockies. It was definitely a pitching duel, with Padres pitcher Tim Stauffer going up against the Rockies' rookie pitcher Esmil Rogers, in Rogers' major league debut. Rogers, who used to be a shortstop with the Rockies organization, faltered through his first two innings, allowing two San Diego runs, but went on to pitch three scoreless frames showing an ability to handle himself well.  Stauffer had another strong outing, carrying a shutout into the sixth inning before Troy Tulowitzki hammered a solo home run to get the Rockies on the board.

Continue reading "San Diego Padres Break The Rockies ..."

Woohoo! Taking the series against the Dodgers, taking the series against the Giants - the Padres are playing their role of spoiler very well. And now it's up to Heath Bell to save the Padres lead tonight of 1-0 over the Rockies. Nice solid start tonight by Edward Mujica. What do you think? Will we see Mujica in the starting rotation next season? He's done well as a long reliever, but I think he could definitely make the transformation to starter. 

Continue reading "San Diego Padres vs. Colorado Rockies"

Well the Giants hit the Pads hard today, taking the series opener by a score of 9-4.  No doubt the Giants really wanted to win today, not just to keep pace with the second place Colorado Rockies, but maybe to soothe the sting of yesterday's loss to the Milwaukee Brewers in the 12th inning, on a Prince Fielder home run.  Whatever the prevailing reason, their offensive performance was hot today, and they certainly seemed to have Padres pitcher, Clayton Richard's number.  Maybe because it was one of those pesky day games.  Richard's ERA for day games is sitting around 7.59, while his ERA for night games is only 3.99.  Overall though, Richard has already proven himself to be an asset to the Padres club.  Jake who?

Continue reading "Tough Series Opener For The San Diego ..."

It's a great day when the Padres beat the Dodgers.  That's something I always enjoy seeing!  What about Tim Stauffer tonight - allowing only one earned run on 7 hits?  It was a notable evening for the Padre offense tonight as well, with Gonzalez hitting his 35th homerun and Kouzmanoff driving in 3 runs for his 81st - 83rd RBIs.

Continue reading "Great Series Finale Tonight Between ..."

Little League World Series: No Longer ‘The Bronx Bombers’ its now Chula Vista Bombers!

By Adam Hill

                51 Home runs in 10 games!  I think that is all I need to say.  Anybody who understand baseball, knows that 51 home runs is not normal for anybody to hit in only 10 games.  I saw the stat comparison with the San Diego Padres, and it has taken them 60 games to hit that many home runs, if that puts it into comparison for those who are unfamiliar with baseball.

Continue reading "Chula Vista California is Looking ..."

Philadelphia Does Not Deserve a Class Act Like McNabb

The Philadelphia Eagles signed banished quarterback and convicted canine killer Michael Vick last week to a one-year contract worth $1.6 million.  

Continue reading "Philadelphia Does Not Deserve A Class ..."

On Monday night, I arrived home from Laura's house around 12 a.m. Knowing the Cubs had taken a 1-0 lead into the bottom of the eighth, I decided to check the scoreboard first thing when I got to my computer. I discovered that the Cubs had managed to allow four runs in the bottom of the ninth for a 4-1 loss to San Diego. Maniacal laughter ensued. Chicago is now six games back and the gap doesn't look to get closer anytime soon. In the Cubs defense, I suppose the Padres were due for a win, having just been swept over the weekend by the Cardinals. San Diego had lost four straight overall, dropping the finale of a series in Milwaukee last Thursday. The Padres seem to be the Cards' best friend right now. They took two of three from the Brewers, got swept by St. Louis, and picked up a come from behind win against the Cubs to open Chicago's road trip. Hopefully the trend will continue over the rest of the week with the Cubbies in town for two more before the Cards visit " A Whale's Vagina" for four games over the weekend.

Continue reading "Cards Eek One Out in L.A., Cubs remain ..."

  JONATHAN SANCHEZ!!!!!  NO-Hitter!  WOW!  Was anyone ready for that?  I am stunned.  Just amazing. Granted, its the San Diego Padres, and not against a more robust hitting line-up.  The first no-no for the Giants since 1976 and the first no-hitter at home since Ed Halicki in 1975.  And, obviously, the first no-hitter EVER at A.T.& T. Park!

