Thank You, #51
Today, Trevor Hoffman decided to retire, according to MLB.com. He was a class act on and off the field, and a great San Diego icon. Trevor had a Hall of Fame career, and was one of the best closers in MLB history. Whenever he entered to save a game, people knew. The “Hells Bells” song as he entered was one of the greatest moments in sports. Here is my tribute to #51.
Timeline/Accomplishments:
1. Drafted by the Reds as a shortstop in the 1989 amateur draft
2. Switched to pitcher mid-year, because of a suggestion by single A manager Jim Lett.
3. Drafted by Marlins in the 1992 expansion draft
4. Traded to the Padres in a deal which involved Gary Sheffield going to Florida.
5. Took over at the closing role in the strike shortened season of ’94, recording 20 saves and having a 2.57 ERA.
6. In the 1995 off-season, he developed his changeup, which became his bread and butter pitch.
7. In 1998, he recorded 53 saves and took his team to the World Series. The Padres lost that series to the Yankees. He finished 2nd in the CY Young voting that year.
8. In 2005, he recorded his 400th save in a game vs the Cardinals.
9. On September 24, he became the #1 saves leader in MLB history, in a 2-1 win over the Pirates.
10. On June 6th of 2007, he recorded save #500.
11. The Padres decided not to pick up his $4 million dollar option. He signed a 1 year deal with the Brewers.
12. He had one of the best seasons of his career, putting up 37 saves with a 1.83 ERA.
13. He returned to the Brewers on another 1 year deal in 2010.
14. Although having a tough year, he got save #600 on September 7, 2010.
15. He retired on January 11, 2011 with a career total of 601 saves.
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Thank you, Trevor, for everything you have brought to the game of baseball.
Although his on the field accomplishments are over, he is expected to sign and have a front office job with the Padres.
A press conference is expected to happen tomorrow at PETCO Park at around 9 AM PT to officially announce his retirement.
Thank you, Trevor, for everything you brought to San Diego!
(photo’s courtesy of sportsillustrated.cnn.com, photobucket.com, flikr.com, gaslampball.com, bleacherreport.com, youtube.com)
Cameron Maybin
On Saturday afternoon, the Padres dealt young right handers Ryan Webb and Edward Mujica to the Marlins for young, talented outfielder Cameron Maybin. The Padres went into their deepest position and talent to cover one of their needs this off-season.
Maybin was drafted 10th overall out of high school by the Detroit Tigers in 2005. He was the 2004 baseball america high school player of the year. He had fantastic success in the Minor Leagues, but has struggled in 548 career big league at bats.
Maybin has loads of potential, and I’m talking all star potential. He has all 5 tools, but they are very raw, as you can expect. He is only 23 years old. If he did not enter the draft out of high school and went to college instead, in 2011 he will only be in his 2nd pro season.
There are a few flaws in Maybin’s game, though. Cam has trouble making contact as a big league ballplayer. He only makes contact 81 percent of the time when the ball is in the strike zone, compared to the league average of 88 percent. His defense is sometimes suspect, but he has loads of range. Maybin also has a 3.10 range factor last year, highest in the big leagues.
Now let’s take a look at this deal from a Marlins perspective. It’s apparent that they wanted to rid of any thing that had to do with the Miguel Cabrera blockbuster they pulled off a few years ago, as they also dealt Andrew Miller earlier this week. What the Marlins got were 2 good, solid bullpen arms for Maybin. Ryan Webb has nasty stuff, and will fit in well for the Marlins. Mujica has trouble giving up home runs, but overall he is a solid pitcher.
My take? I think the Padres got a steal. They didn’t deal from their core bullpen guys, and they got a great talent in return. The upside is HUGE with Cameron Maybin. If you look at his stats, you may go, “eh.” But he is only 23 years old. A great talent, and if he can put it together and grow into a big league ballplayer with the Padres, it’ll pay some pretty huge dividends. Time will only tell if this trade was successful or not, but right now, I like it.
