Saturday, April 29, 2006

Shut out Again

Padres lost last night to the LA Dodgers (3-0) because basically they are in an all-time hitting funk.

The Quotes
From the UT, Bochy rates the slump as "worst in his 12 year tenure."

Ducksnorts pleads a case for Magadan, as in don't fire him. But, Geoff, just because Dave had plate discipline doesn't mean he can teach plate discipline.

LA Times Online has this nasty little paragraph:
"The Padres, the defending NL West champions, have lost four in a row and are already at the bottom of the division at 8-14."

What are they saying exactly?

NCTimes had this to say
"The lowest-scoring team in the major leagues, the Padres were shut out for the second time in three games to lose their fourth in a row and fall to 3-10 at home and 8-14 overall. On their current homestand, the Padres are averaging 1.9 runs per game and batting .183 (49-for-267)."

Pitching Wasted
And another good pitching performance is wasted. Chris Young and his cold thumb (?) pitched well into the 6th inning. Good job, Chris.

But according the Ben Johnson, "its a long season and there is still time to come back..."

And thats why we love baseball, there is always hope.

Moores In Town
Nice little profile of John Moores in the UT sports section highlighting his work for the Carter Center. He's also concered the Aztecs will get screwed if the Chargers leave town.

Go Padres

Padre Mike

Quips
1. Dave had a meeting with the hitters around the batting cage, according to the NCT. The quip after last nights game: is it too early to have another meeting? Sounds like software development.

2. Petco Curse update- Obviously wearing my underwear backwards did no good at all. The Curse seems stronger then ever. Starting to suspect that the only thing to lift the Curse is a road trip.

3. John Moores apparently visited the dugout after last night's loss. My a visit from the big guy can lift the Curse.

Friday, April 28, 2006

Frumpy and Grumpy

Padres play LA in a SoCal Smackdown Showdown weekend series that always gets the crowd fired up. The Dodgers are 10-12, two games out of first in forth place and the Padres are dwellin in the cellar. Dodger blogs are filled with injury talk. Colleague at work who is a big Dodger fan doesn't hold out much hope for his team either.

So, should be an exciting weekend of well-played baseball, no?

But grumpiness aside, I'm hoping the vets (Giles, Piazza, Cameron, Vinny) start making contributions at the plate (i'll take anything, walks, getting hit, catcher interferance) and that the young guys (Greene, AG, Barfield), relax a little and hit the ball. If the hitting comes around, even a little, we could win a couple from the lowly (but not as lowly as the Padres) Dodgers.

If not, fire Dave.

Excuses
"Its only April" is the refrain I hear all the time on sports radio about the Padres slow start. Ducksnorts points out we had a similar record at this time last year before reeling off a terrific May and then hanging on for dear life.

But fans are not buying it. In this market you gotta win or we're headed to the zoo, Balboa Park, Old Town, Julian, Wild Animal Park, beach (kinda cold), Mission Bay, Coronado, Gaslamp, desert, LA, OC, Vegas, Mammoth, Big Bear, surfing; well, you get the point.

Attendance
Attendance is off nearly 5K from last year according to the UT. The UT also have a nice poll asking fans about the Padres.

Guess who fans would pay to see the most after Peavy (number 1). Khalil Green. Didn't know so many screaming middle school girls were also Padre fans.

Go Padres

Padre Mike

Quips
1. Got a comment on the blog the other day. I was so excited. Turned out to be spam. Blogging is a long slog.

2. Got my profile up and a picture taken at The Field. Lousy picture, but this is a lousy blog, so at least we have consistancy.

3. Have not heard one caller on STR (sports talk radio) say anything about Dave Magadan. So I'll say it hear (were I know nobody is listening), if the bats remain cold through this series, Dave has to be called out if not fired outright.

Thursday, April 27, 2006

Time For Action- Removing the Petco Curse

Ok, its official, Petco is cursed and it's time to exercise the curse so the Padres can start hitting the ball again. Oh, I hear the arguments that its not the park but the players, but I'm not listening anymore. Petco may have been built over an old Indian burial ground or some old SDG&E waste disposal units. Whatever it is, the lack of Padre offense is a Petco curse and must be lifted.