Continue reading ""JOANATHAN SANCHEZ, ARE YOU KIDDING ME?""

It's still not too late to vote for Pablo Sandoval, in fact, it's not too late to vote 1,000 times for Pablo before Thursday's "unlimited" voting deadline!  I guess it depends on how much extra time you've got on your hands, but in this quick-click society, what's 10 (or 100) votes over the course of the day.  I must admit, I've voted for Sandoval and Ian Kinsler of the Texas Rangers 40 times since Sunday, and feel very good about my contribution.  However, let's not get too carried away this process.  If everyone had just one vote, or maybe 10 votes?  That, to me would be a better indicator of who is deserving for the final roster spot.   What I REALLY think is that the players should vote for that final spot, and have it over and done with when the main rosters are announced in the first place.  Why drag it out?  Oh...I forgot, the "Mid-Summer Classic" has become a crucial match-up between leagues in JULY, to determine home field advantage in October.  That sure makes sense Bud Selig - brilliant idea!   I think the players (or coaches) would see the value of Pablo as a multi-positional option later in the game. Extra Catcher? Extra third baseman? Extra first baseman? Hello?? As for Wednesday's finale with Florida, the Giants were shutdown 7-to-0 by Marlins' right-hander Chris Volstad, who tossed a complete game five-hitter.  Easily his best effort of the season, improving to 6-and-8, Volstad (zero BBs and Six Ks in 105 pitches) helped Florida avoid the three-game sweep at the hands of the Giants.   The "Big Sadowski," Ryan Sadowski didn't have his best control with four walks allowed, as well as his first two earned runs in three starts.  Sadowski worked five innings, gave up five hits, three runs (two earned), walked four and struck out four. Sadowski has posted an ERA of 1.00 with only today's two runs allowed in 18-total-innings of work.  The bats were completely silenced by Volstad, while Merkin Valdez in relief served-up a three-run bomb to Dan Uggla, his 16th homer of the season.  As appealing as Uggla may be in a possible trade scenario, I would have to say that he strikes out way too much and needs to think more about his batting average (.223 after today) and on-base percentage, (around .332) rather than his home run count. Hey, I'll take two out of three over the "fish," but it sure would have been fun to see super stud short stop Hanley Ramirez.  Ramirez, an all-star starter, missed his fourth consecutive game with a hip injury.  Oh well... The Giants are 26-and-15 since Memorial Day, and welcome San Diego for a four-game weekend series.  The Padres are a team on the ropes and already willing to trade some of its pieces, including Scott Hairston to the A's.  Tim Lincecum gets the ball Thursday night, and looks to match fellow all-star Matt Cain with 10 victories.

Continue reading ""Have You Voted For Pablo Sandoval ..."

It's still not too late to vote for Pablo Sandoval, in fact, it's not too late to vote 1,000 times for Pablo before Thursday's "unlimited" voting deadline!  I guess it depends on

Continue reading ""Have You Voted For Pablo Sandoval ..."

It was a series where Alex Rodriguez got closer to Rafael Palmeiro on the all-time home run list. Mariano Rivera continued to pile up saves. Joba Chamberlain continued to pile up no decisions. The mark set by Andy Pettitte and Mo continued to increase. Ken Griffey Jr continued to approach Willie Mays in career HRs. Ichiro Suzuki continued to get hit after hit. Could he be on his way to a 9th consecutive 200+ hit season? Let's break this all down.

Continue reading "Mariners-Yankees: A Series of Milestones ..."

I used to like Bob Costas.

When he first broke into broadcasting, he was one of the best in the business. His knowledge of any sport he covered and style of delivery had eloquence without pomposity.

Continue reading "Memo to Costas: I'd Rather Watch ..."

http://sports.spinidea.com/2009/06/25/boston-red-sox-at-atlanta-braves-2/

http://sports.spinidea.com/2009/06/25/chicago-cubs-at-chicago-white-sox-2/ 

  http://watchlivebaseballonline.blogspot.com 

Continue reading "Baseball links"

Have we officially jumped off the bandwagon or are there still some of us Padre fans left believing this could be turned around?