FOR:
and:
(photo’s courtesy of zimbio.com, wikipedia.com, and sportsnet.ca)
10 Game Losing Streak
The Padres are in the midst of a 10 game losing streak. I don’t think anyone expected this, but it’s baseball. Anything can happen. You have good games and bad ones. Good streaks and bad streaks. It’s just part of the game. Absolutely nothing is going right for the Padres right now. Nothing is going their way, their D is mediocre, and they’re slumping with the bats. They are pressing big time. The good thing is, even with this slide, they still own a 1 game lead over the Giants in the West. But, of course, the Padres need to start winning. And i’m sure everyone knows that, it’s no secret.
Slumps are strange things. You never know when they might strike. Just when you think you’re team will break out of one, something goes wrong. When you never think they’re going to get out of it, something goes right and you’re back on track. It’s weird, it really is. But then again, baseball is a beautiful, mystified game.
There are a few things that I recommend the Padres do to break out of this funk. I don’t want to be the manager or anything, just my opinions. Here they are:
1. LINEUP CHANGE:
Over this slump, Bud Black has changed the lineup around a little. Yesterday’s lineup was awesome. Here is my proposed lineup:
1. Chris Denorfia/Will Venable
2. David Eckstein
3. Ryan Ludwick
4. Adrian Gonzalez
5. Miguel Tejada
6. Yorvit Torrealbla
7. Chase Headley
8. Mike Baxter/Aaron Cunningham/Scott Hairston
9. Pitchers spot
Ryan Ludwick has been struggling as a Padre2. , so putting him in front of AGon will give him better pitches to hit. Miguel Tejada has been a good addition and has been hitting well, and putting him behind Gonzo is a good idea in my opinion.
2. BREATHE
This team is pressing, there is no doubt about it. They are playing tight, nervous baseball, a far cry from the first half of 2010 where they were playing good, aggressive ball. Adrian Gonzalez said “I see guys looking at the scoreboard to see if the Giants are losing.” That’s a no-no. Forget about the Giants. Forget you are even in a pennant race. Go out, and have fun. Play good, aggressive, relentless ball. That’s what got you here in the first place.
3. PATIENCE
This team has been swinging at a lot of 1st pitches, and has not worked the count. They need to do the opposite. Be patient. Work the count. Draw some walks. Get into the opponents’ bullpen early.
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It’s easier said, or in this case, typed, than done. This is basically the first test the Padres have had to go through this year. They need to work through this. Put together some good AB’s. Catch the ball. Pitch. Do that, and the results will come.
As Steve Adler of Friarhood.com said on Twitter, “If you don’t believe now, you never really did to begin with.”
(photo courtesy of swrnn.com)
(photo courtesy of gaslampball.com)
Today the Padres start a 3 game series vs. the Dodgers at PETCO Park. Now, Mat Latos is sick with the flu, so I am not sure if he will make his scheduled start today. The Dodgers will send Vicente Padilla to the mound.
THE STREAK STOPS TODAY!!!!
GO PADRES!!!!!!
BELIEVE!!!!!
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Resilience
The Padres wrapped up a 4 game series vs. the Dodgers in LA on Thursday, hoping to snap their brief 2 game losing streak. They did just that, shutting out the Dodgers 5-0 to take a 2 game lead over the Giants, who lost to the Braves, in the NL West.
A key part to this Padres ballclub is resilience. They do not get upset if they lose a couple games in a row. These last 3 games were a prime example of it. After being on the wrong end of masterful pitching performances by Ted Lilly and Vicente Padilla, in which the Padres only scored 1 run in 18 innings. The Padres had to face the Dodgers right-hander Chad Billingsley on Thursday. They needed a win. They needed runs. And in the 4th, they finally broke through, scoring 3 runs highlighted by RBI singles by Yorvit Torrealba and Chase Headley. The pitching did the rest. Kevin Correia, Joe Thatcher, Esterno Frieri, Luke Gregerson, and Heath Bell pitched scoreless baseball to give the Padres a 5-0 win. The Padres scored their last 2 runs on possibly the wackiest inside the park home run ever.
Tony Gwynn Jr led off the 9th with a walk. In stepped Chris Denorfia. He took 3 pitches, 2 balls and 1 strike was the count. On the 2-1 pitch, Tony Gwynn Jr was attempting a steal. Chris Denorfia swung away and chopped a ball over Casey Blake at 3rd base. The was going down the line, and Scott Podsednik, the Dodgers left fielder, misplayed the ball, as it went all the way to the wall. Denorfia, hustling, made it all away around the bases for a ground ball chopper inside the park home run. Just when you think you’ve seen it all, something you’ve never seen happens. I love that about baseball.