Removing the Curse
There are many curse removal possibilities. Here is one suggestion.

1. Gather the best bat from all 25 guys, their best, luckiest stick and take them to center field behind second base.

2. Stack them in your best boy scout tee pee shape with crumpled newspaper (not the UT sports section) underneath.

3. Douse with lighter fluid and set on fire.

4. Burn completely until there are nothing but ashes.

5. Gather ashes and have each player (no exceptions) sprinkle them around each base while hoping on one foot and praising the gods of hitting.

Other Curse Removal Tactics
1. Change the name of Petco to Sucaun or Pachunga Park.

2. Build a roof over Petco and keep inside temp at 72 degrees.

3. Return to Qualcomm and give the Chargers Petco. Maybe the hitting Gods like football better.

4. Players should wear unis inside out until someone gets a hit with RISP.

5. Call for volunteers for a major slump buster (see Mark Grace). The whole team might have to participate.

6. Fire Dave Magadan.

7. Bring in fenses to 250 ft, making opposing players play defense without gloves.

Things that Don't Work
These tactics don't work because the lack of offense is the Petco Curse, not skill thing.

1. Shortening your swing

2. Going with the pitch

3. Working the count

4. Being aggressive at the plate

5. Boxing the pitchers release point

6. Moving up in the box

7. Moving back in the box

8. Choking up on the bat, swinging off the knob

9. Changing the lineup

Quips
1. The Padres won't loose today, I guarantee it!

2. Piazza or Pizza as my kids call him, got number 400. Cool. Although Bonds has 212 more HRs then Mike. Amazing.

3. The irony of Petco is thick as a cube of butter. SD is about great weather, sunny and 72. But downtown, next to the bay, its usually cold and damp. Even in the summer, downtown requires a sweater. Could they have built the park in a worse location for weather in a city known for great weather?

4. Time for Meteorologists and Physicist from SDSU, USCD, and USD to get together and figure out what is going one at Petco with the air and hitting. Or maybe a psychologist would help more.

Padre Mike

Wednesday, April 26, 2006

No Offense Intended

Last night, the Padre offense hit (thats the wrong word when talking Padre offense), a new low. Blanked by Cluadio Vargas of the Diamondbacks while Peavy struggled. I can't help to wonder what a few runs would have done for Peavy.

Quote from the Union/Trib
"Look no further than a feeble offense, assuming you can find it at Petco. In the 11 home games, the Padres have been outscored 67-32 and outbatted .283 to .218 while compiling the NL's worst home on-base and slugging percentages."

We are also 3-8 at home, the second worst home record in the bigs just ahead of the lowly (they didn't used to be) Marlins.

Pitching - good
Bullpen - good
Defense - second in the NL (was first before last night)
Offense-what's that? Oh, you mean that wooden thingy in my hand, oh and what are we supposed to do with that?

I'm I bugging you? I don't mean to bug ya, play the blues Edge.

Go Padres (to the next town or another state, please)!

Bitter, Padre Mike

Quips
1. Deal with it, Padre fan. The Padres are a bad team that can't hit. They haven't hit since they moved to Petco. Its a bad park.

2. Proof: Phil went 3-4 last night in Oak. Nady was 1-4 with a HR. What would Giles and Cameron have done on other teams playing in other parks?

3. Petco is the opposite of Coors, and must have a greater amount of gravity or something. What Coors is to pitching, Petco is to htting.

4. Until the Padres sustain an offense for a coupla months, I'm convinced that Petco is a cursed field.

Tuesday, April 25, 2006

Went the Game, Had Fun, We Lost

Frustrating Game

Took the family to the game at a cost of about $135 including dinner at the Field and four $18 View tickets (we splurged, usually I'm a tight wade). But the game itself was terrible. Camron was the only player to do anything. Not sure what the problem is other then the Padres don't hit at Petco. Other teams hit. But not the Padres.

We have won just three games at Petco. We are 3-9 at home, folks. 5-4 on the road. The place is a mausoleum, its the new Candlestick, the mistake by the lake. It a nice a park, but we can't hit there.

Quips

1. Name a baseball park where you can watch planes on final approach. You can see them from the third base side as the fly over Balboa Park into Lindberg (and they want to move the airport, gees).