Brian Giles finally hits his first home run, albeit after 95 at bats, yet the right fielder is still only hitting .158.  Can we finally call Portland and call up Will Venable or Chad Huffman or, heck, I'll take the hot hitting Kyle Blanks who hasn't even played one competetive game in the outfield yet.  But he'd give more of an output than Giles has thus far.

Continue reading "Calling All Fans"

Someone at MLB must have read my blog post from 5/9/08 and decided that All-Star voting needed to start even earlier this season just to see my reaction.  Keep in mind that the 2009 season began later than the 2008 season.

Continue reading "All-Star balloting reminds me of the Iowa Caucus"

Southern California has not been nice to the Giants as we go into the second week of the season, dropping all five games that they have played against the Padres and the Dodgers.  They were swept

Continue reading "Giants are 0-for SoCal"

The National League West is not a division too many people are getting overly excited about entering the 2009 season. The return of Manny Ramirez to Los Angeles has made the Dodgers the division’s lone true contender for the World Series. Arizona will go as far as its pitching takes it, which could be far, but other than that, there’s not a whole lot to pontificate upon. Yet, somehow, I still managed to write 1,383 words.

Continue reading "The Sports Don's 2009 NL West Preview"

I am now a fan of the World Baseball Classic. I just finished watching Team USA beat Team Canada. The game was better than I expected. It seems a bit more personal this time around for Team USA. I was impressed by the emotion and desire to win that players showed.  I was impressed with how the players felt the need to represent not only this country, but this countrys past time.  Then it donned on me. For the last few weeks I have heard players "think, debate, ponder" whether or not they would play in the Classic. The reason for not playing? Most say its fear of getting injured. So I did some researched. What I found is professional baseball players have found several ways to hurt themselves while their not on the diamond. Here are a few of my favorites.

Continue reading "Attention MLB Players - Don't worry ..."

It was nearly 20 years ago that Rickey Henderson took that first step towards second.

In a Sunday afternoon game against the Texas Rangers, the Athletics left fielder started his career off with a double.  But two innings later, Henderson would do one of the many things he became known for -- a single followed up by a stolen base.

Continue reading "Rickey Henderson Slides in Easy -- ..."

This could be a short post.  No, no one will bite and claim Bobby Crosby and his $5.25 million contract.  For the sake of completeness, though, let's run through who might conceivably pick up Crosby. 

Continue reading "Bobby Crosby on Outright Waivers...Will ..."

Part Four:  The Maestro

           Has Omar Minaya been a good general manager of the New York Mets?  Well, for one, he didn’t trade Scott Kazmir for Victor Zambrano.  No, when he traded the Mets’ top prospects, he got a much better return—Johan Santana anyone?

Continue reading "In The Aftermath Of The Collapse ..."

I apologize for the delay between posts. I have been very busy after getting a new job, while keeping the old one. For about the past two weeks, I worked about 55-60 hours per week. I will try and get back to a post a week or better. Also, congratulations to the Phillies. It's nice to have a National League team win again. Now, on to the blog.

Continue reading "Cardinals rumors"

A big thanks to everyone who participated in the "Inbound Link Contest".  We have a winner!  A big congratulations go out to Marija.  Thank you for all your hard work on this.  While we had a lot of people participate, Marija was able to win with only 4 links!  So it wouldn't have taken a lot to win this contest!  We'll be having another contest soon so stay tuned.

Continue reading "Inbound link contest winner announced!"

    Since when is a four-run, seventh inning lead against a team 17.5 games out of first place not safe?  Since the Mets' bullpen hit rock bottom.

    The Mets' plan for Monday afternoon's makeup game against the Pirates was to get on top early and send Pittsburgh packing quickly.  When David Wright knocked a three-run home run to right center in the first, and Pedro Martinez allowed only one run through six innings, the game seemed to be following how it was scripted.  But then on came the New York bullpen.

Continue reading "Heilman Heads Up Another Bullpen Meltdown"

The Boston Red Sox placed a wavier claim on San Diego’s right fielder Brian Giles, and are in the process of acquiring the 14-year veteran for the Padres. Giles who is 37, is hitting.296 with a .391 on-base percentage this season.

Continue reading "Red Sox Not Done Yet?"