Getting back to the resilience factor, let me give you some stats. Following a shutout loss, the Padres are 6-0. Following 2 straight losses, the Padres are 12-1. They never give up, and I love that about this team. That is a big part of why they are in first place, 2 games over the Giants, in the NL West.
The Padres head to Arizona where they take on the Diamondbacks for 3 games starting today. First pitch today is 6:40 PM PT, Jon Garland pitches for the Padres vs. Daniel Hudson of the DBacks.
GO PADRES!!!!!!
Miguel Tejada & Ryan Ludwick Acquisitions
The Padres made 2 key moves within a matter of 48 hours, improving their lineup and their ballclub overall. They acquired Miguel Tejada and Ryan Ludwick. In this post, I am going to break down the trades & explain why both trades made sense for the Padres.
Miguel Tejada
On July 29th, the Padres bolstered their infield by acquiring Miguel Tejada, a veteran that was, before the trade, a Baltimore Oriole. With the Orioles in 2010, Miguel Tejada hit .269 with 7 homers and 39 RBI. The trade was made because the Padres needed a proven hitter who could play multiple positions. Also, with Everth Cabrera struggling to produce (.199 AVG), it made sense for Jed to go out and get someone that could produce and become an everyday SS. Now, to acquire Tejada, the Padres gave up minor league pitcher Wynn Pelzer. Pelzer will be a reliever. He has a 6-9 record with a 4.30 ERA with San Antonio, can throw up to 95 MPH, but it erratic at times, walking 56 in 96 1/3 innings. Overall, I think it was a good acquisition for the Padres, as they got a solid bat, and, from what i’ve seen watching Tejada play short the last 3 games, a decent glove, too. 
(photo courtesy of chrisoleary.com)
Ryan Ludwick
On the July 31st trade deadline at about 9:45 AM, I turned on MLB Network, which had up-to-the-minute trade deadline coverage. They had Jon Heyman on the phone, and I heard them talking about a proposed deal which would send Ryan Ludwick to the Padres as part of a 3 team trade. The deal would send Jake Westbrook to the Cardinals plus a prospect, Ryan Ludwick to the Padres, and a minor league prospect to the Indians I was excited. A proven right handed OF hitter, solid defender, I was stoked. I then heard it was official. Ryan Ludwick was a Padre. Ludwick had a .281 batting average with the Cardinals, hitting 11 HR and 43 RBI. Oh yeah, and he leads the league with a .448 average with RISP. So then I was wondering who the Padres had to give up to make a Ludwick 3 team deal even possible. Turns out, the Padres had to send Nick Greenwood to the Cardinals and Corey Kluber to the Indians. Greenwood has a 1.63 ERA in 66 IP in single A, and Corey Kluber, a right hander, has a 6-6 record in AA with a 3.45 ERA. What I like about this deal is not only did the Pads get Ryan Ludwick, but got to keep Corey Luebke, Simon Castro, and Keyvius Sampson, their top minor league pitching prospects. I believe Ryan Ludwick will really help the Padres lineup. Also, Ludwick is a good defender, so the defense will be solid out in right-center-left field, depending on where he starts.
(photo courtesy of gsmcellphonereview.com)
I am really happy with what Jed Hoyer, the Padres GM, did at the trading deadline. These last 2 and a half months of the season will be really exciting, there’s no doubt about that. I am really excited to watch this ballclub play day in and day out.
GO PADRES!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Day at the ballpark
The Padres started off the second half on a fantastic note, sweeping a 3 game series versus the D-Backs. I was lucky enough to go to one game, thanks to Hyun Young of Perpetual Padres Saga.
So first of all, Hyun Young had a contest. The Eckstein’s offered her 4 tickets, and she could only bring 3 people besides herself. 10 people entered the contest, and me, Kaybee (from Unfinished Business) and Hyun Young’s friend won the contest, so we got to go to the game. It was awesome.