2. Cold and Windy. Our seats were behind home in the "View" section. Reminded me of Candlestick park.

3. Wondered if the park alignment was chosen because of the WMS building whose southeastern edge provides the left field foul line.

4. CHP pitched a great game, lost it a little in the fifth, but made it to the ninth. Pitching duels at field level are fun, but in the cheap seats, they are boring.

5. OTOH, view seats are great! You really can see everything. Great view of the city. Nice people up there too.

6. Cameron's double, steal, and run scored was a one man wrecking crew while the rest of the team seemed to take the night off.

7. Numbers to remember in case your son/daughter asks:
6
19- Tony Gywnn
31
35
42

I'm embarrassed to say I only got a couple. They are retired Padre numbers that appear at the top of the scoreboard. Little help.

8. LOBs: Padres-3, Az-6. Normally I would scream because of too many LOBs, but last night the Padres had 1 until the 9th. that's even worse.

Go Padres

Padre Mike

Game Pictures
When I figure out how the hell it works.

Monday, April 24, 2006

Split with the Mets

When the Mets showed up, I said a split would be "acceptable" but after watching the Mets, I'm thrilled to have a split and even more thrilled that we don't see those guys until August. They are tough team with a murderer's row and good pitching, defense and a bullpen to boot. See what money can buy?

Cameron Back
Mike returned to the lineup and center field or to put it more accurately, he made is debute Sunday. Did ok at the plate and looked decent in center. Give this guy at least a few weeks to get into the goove and then we can judge how much he helps the team. Not sure what roster move the Padres made to activate Cameron, but it had to be done. Mike has the potential to help Giles and the other Mike see better pitches.

Record-Standings
We climbed out the basement with yesterday's win, ahead of Az by half a game at 8-10. In my opinion this Padre team is pretty good and should be playing a little better then 500. So our next goal should be to climb out the hole from the poor start and get to 500. The next three games with Az could help us do that.

So, Go Padres!

Padre Mike

Quips:
1. Guess a Mets announcer, Kieth Hernandez, was making fun of a girl in the Padre dugout who happened to much favored massage therapist that all the guys swear buy. I guess Kieth is old school. Can't be touched by a women with getting an erection.

2. Didn't see much of the game, Ran in the La Jolla Half yesterday then had family time. Sometimes you gotta take one for the team.

3. Did catch ESPN last night and there were two stories that included the Padres. Berman featured the Pedro Martinez domination and the Oldest Man to hit a digger stories. At least they didn't say, San Diego California as if the country didn't know where SD was. Hate when they do that.

4. Might go to the game tonight as part of safety patrol night. My kid does it. If so, I'll take some pictures from the right-field bleachers, high up, which is were they usually put us.

Saturday, April 22, 2006

Long Night Ending in a Win

Well, it took a while but the Padres finally beat the Mets last night in 14 innings to get only thier second home win on this young season. Actaully, the game was infuriating because inning after inning the Padres had runners on base and even in scoring position only to hit into a double play or fly out of the inning.

Finally, Blum singled and Giles hit one in the left field corner and Hoffman (the third base coach and brother to Trevor) sent Blum to the plate out of shere desperation more than anything. The play was close, but Blum was called safe and the Padres won.

Positives
Woody pitched great through eight, count em, eight innings.
Barfield and AG continue to impress.
The bullpen, which exploded the previous night, continually frustrated Mets hitters.
Bochy didn't play righty-lefty percentages except when changing pitchers.

Mendoza Line
Greene is offically under the Mendoza line at 197. Mike, at .200, is right at the line. The difference of course, is Mike is headed to the hall and typically warms up through in May and June. Greene, OTOH, has me worried. It looks like he's trying to go yard everytime he's in the box. I think Greene is stuck between being a pwoer hitter and a slappy hitter. Wish one of the vets like Roberts would pull him aside for a chat about choking up on the bat and going the other way. With Greene's...er....a temperment, I wonder how you go about talking to him. Right now Greene is a hole in the lineup.

Another Tough Game
Another tough game tonight with the Mets. I love the way we are playing the Mets, though. We are a tougher team then I thought and and its apparent in this series.