Recently, I also did a rundown of a few of the teams that could be the busiest come deadline day. Now, a look at the specific players that could be moving:

Catcher

Bengie Molina, Giants:

Continue reading "The Trading Post: Player Edition"

    When the Mets traded for and signed Johan Santana in January, tonight's game was exactly what they had in mind.  The ace will take the mound tonight at Shea to face the Phillies, who are tied with the Mets atop the National League East.  Tonight would be a perfect situation for the type of start Mets fans are itching for out of Santana.  Overall, despite his 3.10 ERA, Santana's season has been a disappointment to this point.  His 8-7 record is mediocre, his strikeout rate is down, his batting average against is up, and his solid ERA is also misleading in that it does not reflect the grand slam he allowed to pitcher Felix Hernandez of the Mariners.  Santana has only pitched into the eighth inning once this season, and Duaner Sanchez ultimately blew that game in the ninth.  Tonight is an opportunity for Santana to turn his sub-par season around, and show Mets fans that he is worth his exhorbitant contract

Continue reading "Johan Santana Takes the Hill With ..."

...Not too bad a way to start the second half by taking 2 of 3 from the Chicago Cubs. Too bad the loss was a 9-0 shutout...

...The Astros and Pirates seem to be playing hot potato with last place. Last night, Houston blew a 9th inning 3-2 lead when Jose Valverde went out and threw batting practice when he was supposed to be saving the game. Valverde's line on the game: a third of an inning pitched, five hits, six earled runs, one walk, no strikeouts and two home runs. He's now 4-3 with a 4.86 ERA. Both teams left a combined 25 runners on base.

Continue reading "Astros briefs"

   After splitting the four-game series in Cincinnati, the Mets are back in a first-place tie with the Phillies for the lead in the NL East.  Lately it hasn't only been Jose Reyes, David Wright and Carlos Beltran leading the offense; Carlos Delgado has been on fire recently and came through with the clutch, game-tying hit in the seventh inning on Sunday, and the Mets' bench players have been carrying the torch as well.  The "irregulars," (as Mets television broadcaster Gary Cohen puts it) such as Fernando Tatis, Endy Chavez, Damion Easley and Ramon Castro, have been igniting the Mets' offense for the past three weeks.  But two new players with anything but household names were just as instrumental to the Mets' success in Cincy as anyone getting paid upwards of $12 million per year:  Argenis Reyes and Robinson Cancel.

Continue reading "Makeshift Mets Back In First, But ..."

To try and motivate our bloggers to get inbound links we're going to have a contest to see which blogger can get the most inbound links to their blog. The contest begins now and ends July 31st, 2008. To be entered in to the contest all you have to do is go out and get as many websites to link to your blog as you can and at the end of the month send us an email listing all those links. All links must be active from August 1st through August 7th when we'll be judging the entries - a winner will be announced on August 7th. All entry emails must be received by Midnight on July 31st, 2008. You can email them to sportsfan@nbabasketballonline.com

Continue reading "Inbound link contest - Win $100!"

    This time last week the Mets were 4.5 games behind Philadelphia entering their pivotal four-game series with the division leaders.  After Johan Santana gave up a 2-0 lead and Duaner Sanchez allowed the winning run in the ninth, the horizon looked bleak for the orange and blue.  However, since that devastating defeat, New York has racked up six straight wins and the Mets now find themselves just 1.5 games back of the Phillies in the NL East.  During the winning streak the Mets have scored an average of seven runs per game while yielding only three per contest, including back-to-back shutouts of the Giants on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Continue reading "Mets Go For Seven Straight Tonight at Shea"

    Well, my biggest gripe yesterday was that the Mets never win or lose a game that isn't in question until the final out.  I guess they realized I'm almost out of Pepto and gave me the break I was looking for.  Carlos Beltran belted a three-run home run off Giants ace Tim Lincecum in the first inning and Carlos Delagado and Fernando Tatis each homered later in the game to lead the Mets to their fourth straight win.

Continue reading "Pelfrey and the Mets Finally Make It Easy"

                After coughing up a five-run lead and heading for extra innings, you’d think the Dodger offense would just roll over and die, and drop their fifth straight game to Houston.

Continue reading "Kent's 11th-Hour Homer Gives Dodgers ..."

All right. Are you ready for this? As the All-Star break approaches, the Tampa Bay Rays have the best record in baseball. That’s right. At 49-32, they’re a half-game ahead of Boston, the Cubs, and Anaheim. Whoa. Is this one of the signs of the apocalypse?

