Monday, August 11, 2008
Any Questions?
If there are any of you Padres fans out there that would like to ask any question please reply to this post and I will be happy to answer them. Remember no question is dumb.
Padres finally pull out a win, and get a season high 16 runs
After racing out to an 11-run lead through three innings Sunday afternoon, the only drama the Padres probably should have encountered was whether stadium security would be able to recover rookie catcher Luke Carlin's first Major League home run from the outfield seats.
The Padres played in Coors Field, the mile-high city, and manager Bud Black knew in the back of his mind that no lead is safe in this field
"A four-run lead is a one- or two-run lead here," Black said. "In this park, you never know how it's going to play out."
And while the Padres set a season high for runs scored in a game, their 16-7 victory on Sunday over the Rockies before a crowd of 45,660 was anything but easy and certainly anything but mundane.
The Padres (46-72) got home runs from Kevin Kouzmanoff, Brian Giles, Jody Gerut and Carlin, who was recalled on Saturday. In fact, one can argue that his opposite-field, three-run home run in the sixth inning turned the momentum in a game where the momentum, seemingly, should have never left the Padres' side.
San Diego starting pitcher Chris Young, staked to an 11-0 lead, ran up a high pitch count early in the game, thanks in part to three walks over four innings and that he couldn't get a strike called above the waist.
After three scoreless innings, Young got in trouble in the fourth inning, when he yielded a leadoff double to Garrett Atkins. Ian Stewart then lined a ball to Edgar Gonzalez at second base. Gonzalez left his feet and the ball glanced off his glove and trickled into the outfield as a run scored.
Had Gonzalez made the catch, he could have easily doubled Atkins off second, who had strayed off the bag. Instead, the inning rolled on, and so did the Rockies.
The Rockies scored six more runs and chased Young from the game, one inning shy of qualifying for the victory. All told, Young allowed seven runs on nine hits and left with his pitch count at 96 after four innings.
"The strike zone was a little tight, and there were a few borderline pitches that didn't go my way," Young said. "Then I missed out over the plate to a very good-hitting team. It was a long inning. I threw a lot of pitches. I wasn't as sharp as I wanted to be."
Bud Black stated, "These are the types of games we need to get back on track."
The Padres played in Coors Field, the mile-high city, and manager Bud Black knew in the back of his mind that no lead is safe in this field
"A four-run lead is a one- or two-run lead here," Black said. "In this park, you never know how it's going to play out."
And while the Padres set a season high for runs scored in a game, their 16-7 victory on Sunday over the Rockies before a crowd of 45,660 was anything but easy and certainly anything but mundane.
The Padres (46-72) got home runs from Kevin Kouzmanoff, Brian Giles, Jody Gerut and Carlin, who was recalled on Saturday. In fact, one can argue that his opposite-field, three-run home run in the sixth inning turned the momentum in a game where the momentum, seemingly, should have never left the Padres' side.
San Diego starting pitcher Chris Young, staked to an 11-0 lead, ran up a high pitch count early in the game, thanks in part to three walks over four innings and that he couldn't get a strike called above the waist.
After three scoreless innings, Young got in trouble in the fourth inning, when he yielded a leadoff double to Garrett Atkins. Ian Stewart then lined a ball to Edgar Gonzalez at second base. Gonzalez left his feet and the ball glanced off his glove and trickled into the outfield as a run scored.
Had Gonzalez made the catch, he could have easily doubled Atkins off second, who had strayed off the bag. Instead, the inning rolled on, and so did the Rockies.
The Rockies scored six more runs and chased Young from the game, one inning shy of qualifying for the victory. All told, Young allowed seven runs on nine hits and left with his pitch count at 96 after four innings.
"The strike zone was a little tight, and there were a few borderline pitches that didn't go my way," Young said. "Then I missed out over the plate to a very good-hitting team. It was a long inning. I threw a lot of pitches. I wasn't as sharp as I wanted to be."
Bud Black stated, "These are the types of games we need to get back on track."
Monday, August 4, 2008
The Dog Days
Ah, every ballplayer's favorite time of year; the weather is miserable in most parts of the country, their bodies ache, slumps and streaks lead to a sort of manic attitude, clubhouse turmoil either simmers or boils, and all without the aide of greenies anymore. Yes, the dog days are upon us.