We all met up in front of the VIP entrance at 3:30, and entered the stadium. We went to find out seats, (which were on field level, 21 rows up on the first base side) then tried for some autographs. Kaybee got Adrian Gonzalez’s and Chris Young’s, but i couldn’t quite get theirs. It was okay, though. We were walking back up to our seats when Angela, the head of the photograph crew at PETCO, came down to see us. She gave us a tour of the press box, which was absolutely amazing. I saw Dick Enberg and Andy Masur up there, we got to visit Jerry Coleman’s box, and more. It was awesome, and Angela was really nice to give us a tour of the press box.
After we toured the box, we watched batting practice for about an hour, then David Eckstein came out of the dugout. Hyun Young had a sign that said “Fear The Scrappy” and she got that signed. She introduced us to him, I shook his hand and he signed my baseball, which was awesome. He was really cool. After Eck talked with us, he went to go warm up his arm with Chase Headley. While we were watching the players warm up, and just before the lineups were announced, Eckstein’s wife, Ashley, showed up, and we all got to talk with her for like 4 innings, she was awesome, and i got to hear a lot of stuff about her and David’s life. All the stuff I did before the game and during the game i will never forget.
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GAME RECAP
I was hoping that the Padres would score a lot of runs, because usually, when I go to a game, it’s a 2-1 or 3-2 game. I was lucky enough to see a high scoring game, with some rare moments.
In the first inning, the Padres broke through on an RBI single by Yorvit Torreabla. This guy has been a tremendous addition to the ballclub.
In the top of the 3rd inning, the D-Backs offense broke through against Clayton Richard, scoring 3 runs highlighted by a couple of RBI base knocks.
In the bottom of the 3rd, though, then Padres got those runs right back. Jerry Hairston Jr. led off the inning with his 7th big fly of the season. After Eck and A-Gon were retired, Chase Headley walked. Yorvit Torreabla promptly smoked one over the left field fence, making it 4-3 Friars.
In the top of the 4th, Chris Young hit a solo shot for the D-Backs, banging off the second deck, making it a tie ballgame.
Clayton settled down after that home run, though. And in the bottom of the 5th, Adrian Gonzalez went yard to dead center field, giving the Padres a 5-4 lead.
In the bottom of the 6th, the first two Padres were retired in order. Tony Gwynn then hit a sinking line drive to left field, Rusty Ryal dived….. and could not make the grab! The ball rolled all the way to the wall, and everyone in the crowd was rooting Tony on, he rounded second, rounded third, the throw home…. SAFE!!! An inside the park home run! Everyone, including me in the ballpark was going absolutely crazy. Tony is the first player since Jimmy Rollins in 04 to hit 2 inside the park home runs in the same season.
The Diamondbacks made it interesting in the 8th, though. They got an RBI single by Justin Upton to make it 6-5, and Upton stole second shortly thereafter. Mark Reynolds then grounded out, and Joe Thatcher, the lefty specialist, came in to K Adam LaRoche. After 6 1/2, it was 6-5 Padres.
In the bottom of the 7th, with 2 out, Adrian Gonzalez walked. Chase Headley came up, and drove one into left center field. Justin Upton took a bad route to the ball, and the ball got past him and rolled all the way to the wall, and Adrian Gonzalez was chugging around the basepaths and scored easily, as Chase Headley had a stand up triple. Yorvit Torreabla then surprised everyone, laying down a perfect bunt and beating the throw to first to make it 8-5.
Luke Gregerson got a 1-2-3 inning in the 8th, and Heath came into the 9th. He came in to face the 8-9-1 hitters, and he truly “blew them away” as his entrance song is. Padres win 8-5!!!
I had an awesome time at the game. The crowd was electric, it was all around a great experience. Thank you Hyun Young for the ticket, it was awesome!
Today the Padres have an off day, but head over to Atlanta to take on the braves in a 3 game set.
GO PADRES!!!!!!!
First Half Review
What a first half it was for the San Diego Padres. This team, that nobody expected anything from, is 2 games ahead of the Rockies and Dodgers for first place. In this post, I am going to show you some key players that have helped the Friars to first place after the first half of the 2010 regular season.