Continue reading "Hold On To Your Hats"

The Twins, after beating the Padres 4-3 on Thursday, have won more game in a row than they have since they went on a huge roll two years ago.

During the streak, the Twins have outscored opponents 56-19, and their starters have gone 8-0 with an ERA of 2.17. Wow.

Continue reading "Twins extend win skein to nine"

Twins fans might be getting a case of deja vu now. And they're probably feeling pretty good about it.

The team's recent resurgence is starting to look a lot like the one in 2006, when it went on a tear and won the AL Central crown on the last day of the season. (Let's just forget the horrible playoff series against Oakland.)

Continue reading "Twins top Padres for eighth straight"

Trevor Hoffman is the career saves leader with 539. But the more important statistic this year is home runs -- he's given up five in 26 innings. Last year he gave up only two jacks in 57 and one-third innings.

Continue reading "Twins top Padres on late homers"

A bullpen is all about trust, both for the team and for the fans.  A manager needs to be able to trust a reliever to put the game away, and the fan needs to trust that the reliever won’t cause more headaches with a late-inning meltdown.  An Indians fan spending the ninth inning with Joe Borowski is going skydiving without knowing whether you grabbed a parachute or a parakeet until it’s too late; a Yankees fan spending the ninth inning with Mariano Rivera is awaiting the everyday beauty of watching a simple yet majestic sunset.

Continue reading "Fantastic Four Help Dodgers Avert Cleveland Sweep"

In news obscured by the thrilling conclusion to the U.S. Open and sandwiched between the hype that is the NBA Finals, Bill Bavasi got fired for his failure to produce winners as the general manager of the Seattle Mariners. Bavasi assembled a Mariners team that is falling well short of expectations, as many picked Seattle to win the AL West, and is underperforming in many facets of the game. This shouldn’t really come as a surprise; since becoming GM in 2004, Bavasi has produced one team over .500, last year’s 88-74, and no playoff berths.

Continue reading "Jobless in Seattle: Bavasi Gets the Ax"

                The Dodgers won three games in Petco Park in 2006 and three in 2007, and after recording their third win this season in San Diego on Tuesday, the Dodger offense didn’t seem that eager to extend their winning ways.

Continue reading "Peavy Earns Win in Rehab Start over AAAA Dodgers"

When I say Ol' Roy, of course, I'm not referring to the Wal-Mart brand of dogfood named after the late Sam Walton's late hunting dog Ol' Roy. Rather, the old version of Astros ace Roy Oswalt. You know, the guy who could get guys out and make it look easy.

Continue reading "Ol' Roy O shows up, Astros beat Brewers 6-1"

              On May 9th the Padres released Jim Edmonds, whom they’d signed from the Cardinals over the winter to play centerfield in place of the departed Mike Cameron.  While the Padres’ release of 37-year-old Edmonds freed them of his sub-Mendoza .179 average, they also lost an outstanding defensive outfielder. Edmonds signed with the Cubs five days later, and has shown some signs of rejuvenation batting behind the Cubs’ formidable lineup of Derrek Lee, Aramis Ramirez and Kosuke Fukudome.

Continue reading "Martin, Padres Outfielders Help Dodgers Prevail"

From May 28, 2008 San Diego Padres press release:

The San Diego Padres today acquired right-handed pitcher Cha Seung Baek from the Seattle Mariners in exchange for right-hander Jared Wells.

Baek, who turns 28 tomorrow, appeared in 10 games (one start) for the Mariners this season, going 0-1 with a 5.40 ERA (18 ER/30.0 IP) before he was designated for assignment on May 21.  Born in Pusan, Korea and originally signed by Seattle as a non-drafted free agent on September 25, 1998, Baek is 10-9 with a 4.96 ERA (93 ER/168.2 IP) in 37 career Major League games (24 starts) over parts of four seasons with the Mariners (2004, 2006-08).  He has compiled 107 strikeouts compared to 51 walks.  Cha (chow) Seung (sung) Baek (beck) will join the Padres today and be active for tonight’s game against the Washington Nationals.