On that note, I apologize for beginning my little blog here so late in the game. I, too, have been mired in my own dog days. And to be honest, as much as I love following the "kids" on this Dodger team, they still seemed a year or so away from reaching their true potential as a ballclub, so this season (injuries and all) has felt, for lack of a better word, somewhat boring. It feels wrong to say that, I know. I love watching Russ, Kemp, Ethier, Loney, Bills, Brox, and once again, Clayton Kershaw who has made me feel like a complete loser (CK, 20 years old and in the bigs. Nick, 22, college graduate, sitting on his butt writing about CK. Hmm, if only I were left handed.) These guys are not boring to me, not in the slightest. In fact, they are the only saving grace of this season if you ask me.
What is boring? Juan Pierre, Andruw Jones, No-more, and Joe Torre to an increasing level. It had gotten to such a frustrating level about a week ago that I had almost written this season off. Slappy McPopup (aka Juan Pierre) might be one of the most useless ballplayers I have ever seen. Jones is a joke. And Mr. Mia Hamm would be fine if he didn't have the whole requisite DL stint every 2 weeks. So, our young kids (20-26) are being asked to carry this team offensively, and while they show flashes of brilliance, they also find themselves striking out in the clutch. Call it a learning curve, a learning curve that productive vets are supposed to help alleviate. Problem--out vets have not been productive.
So, like I said, I had just about given up on the season, holding out slight hope that we might take the division based on, in my opinion, a VERY underrated pitching staff and the off chance that Raffy could come back and reignite the O. That is, until Pau pt. II.
Manny Ramirez turns this team into a legit contender to actually win our first playoff series since 1988 (and we all know how that ended). The future HOFer so far has gone 8-13 with 2 HR, 5 RBI, 5 runs, and a slugging percentage over 1.100. Damn. The only downside to this whole trade has been Torre's insistance on benching Ethier, who deserves to start everyday.
So, anyway Dodgers fans, I'm back a peak fanaticism. Bear with me on the posts: this is my first time blogging, so I may need a bit of a learning curve myself. But I'll be here often and I'm open to suggestion.
Go BLUE!
On that note, I apologize for beginning my little blog here so late in the game. I, too, have been mired in my own dog days. And to be honest, as much as I love following the "kids" on this Dodger team, they still seemed a year or so away from reaching their true potential as a ballclub, so this season (injuries and all) has felt, for lack of a better word, somewhat boring. It feels wrong to say that, I know. I love watching Russ, Kemp, Ethier, Loney, Bills, Brox, and once again, Clayton Kershaw who has made me feel like a complete loser (CK, 20 years old and in the bigs. Nick, 22, college graduate, sitting on his butt writing about CK. Hmm, if only I were left handed.) These guys are not boring to me, not in the slightest. In fact, they are the only saving grace of this season if you ask me.
What is boring? Juan Pierre, Andruw Jones, No-more, and Joe Torre to an increasing level. It had gotten to such a frustrating level about a week ago that I had almost written this season off. Slappy McPopup (aka Juan Pierre) might be one of the most useless ballplayers I have ever seen. Jones is a joke. And Mr. Mia Hamm would be fine if he didn't have the whole requisite DL stint every 2 weeks. So, our young kids (20-26) are being asked to carry this team offensively, and while they show flashes of brilliance, they also find themselves striking out in the clutch. Call it a learning curve, a learning curve that productive vets are supposed to help alleviate. Problem--out vets have not been productive.
So, like I said, I had just about given up on the season, holding out slight hope that we might take the division based on, in my opinion, a VERY underrated pitching staff and the off chance that Raffy could come back and reignite the O. That is, until Pau pt. II.
Manny Ramirez turns this team into a legit contender to actually win our first playoff series since 1988 (and we all know how that ended). The future HOFer so far has gone 8-13 with 2 HR, 5 RBI, 5 runs, and a slugging percentage over 1.100. Damn. The only downside to this whole trade has been Torre's insistance on benching Ethier, who deserves to start everyday.
So, anyway Dodgers fans, I'm back a peak fanaticism. Bear with me on the posts: this is my first time blogging, so I may need a bit of a learning curve myself. But I'll be here often and I'm open to suggestion.
Go BLUE!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