Go Padres

Padre Mike

Note
This year, I'm updating PadreTalk with helpful links and other technical wizardry designed to help you, the paying customer, a er, well, the customer anyway, get even more content about the Padres (if that is even possible). Check out the Oppossion Newspaper links to read what the other guys are saying.

Friday, April 21, 2006

Bullpen Blows Up

Wow, tight game until the eighth when the bullpen, specifically Scotty Linbrink then Embry, blew up allowing the Mets 6 runs including a two-run bomb to the oldest guy in baseball.
Shit, that sucks.

New York Times (Web edition)
And of course, crack the NYT web edition this morning and what's on the front page, a picture of this 47 year old man hitting a home run against the Padres. Christ, isn't Karl Rove, Iraq, Amin shakeup a more worthy news story? New York teams always seem to humiliate us. Think 1998 World Series.

Bochy the Meddler
Here comes a rant about Bochy sticking his finger a tight, mano a mano, game. He's like the dad who can't just let his son play the game or Hemingway's Old Man of the Sea cutting the line. He's a fricking meddler with no feel for game dynamics. And he hides his incompetence behind "playing the percentages." Sure, he runs a professional club house. Guys like playing for him because he is even keeled. But he has shown again and again that when the game is on the line, he has to stick his nose in. Let em play, Bochy. Stay out of it.

Moving On
Ok, tonight's another game, another chance to beat the current best team in baseball. They are tough, and if you blink, they'll step on your throat like last night. But we've shown we can play tough too as the first 7 and a half innings last night proved. Lets regroup and get em tonight!

Good Padres

Padre Mike

Notes:
1. Boy, laying around all night and watching a game is gonna make me fatter then I already am. Gonna have to break out the transistor radio and get some work done around the house while listening to the game, although I can't stand Ted these days.

2. Peavy once again proved he's the real deal. Battled for seven innings giving up only one run against a strong team. What I saw last night was Peavy's ability to bare down when the going got a little rough. Nice ability to have.

3. Admit to turning off the game after the Linebrink blowup. That is about the time I get the kids to bed and I could tell the winds had left the sails. Not sure if Giles should have caught the ball. The picture of the play in the paper looks very awkward, like the yoga pose I was attempting yesterday.

Thursday, April 20, 2006

Padres Win, Giles Plunked

Don't look now, but me thinks the Padres are starting to play a little better. I feel a confidence growing in this team as the young guys prove themselves and the old guys warmup. We can play, we got some maxi, we got a little game.

Mets in Town
And we will need a little game to play with the Mets, who after years of spending and spending have finally bought themselves a team. I'm sure Mike and Mike are filling in our guys on the ins and outs of their former team, at least I would hope they would do that. Peavy goes tonight and we see Martinez on Sat.

I hope Petco doesn't bring us down. We saw a little of this play well on the road, play like shit at home stuff last year. Be really good to keep the momentum of the road trip into Petco, but I state the obvious, no?

Its a four game set. I would accept a split, be thrilled with 3 of 4. Mets are tough.

One on the Cheek
So they plunked Giles on the butt cheek for sliding at their catcher the pervious night. Baseball players have long memories and we will see the Rocks again. All I can say is scoreboard (although the series tilts in their favor at 4-3).

Go Padres

Mike Mike

Notes:
1. Getting to like Vinny more and more. When we traded for him I thought, oh Christ. But watching the guy play third, he's stolid in a Chris Gomez kinda way. Not spectacular, but gonna make most plays. And yesterday's four hits shows he can still swing it a little. Good pickup for Towers to fill the hole left by the large disappointment that was Shawn Boroughs.

2. Caught a little Padre Insider interviewing Sandi Alderson. What baseball CEO type wouldn't want to come do to SD to run a team? This guys the luckiest guy in the world. The weather, new ballpark, pretty good GM, beautiful place to live, great owner, soft media, mellow but loyal fans, the beach. They interviewed him in his house. Couldn't quite tell where it was, but I'm guessing Del Mar. Thats were Steve Fisher and Steve Finley live. Of course, it could be Rancho Santa Fe, maybe next door to Phil Michelson.