Continue reading "San Diego Padres acquire pitcher Baek"

Those west coast games can kill a 34 year old like me.  Anyone who has a child knows staying up past eleven-thirty on a Monday night is out of the question.  Heck, up after ten is not good, but I actually bit the bullet and made it until the top of the eighth.  Looks like Kerry Wood had to earn his 15th save after Carlos Marmol gave up 3 earned runs.  That guy needs a break.  Our pitchers just can't go past  6 innings most the time, and it seems anything past that is a bonus.

Continue reading "I stayed up as long as I could"

Sean Burroughs, the son of former MVP Jeff Burroughs, seemed to be destined for Major League greatness. After all, how many current Major Leaguers grew up in Major League locker rooms (Griffey Jr., Tony Gwynn Jr., Barry Bonds, Prince Fielder).

Continue reading "Is Jeff Clement the Ms version of ..."

April 8, 2008 – From San Diego Padres press release:

The San Diego Padres today placed catcher Michael Barrett on the 15-day disabled list with a strained ligament in his right elbow and recalled catcher Colt Morton from Double-A San Antonio.  Executive Vice President/General Manager Kevin Towers made the announcement. 

Continue reading "San Diego Padres place Barrett on D.L."

Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone!

May 5, 2008 -- Sorry for the delay in updating but I was the busy skipper of the PGSL Div. 1 (10U) Red Alert and we finished 2nd Saturday in our recreation league championship. Overall record was 10-5-2. It was a great run and a great squad of girls and parents.

Continue reading "San Diego Padres update...getting caught up"

On Tuesday night, the Houston Astros did something that they generally don’t do—something really, really good, besides defeating the San Diego Padres 11-7.

 

They not only got hits off of Padres ace Jake Peavey, but they scored

Continue reading "Are the Astros bats waking up? Houston ..."

Monday night’s 10-3 win over the San Diego Padres was what I’d call the ideal type of game for the Houston Astros: if they can play like that more often, then they’ll start winning games. If they make a habit of playing like that, then they’ll have one of those newfangled ticker-tape parades in downtown Houston in November.

Continue reading "Astros get good pitching and hitting, ..."

April 7, 2008 -- San Diego Padres at San Francisco Giants, 1:35 p.m. start PDT; Channel 4 San Diego will telecast. Yesterday was ASA Softball Day at Petco Park; the PGSL girls were there in force and

Continue reading "San Diego Padres Opening Week"

March 31, 2008 -- Like much of Major League Baseball today is the opening day of the 2008 season; tonight's game is 7:05 at Petco Park where the Padres have their home opener against the Houston A

Continue reading "San Diego Padres Opening Day 2008"

March 26, 2008 -- The San Diego Padres announced yesterday that it would give free tickets to first responders and victims of the wildfires in San Diego County last October for this Friday's Spring Training Contest (March 28) at Petco Park between the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and the Padres. Players will wear ballcaps from first responder agencies and organizations. 1,500 families that qualify for the tickets can still pick them up from their local long-term assistance centers. Pre-game activities will be devoted to the more than 35 organizations that assisted in relief efforts. Included are local fire agencies, law enforcement agencies, the U.S. Red Cross,  the U.S. Border Patrol and various animal help agencies; on Tuesday the Padres announced that the team has exercised manager Bud Black's contract option for the 2009 season. Black led the 2007 Padres to an 89-74 record, the squad's best record since 1998. Black's winning percentage of .546 was the best for a first-year "skipper" in the majors since 2003. Black is the 16th Padres manager; also on Tuesday the Padres optioned three more players to Triple-A Portland and three others were assigned to minor league camp. Infielders Byron Myrow, Oscar Robles and Craig Stansberry were optioned to Portland while RHP Adam Bass, LHP Shawn Estes and OF Chip Ambres were reassigned to the Beavers. As of today that leaves the major league squad with 32 players in camp including 30 from the 40-man roster and two non-roster invitees; Jake Peavy gets his final start of Spring Training today against the Texas Rangers at 1:05 p.m. PDT (Double XX SportsRadio AM 1090 & FM 105.7) live from Peoria...Ah the last days of Spring Training...

Continue reading "San Diego Padres today"

March 24, 2008 -- Today's Padres update; The Padres play today in Tempe against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, game time is 1:05 p.m. PDT (Double XX SportsRadio 1090 & 105.7); we like Vlad

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March 19, 2008 -- All the San Diego Padres news you need to know is right here.