1. MAT LATOS
Mat has been a star so far this season. 10-4, ERA of 2.45, WHIP of 0.97, and a opponents batting average of .193. You can’t do much better than that in the first half of the season. It’s been reported that the Padres are gonna rest this young stud for a few starts after the break, which is fine with me. You don’t want to overuse and risk injury in a young starting pitcher, especially with the stuff he has. All of this said, he has been a key factor in the 51-37 Padres.
(photo courtesy of friarhood.com)
2. Padres Bullpen
The Padres bullpen is by far the best in the league. I’m not bragging, they have all the stats to prove it. A 2.91 ERA, 296 K’s, and holding teams to a combined .217 average all point to the Padres bullpen. They also have fantastic 7-8-9 inning guys, with Gregorson, Adams, and Bell respectively. They are known now, to Padres nation, as GAB. Also, Ryan Webb and Tim Stauffer, who just recovered from appendix removal have stepped in when members of the GAB need a break. Lefty Joe Thatcher has retired some good left handed batters with a nice curveball and a sneaky fastball.
3. Catching Crew
Not only has Yorvit Torreabla and Nick Hundley done an awesome job with the pitching staff, they also have made a big difference with the bats as well. Nick Hundley is more of the power guy, while Yorvit Torreabla will hit singles and doubles. It is a great combination to have, and you know, whether it’s Yorvit or Nick, that you’ll have a good man behind the plate and a good hitter up there when it’s time to swing the lumber.
(photo’s courtesy of sdnn.com and kaybee.mlblogs.com)
4. Adrian Gonzalez
What else can be said about this guy? He is a beast. 18 homers, 56 RBI’s, a .301 batting average, a gold glove at first base, he can do it all. Absolutely incredible. 
(photo courtesy of si.com)
5. David Eckstein
David Eckstein is, as me and Padres announcer Mark Grant like to call him, our “Little Mascot”. He always does the little things (and the big things) right. Runner on second and nobody out? No problem, he can go opposite field and move the runner over to 3rd base. Need a walk off homer? No problem. He proved he can do that in April vs. the Giants. Hyun Young of Perpetual Padres Saga made a sign that said “Fear the Scrappy.” Fear him indeed. He is an awesome member of the Padres, a great leader who always does the little things correctly. 
(photo courtesy of zimbio.com)
The San Diego Padres also have a few players that I didn’t mention that make a big impact on this team. Chase Headley had a solid first half, batting .270. Aaron Cunningham has come up from the minors and made a huge impact. Clayton Richard, Jon Garland, Wade LeBlanc, and Kevin Correia have all been solid in the rotation. I am really, really excited to watch this team in the second half of the 2010 campaign. I think we can keep proving doubters wrong and keep winning. It will be an exciting second half of the season, there is no doubt about that.
The Home run derby is today, who do you guys think will win it? I think that Hanley Ramirez will take home the HR derby title. I think he’ll win it because more of his home runs are line drive home runs, not fly ball homers. That’ll benefit him in the derby. We can only wait and see who comes out with the 2010 home run derby.
GO PADRES!!!!!!!!!!!!
Pitching & Defense
My laziness, (sigh) I’m so sorry for not blogging for a really long time. It is awful, but I totally will start blogging more, I PROMISE. It’s just been hard, I went to Wisconsin for two weeks this month, got home, but i know that’s not an excuse. Anyway, it’s time to start blogging more. starting….. NOW!
The Padres currently lead the NL West by 3 1/2 games over the Dodgers. They are 16 games over .500 with a record of 49-33. They are an example of why, still, even in the days of 9-8 games, tape measure home runs, pitching and defense still wins championships. Incredible. Some facts: They are hitting .245 as a team, ranked 14th in the NL. They have hit 58 home runs, also ranked 14th in the NL. on base percentage is .317, and their slugging percentage is .362. Those are all near the bottom of the pack in the NL, yet, they are tied for the best record in the NL, and have the 2nd best record in the NL.
Now, the pitching stats. They have a 3.05 ERA, best in the big leagues. They have 12 shutouts, also the most in the big leagues. They’ve walked 259 batters, second least to the Cardinals. All of this said, if you have the pitching, you don’t need to score 5, 6 runs a game to get wins.