Wednesday, April 19, 2006

11 innings, Countless Pitching Changes, 14 MLOB...

And for what, a lose. Baseball kills me sometimes.

Rants
1. Bellhorn is fat and sloppy and looked terrible at the plate. Is that guy really a second sacker? Gees, disgusting. Were is his chin?

2. Giles was clearly trying to fill the inside gap and blowup the full back to stuff the play...er...um take out the catcher who was a third of the way to the pitchers mound. The Ump made the correct call. Aggressive is good. Aggressive and smart is better.

And the Denver Post had this quote from the Rocky manager:

"I had a real good angle on it, but I'll keep the opinions to myself," Hurdle said. "We'll see how this thing plays out. ... We play them 14 more times. I think the replay speaks for itself. Danny was in a very precarious position."

Yes, a not so disguised threat. Does Giles get it in the ear today? What an asshole.

3. Khalil needs to wake up. That passive-about-all-things act is getting tired. And feel free to work in a line drive every now and then, maybe with runners in scoring position.

4. Marybelly, or should I say Maryback, was obviously hurting at the plate and should not be up there. Maybe Bruce had no choice. Anyone with lower back problems could see the guy was hurting.

Raves
1. Hensley looked pretty good. Not sure why he was taken out. I think managers tend to be quick on the trigger at Coors and who can blame them.

2. Loved Ben's aggressiveness at the plate. He struck out on Joe Table's high heat with ducks on the pond (rookie mistake), but looks like the kid can play.

3. Mike muscled a line drive into right center that was a cannon shot. The center fielder just turned and started chasing it. Nice if Mike starts hitting a little. But Mike, got to work on that conditioning. Winded after a 180 ft sprint is embarrassing especially when you aren't moving that fast.

OK, day game today, so will be Gamedaying it from the office and participating in the IGD at DS when I can.

Lets win this one and go over 500 on the road trip.

Go Padres

Padre Mike

Notes:
1. Tough series with the Mets coming up. They are good, even better then the Atl and its a four-game series. A split would be great.

2. Going to the game next Monday as part of the kids school thingy. Cheap seats all the way, but should be fun.

Training Notes:
1. Struggled through 4.5 miles yesterday, dog tired the entire way. One day its 20, a few days later, 5 is tough. The ups and downs of training.

2. Sister is going to run the last 6 miles with me in June. I told not to expect a lot of pleasant conversation.

Tuesday, April 18, 2006

Another Good Win

News Flash: Padres play good, solid baseball and win. Good pitching from that tall guy. Good hitting from everyone not named Mike including that tall pitcher guy. And good defense too.

Hell, even the manager managed well (as in no trips to the plate to talk to the ump).

Now, if we could just do that another 85 times this year, we might get somewhere.

Kidding aside, its fun to watch the boys play a good game. The Rockies kicked the ball around for three errors which always helps.

Two game win streak, smokin!

Savvy Col Fan
Did you catch Barfield's first home run, no I mean the Rocky fan who caught Barfield's first HR? Smooth operator, no? The guy wouldn't give the ball back, then offered it in trade for two other balls. Talk about balls. Not sure of the terms of the negotiations, but the cameras caught several game officials approaching the dude, then walking away, sans Josh Barfield's first home run ball. Finally, the Padre bullpen coach (I think) brought over two balls and exchanged for the Barfield ball. I'm guessing, actually speculating, they were autograph balls from....Hoffy, Piazza, Sledge.

That guy must be tough on used car dealers, no?

Denver Post...

Funny, in the DP this morning, the Rockies game is buried behind the Avs, Nuggets, Duke rape story, and a Skiing accident. Talk about no respect. The big concern in Denver is the inability of the Rocks to play well at home, while tearing it up on the road. Funny, Padres have that same concern.

Go Padres

Padre Mike

Notes:
1. Piazza is a stud. Not sure if his bat has slowed but he can still wave the stick. Its just making contact with a ball that's a problem for him right now. I was surprised how well he moved behind the plate. The Tall Guy through a coupla crazy pitches and Mike blocked them well. Of course, a coupla others got past him.

2. The Tall Guy reminds me of Randy Johnson a little, at least in size and body type. The tall guy seems a bit of a short arm pitcher though. We got him from Texas I think. Seems like a nice pickup.