The San Diego Padres issued a March 18, 2008 press release announcing roster moves. Twelve players were reassigned to a Padres minor league camp, four were optioned to the minor leagues while RHP Mike Gardner was outrighted to triple-A Scranton. 

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March 18, 2008 -- Trevor Hoffman visited with Jerry Coleman before today's 2008 Spring Training contest between the Chicago White Sox and the visiting San Diego Padres. Game time is 1:05 (Double XX SportsRadio 1090 AM & 105.7 FM); location is Tucson (Tucson Electric Park). Trevor is ever the professional and gentleman; straight forward and a great baseball communicator; articulate. He told Jerry that on both a historical and personal level it was special to visit China as a professional player.  He referenced a bit of an eerieness in the air due to protestors in the the northern portion of China. "Things are going on so they are a little bit sensitive." Hoffman also talked about young baseball talent in San Antonio and its successes of last season. Hoffman said Matt Antonelli (among others) is going to make a splash with the San Diego Padres. Trevor is slowly working back into his season-ready workout regiment. Lots of long hours on the plane and little baseball time he referenced. Hoffman was back running wind sprints on the field in Peoria after only 12 hours off the plane. He said that player's bodies should be about right now heading into the season. "Some long toss for pitchers, gage any soreness then step up the workout or slow it down."

Continue reading "San Diego Padres: Thoughts from Trevor Hoffman"

March 18, 2008 -- Trevor Hoffman visited with Jerry Coleman before today's 2008 Spring Training contest between the Chicago White Sox and the visiting San Diego Padres. Game time is 1:05 (Double XX SportsRadio 1090 AM & 105.7 FM); location is Tucson (Tucson Electric Park). Trevor is ever the professional and gentleman; straight forward and a great baseball communicator; articulate. He told Jerry that on both a historical and personal level it was special to visit China as a professional player.  He reference a bit of an eerieness in the air due to protestors in the the northern portion of China. "Things are going on so they are a little bit sensitive." Hoffman also talked about young baseball talent in San Antonio and its successes of last season. Hoffman said Matt Antonelli (among others) is going to make a splash with the San Diego Padres. Trevor is slowly working back into his season-ready workout regiment. Lots of long hours on the plane and little baseball time he referenced. Hoffman was back running wind sprints on the field in Peoria after only 12 hours off the plane. He said that player's bodies should be about right now heading into the season. "Some long toss for pitchers, gage any soreness then step up the workout or slow it down."

Continue reading "San Diego Padres: Thoughts from Trevor Hoffman"

March 17, 2008 -- Yesterday's Spring Training game between the San Diego Padres & Colorado Rockies was canceled due to rain.

Today, the Padres are at the Arizona Diamondbacks in Tucson (Tucson Electric Park), game time 1:05 p.m. Today Shawn Estes starts after yesterday's cancelation; the game is over and the Diamondbacks defeated the Padres 8-4. Shawn Estes took the loss. Padres pitchers gave up 19 hits. Jody Gerut homered for the Padres.

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http://wizbangsports.com/2008/03/chan_ho_park_on_the_comeback_tr

The South Korean baseball star is trying to re-establish himself with the Los Angeles Dodgers. From the Chosun Ilbo-

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Mike Cameron has requested permission to use banned substances in the 2008 season.  He doesnt seem like the brightest player out there. He is currently suspended for the first 25 games of the season for breaking the substance abuse policy.  Mike claims that he may be suffering from post-concussion sydrome from his collision in 2005, while he was still playing with the Mets.  It has now been three years since his nasty run-in with Beltran and he just now is starting to have complications.  I find this highly unlikely.  Especially because he only had a "

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Billy Crystal got his chance to take a Major League AB today for the Yankees.  He led off the bottom of the first as a DH with a strike out.  Apparently he was able to make some minor contact and foul one off on the first base side.  This is the absolutely dumbest thing ever.  Mainly because I am jealous.  But the guy is damn near 60 years old so I guess just let him have his enjoyment.  The incident finishes about 4th in silly celebrity involvements in the ML ranks (to my knowledge).  Just behind when Garth Brooks played in ST with the Padres in '99 and went 1-22.  2nd place honors going to Garth Brooks in 2000 when he suited up with the Mets and went 0-17.  First place of course goes to a fella named Garth Brooks, a country western singer who in 2004 put on Royals uniform and managed to get himself 1 hit in 8 tries.  I think he led the Royals in hits that year.  Reggie Sanders was pissed.  Brooks did it for charity so I guess I should give him a pass.  But I don’t. 