Defense stats? Well, they have committed 32 errors, second least to the Reds, who have committed 31. Their fielding percentage is .990, which is tied with the Reds for the best in the NL.
This ballclub is absolutely incredible. Sure, they don’t score 7 runs a game and have a batting average of .300, but they play the game the right way, and are fundamentally sound. Also, they never give up. Whether they’re down 12-2 or up 12-2, they never give away an at-bat, no matter what.
Now, switching subjects to the all star game, the Padres had a few snubs. Adrian Gonzalez made the All Star team as a reserve, as expected, he deserves it. 
But the Padres pitching staff leads the league in ERA, as you read earlier, but don’t have one pitcher in the all star game. Mat Latos is 9-4 with a 2.62 ERA, and has held hitters to a .192 average, and is very deserving of a all star appearance.
Heath Bell has an ERA under 2, leads the league with 23 saves, and didn’t make it. He is on the final vote ballot though, so I hope he makes it on that. 
There are a couple positives to no Padres being selected, though. They get some much needed rest, which is big. Also, it will keep them motivated to keep playing at a high level, and who can’t use a little motivation?
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I’m so excited to watch this ballclub right now. Every game, they give it their all, no matter what. They get barely any national recognition, but they don’t care. They just go to every game with the same thought process: get timely hitting, field the ball, and pitch. What a ballclub.
The Padres have an off day today, as they head to Washington to play a 3 game series vs. the Nationals starting on Tuesday.
LET’S DO THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!
GO PADRES!!!
Interesting Ballclub
First of all, I’m sorry for not blogging for about a month. School’s been busy, I finished it last week, though. I will start blogging more, I promise.
This Padres ballclub is very interesting. They play more old-style baseball than the modern game. Their pitching is fantastic, and if they can get one more bat, one more power hitter, for example a Corey Hart, this team will be good. The reason they are winning right now is they are pitching well. If you are an ordinary fan, nothing strikes you or gets you worried about the Padres. So why are they a NL best 32-22? Timely hitting, good pitching, and good defense.
The Padres have a new hero every single night. It’s not just one man getting it done, it’s the entire group. Take this for example: Wednesday, against the Mets, the Padres were held scoreless through the first 8 innings. Tony Gwynn led off the 9th with a single, and then proceeded to steal 2nd base. Matt Stairs and Jerry Hairston then K’d, bringing up David Eckstein. He singled up the middle, driving in Tony to tie the game at 1 apiece. The Padres then won it in the 11th on an Adrian Gonzalez walk off grand slam. It’s really awesome, because you know that even if some hitters in your lineup are slumping, other guys can come through.
Now to the pitching side of things: The Padres have 5 quality starters. Sure, they don’t have a #1 elite pitcher, but they have 5 guys that could be a #2. Wade LeBlanc, Jon Garland, Mat Latos, Kevin Correia, and Clayton Richard could all be #2′s on a lot of teams. Mat Latos, though, is going to be a #1 starter for the Padres for a long time. He has the stuff, and is growing a lot this season as a starting pitcher. Wade LeBlanc is coming into his own as well. He was dominant in his first couple starts of the season, then struggled in 2 straight starts. He rebounded and did not have a bad outing last time out against the Mets, throwing 5.1 innings of 2 run ball. Jon Garland is pitching very well, along with Clayton Richard. Kevin Correia had a tough 2 outings after the death of his brother, but then won his next start, although he didn’t pitch well, giving up 6 runs.
All of this said, one big bat could make a big difference for the Padres. I prefer they go after Corey Hart of the Milwaukee Brewers, who is a right handed slugger that would be great in a lefty-filled lineup. The Brewers want pitching, and the Padres have an abundance of pitching, more than enough, so I think the Padres and Brewers could make a deal there.
The Padres lost game 1 to the Phillies yesterday, but today they’re back at it again. Jon Garland, who’s been stellar for the Padres this season, goes up against lefty Jamie Moyer. Should be a great game, first pitch is at 4:05 PM PT.
I hope everyone has a great and safe day today, God bless!
Oh yeah, and I’m on Twitter now. Follow me if you want to. My Twitter page is at: http://twitter.com/Friar_Faithful
GO PADRES!!!!!!
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