3. Coors Field didn't play like Coors Field last night. 5-2 isn't a mile high-type score. Not sure what the weather is like in Denver, maybe the wind was blowing in. Just a note to The Tall Guy (and I'm sure other Padres have told him this), you got lucky with the weather, kid. Mostly, pitching on Coors in a nightmare.

Training Notes:
1. Did fast eight-miler yesterday and felt good the whole way. Those are the kind of training runs that keep you going. Got a six-miler planned for today, then a little weight lifting.

2. Looking at tri bikes last night. Hell, I'm I really going to spend $1400 on a bicycle? Plus the rest of the gear? And that's getting off cheap. Crazy mid-life crisis.

Monday, April 17, 2006

Padres Win in the ATL

Good little game yesterday. The Woody got his second win and you can't argue with that and AG made the Top Ten Plays on ESPN with his great first base stab and toss to a covering Woody. And Hoffy got his first chance to save a game and did so. Nice win, guys. Now its on to the Rockies in Denver for some revenge....maybe.

Early Season Doom and Gloom

I feel it, you feel, and I'm sure they will feel it at the turnstiles late this week when the Padres return home. Its June gloom early this year for Padre fan. Starting 4-8 and at the bottom of the West doesn't help. For me, the gloom is the re-appearance of something that dogged us all last year, lack of offense with men in scoring position. The LOB killed us last year and its back. I don't have the stats, but I can feel it as a fan, our bats are struggling. There are two hopes. First, its early in the season and second, Cameron will be back and he can hit a little and provide protection for Giles. So hang in there, Padre fan.

Go Padres!

Padre Mike

Notes:
1. As many of you probably don't know, I've been training for a the RR marathon in early June. Did 20 Miles Saturday. Was completely gassed at the end. Had to shuffle along to finish. Training schedule calls for two more 20 milers before race day. Hope they are better then the last one. But I fully expect to be shuffling along the last 6 miles for the marathon and it won't be pretty. Got a race this weekend, the La Jolla Half, should be fun, just going to take it easy, just another training day. Later, I'll explain how I got into this mess;)~

2. I guess Woody threw a few knuckle balls yesterday. Add a change up and batters would really be off balance and Woody might get a few more years on his career.

3. Caught a bit of the Giants/Dodgers last night. Talk about boring baseball. And the focus on Barry was hilarious. In fact, middle of the first inning, ESPN didn't even go to commercial but followed Barry as got his glove, shuffled out to left, and soft tossed with the center fielder. Dodger fan was having his fun (no syringes though). Funny. What caught my eye in this game was the complete lack of any superstar player besides Barry on either team. ESPN highlighted Jeff Kent for the Dodger side, Jeff fricking Kent. Nice player, but hardly a superstar. The NL West is really in the toilet these days. Name one legit superstar in the league cept Barry. The Padres might have a chance after all.

Thursday, April 06, 2006

First Lose of the Season

There are going to be a lot of those. Even the best teams lose 60 games. Hell, we lost 82 games last year and made the playoffs.

(Ouch, Padre Mike, no need to bring that up.)

Day off today, according to the schedule.

Giant 1-2 Punch, Nice
I didn't realize it was that Matt Morris, of the Cardinals Matt Morris. Hell, when did the Giants pick him up? Three years $27 million according to the SF Chronical and of course, they were pleased with last nights results. Schmit and Morse, not a bad 1-2 punch.

Gonzales Shines
What can you say about the kid other then thank god for Klesko's bad wing, or we might not have seen this kid and his terrific start. Nearly hit for the cycle last night, although I can't find the single in the box score. Still learning to read a box score I guess.

Ryan's Bad Wing
Looks like surgery for the Big Hughy. The UT as a coupla stories about it. Klesko is still thinking about it, apparently. Second cortisone shot isn't working. He might be back by Sept if ever. Reading his quotes, I get the feeling he knows he persona non grata among fans, especially with the hot start from AG. I keep thinking about the 9 million dollars he is pulling this year (55K a game) and how we could have paid that to Matt Morris instead and had a legit 1-2 punch. Imagine Peavy then Matt Morris. It's not Klesko's fault, but he should have had surgery in Nov, damnit, so he'd be healing right now and be a contributor by June and trade bait in July (sorry for the cussing).