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Tuesday March 11, 2008 - The San Diego Padres are preparing to depart on a worldwide Spring Training road trip to Beijing, China. A portion of the Padres will travel while a squad stays behind to play in Peoria. The Padres take on the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim today at 1:05 p.m. in Peoria. The departing portion of the roster leaves today from Phoenix on a flight to Beijing. Justin Germano is scheduled to start the first game on March 14 against the Dodgers. Peavy, Young and Maddox are staying in Arizona to prepare for the start of the season. Trevor Hoffman, Adrian Gonzalez and Kevin Kouzmanoff will travel to China; 26 players in all will make the trip, many likely headed to the Padres' minor league system this season. Germano looked sharp last night on Channel 4 Padres telecast, going 4 scoreless two-hit innings. Over the weekend on Sunday, March 9, 2008 the Padres defeated the Chicago White Sox 12-4 convincingly. The Padres scored seven runs in the eighth inning to break the game open. Adrian Gonzalez and Luis Rodriguez were both 2 for 3 at the plate. The Edmonds leg injury now looks like 3 weeks out for the veteran former St. Louis Cardinal. Edmonds has had a great career; respected and revered and we've loved calling him "Jimmy World"  all along.  As a centerfielder, he  can go get a batted ball with the best of alltime. I hope you find the fountain of youth in San Diego.

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Over the next several weeks I will preview the upcoming Major League Baseball season on division at a time by addressing the key issue each team faces this summer. I’ll wrap it up with my post season picks and predictions for award winners. First up is the National League West.

Continue reading "MLB 2008 Preview Part One: National League West"

Someone forgot to tell the NL West they were supposed to be the worst division in baseball last year.  Out of nowhere this division became arguably the best division in the league and had one of the most fantastic finishes in recent memory.  That play-in game was a game I will be talking about for years and I will never forget the Rockies historic run to the World Series.  This year promises to be another great race in this division.

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March 7, 2008 - The San Diego Padres won their Spring Training game today. They beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 6-3. Scott Hairston homered and Michael Gardner got the win.

The Padres play @ Texas Rangers tomorrow at 12:05 p.m. Pacific.

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March 7, 2008 - San Diego Padres centerfielder Jim Edmonds was expected to get an MRI sometime today after injuring his right calf muscle in Thursday's Spring Training game. Results could be avail

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March 7, 2008 -- The San Diego Padres host the Arizona Diamondbacks today at 12:05 p.m. PST. Doug Davis throws for the Diamondbacks while new Dad Chris Young is set for the Padres. It is Young's second start of the 2008 Spring Training schedule.

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March 4, 2008 -- The San Diego San Diego Padres will televise the follow Spring Training games on Channel 4 San Diego. The games are:

Chicago (AL) @ Padres (Peoria) Sunday, March 9 @ 1:05 p.m.; Texas Rangers @ Padres (Peoria)  Monday, March 10 @ 7:05 p.m.; Los Angeles Dodgers @ Padres  (Beijing, China) Friday March 14 @ 10:05 p.m.; Padres @ Los Angeles Dodgers (Beijing, China) Saturday, March 15 @ 10:05 p.m.; Kansas City Royals @ Padres (Peoria) Tuesday, March 25 @ 7:05 p.m.; Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim @ Padres (Petco Park) Friday, March 28 @ 7:05 p.m.

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Yesterday saw the mandatory report date for Spring Training Camp of the San Diego Padres along with the other 29 teams of Major League Baseball. As a fan of the friars, I am cautiously content with the off-season work that General Manager Kevin Towers and his staff produced for the dog days of summer.

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It figures. The Chicago Cubs have invested millions of dollar to rehabilitate their pitchers on top of the multi-million dollars they were paying them. When Mark Prior signed with the San Diego Padres this off-season I said to everyone I know that he'd be healthy for Spring Training.

Continue reading "San Diego to Benefit from Cubdom's Millions?"