Go Padres!

Padre Mike

Notes:
1. Doesn't Barry walk like Bill Buckner used to (presumably still does) on those bad knees. Hell, my knees ache watching him on TV from my couch. Come on Alou, put Barry at first for fun.

2. Bases loaded and no runs is a sin in baseball. That was the Padre seventh. RLOB was my pet peavy last year and I know its early, but I hope we are not seeing that again.

3. BTW, Bochy the over-manager, leave it alone. Sticking Bellhorn in there instead of Sledge is tinkering too much with the dynamics of an inning. Let the kid swing away in that situation. And to hell with matchups. Christ, if Bochy had his way, Klesko would be at first and the Giants would have won 3 nothing.

4. You know I hate ball players for the insane money they make. The NC TImes has a piece on the highest earners this year. Any guesses? Grrrrrrr!

Wednesday, April 05, 2006

Rain Rain Go Away

A rain out, now that is a novel idea here in Sunny San Diego. Not been a rain out since 1998. But we been getting a lot of rain lately which is great because my grass really needs the help. But with a 161 games to go, its no big deal. Guess they'll make the game up in July sometime. Doubleheader!

Needlegate

I personally applaud the fan who tossed a syringe at Bonds on Monday night. It didn't contain a needle, so it was hardly dangerous. But the statement the syringe makes about how the fans feel is priceless. For years, its been experts this, sports writers that, Congressional testimony, MLB pronouncements, federal indictments, but the paying fan has had little opportunity to comment. But a plastic syringe tossed at the feet of MLBs best player as he entered the dugout Monday night delivers the message loud and clear.

Go Padre!

Padre Mike

1. Wall to wall Padre coverage. Listening to the XX, going hog wild on Padre coverage. How much can you say about one game? Should be interesting in Sept when the clichés really warm up, especially if the Pads are out of the race.

2. Planning on attending a Giants game next week. Hope it isn't a rain out.

Tuesday, April 04, 2006

Padres 6 Giants 1-Win Opener

Aw, if only this were the end of the baseball season, we all have good feelings about this team.

Padres done real good yesterday in the home opener against the Giants. Peavy was Peavy, Piazza was Piazza, and Khalil was Khalil? Three RBIs including a two-run, no doubt about it into the second deck in left HR from the lad, but we've come to expect that from our Jeff Spicoli shortstop, right?

Barfield looked pretty good, got his first hit and scored a run. His swing though, not sure that is gonna get the job done. TG on the telecast said Barfield doesn't "load up" on his swing which makes it tough to hit the curve. And it will take pitchers about a second to figure that out; like probably tonight he gets a steady diet of curve balls.

But the most impressive guy was AG at first base. Coupla hits and a nice play at first going to his right and picking the ball and an easy toss to Peavy covering. Not much was said about the play, it was a simple play, but you could tell the guy was smooth with soft hands.

As a fan, AG should be given the job at first base and Klesko should have his surgery or retire.

Ok, that was fun, now only 161 games to go. By the time we finish, it'll be October (hopefully November), summer will have passed, Labor day gone, and the quick slide into Christmas will have begun. Kids back in school and all of us a little older.

Baseball is like an old friend returning for the summer, to hang out for a few hours each day, most days. So, like life, lets take it one game at a time.

Go Padres!

Padre Mike

Notes
1. Love the juxtaposition (pardon my French) of Mike P going yard, then a few innings latter, Khalil going yard as if to do Mike one better. There could not be two more different guys on the planet.

2. Shot of Trevor in the bullpen late in the game, he looked fired up, geeked up, ready to make his famous entrance only to have to sit down as the Padres put the game out of save range. Probably something akin to blue balls if you ask me. But he's a pro, yeah?

3. Bochy just could not resist the double-switch. He'd really be an excellent All Star game manager, no?

4. And lastly, the Padres did yesterday what they could not do all of last year, get hits with men in scoring position as in the fifth and sixth innings. That is how to win a Petco, and a coupla dingers doesn't hurt either.