No Way For Padres To Pass LaRussa In 2007 Playoffs.

The San Diego Padres can't get past Tony LaRussa in the playoffs. At the recent season-ticket holder's rally, Padres management implored the fans to withhold judgment for now. Both Sandy Alderson and Kevin Towers pointed out that the core players who led the Padres to victory in 2006 didn't join the team in trades and free-agent signings until January.

With that in mind, Towers better have some blockbuster deals in the pipeline. Today's San Diego Union-Tribune has an article that floats a trial balloon about that has Termel Sledge starting in left field and batting leadoff. (Here.) So much for going after a power-hitting outfielder.

This is the lineup that's supposed to get the Padres past LaRussa and the first round of the playoffs:

1. Termel Sledge, LF
2. Marcus Giles, 2B
3. Brian Giles, RF
4. Adrian Gonzales, 1B
5. Mike Cameron, CF
6. Kevin Kouzmanoff or Russell Branyan, 3B
7. Josh Bard, C
8. Khalil Greene, SS

This trial balloon won't fly.

Sledge may have success in the minor leagues as a leadoff hitter but he hasn't duplicated that success against major league pitching. Moreover, what the Padres really need in the lineup is a right-handed power-hitting outfielder. Alderson admitted as much at the season-ticket holder rally last month.

Marcus Giles is fine batting second but his brother is no longer a number 3 hitter. He doesn't drive the ball the way he used to and he doesn't move people along on the bases. He takes lots of walks and is an OBP machine. He should be leading off.

Gonzalez does not have the homerun pop to bat fourth but on this team no player does. If the Padres did what is necessary and went out to get a true homerun hitter, Gonzalez would be batting third.

Cameron, Kouzmanoff/Branyan and Bard are fine where they are. Greene belongs batting eighth, if for no other reason than he can't be relied upon to play an entire season. No sense putting him up in the meat of the order and really missing his bat when he inevitably goes down for a month or so. Fortunately, we've still got Geoff Blum to step in and play major league shortstop.

This team is shaping up as a disappointment. There are some really good players on the team but there are still plenty of question marks. First among them is why isn't the team spending the money management said had been freed up to sign a star performer. Instead we get rumors of interest in yesterday's superstars like Randy Johnson and David Wells. Given the Padres track record, I'm predicting that Sammy Sosa will be starting in left field and batting cleanup when the season begins.

-tdr

Republished once for editing.

Technorati: baseball, mlb, Padres.

Straight From The Lips Of Padres' Management.

The Padres held their annual party for season ticket holders and shareholders at Petco Park this evening. The team's management shows up, talks about the team's moves, and fields questions from fans. Here's the breaking news.

Asked by a fan who the team plans to offer arbitration, General Manager Kevin Towers said the team was "leaning towards" offering arbitration to:

Chan Ho Park
Ryan Klesko
Alan Embree
Dave Roberts
Todd Walker.

The team is still deciding on whether to offer arbitration to Mike Piazza.

Towers also announced that Geoff Blum will be a Padre again in 2007. Judging from the applause of the fans, that is a popular move.

Towers also took the opportunity to dispel the bizarre rumors that Jake Peavy and Adrian Gonzalez would be traded. He blamed that rumor on a local radio sports broadcaster known as Philly Billy. Towers said Philly Billy "has the best ideas that don't make sense." That drew a big laugh from the crowd.

Towers also suggested that a big part of the stories about the team going after Barry Bonds and Manny Ramirez was intended to drive up the price that San Francisco or Los Angeles would have to pay for them.

Asked about Barry Zito, Towers pointed out that the left-hander is represented by Scott Boras. He also said that the left-handed pitcher is "atractive" but he couldn't make any promises about bringing Zito to San Diego. He acknowledged that the team should have gotten the San Diego native when he was still an amateur. He concluded by saying, "when all is said and done, we'll add pieces to our rotation." Doesn't sound like Zito will be one of those pieces.

Towers said his goal is to add more arms to the front-line starting rotation of Jake Peavy, Clay Hensley, and Chris Young. He wants more depth to join Scott Linebrink, Cla Meredith, and Trevor Hoffman. And he needs to get a second baseman to join Adrian Gonzalez, Khalil Greene, and new third baseman, Kevin Kouzmanoff, in the infield. Asked who was available for that, he said the team is looking at Ray Durham, local favorite Mark Loretta, Tony Grafanino, and Todd Walker.

As for the outfield and leadoff, he said fan favorite Dave Roberts "is not gone yet" but other than considering arbitration he didn't make it sound as if the team is pursuing Roberts. Perhaps because of something Padres CEO Sandy Alerson said about the team's need for improved hitting.

Alderson said the team "needs a couple of right-handed power hitters who can hit the ball out to left field" in Petco Park. Petco has a reputation of being a pitcher's park where homeruns are scarce. Right field and center are pretty far away. But left field is just sitting there, very close and well within reach of right-handed power hitters. Dave Roberts doesn't have that kind of power. Much as Padres fans wouldn't like it, the team would probably be better off finding a left-fielder who can hit the ball out to left field than bringing back Roberts.

The big question of the night for Padres fans involved the Josh Barfield trade. It was very clear from fan reactions that the Barfield trade wasn't popular. Finally asked a respectful question about that, Towers explained the reasoning this way.

Towers said that at every level in the minor leagues Kouzmanoff's offensive numbers were better than Barfield's. He predicted that given the same opportunity to play in the majors in 2007 that Barfield got in 2006, Kouzmanoff "will deliver." More important to the team, Kouzmanoff has the right-handed power the Padres need and he has hit homeruns at every level he's played. The team projects him to be the kind of 3, 4, or 5 hitter they need. Towers said the Padres have a future second baseman in the person of Luis Cruz and that for 2007 they will fill the void at second base with a free agent signing. His reasoning made sense and will be considered brilliant if the gamble pays off.

Which brings us back to something that Alderson said early in the evening when he confronted the issue of trades and change and fan loyalty head on. He said the team's bottom line goal is to put a better product on the field and improve over last year's performance. He said management wants to field a team the fans will love and he described how fans loved Mark Loretta and were upset to see him go, but then the fans came to love his replacement, Josh Barfield.

Alderson didn't come right out and say it this way, but in other words, sports fans, Loretta left and you got used to it. Barfield is gone and you'll get used to that too. That's true. But only if the team wins. Because winning is the only thing that matters in sports.

-tdr

Technorati: Baseball, Padres, San Diego.

Memo To Padres Managerial Prospects

For job security listen to upper management:"[Kevin] Towers said he last spoke to [catcher Mike] Piazza in early October. 'Mike was open-minded about still feeling he had the ability to catch 100 games,' Towers said. 'We still plan on having some dialogue about bringing him back there. [Josh] Bard did a great job. He certainly didn't get the opportunity that Mike did.'" (Here.)

Got that? Play Josh Bard.

-tdr

Technorati: Baseball.

Bye Bye Bochy.

The San Diego Union-Tribune has a very useful article today on the reasons for Bruce Bochy's departure from the San Diego Padres. (Here.) It's all about Bochy's favoring veterans over younger players.

Bochy's preference for veterans has been obvious for years. But what surely must have puzzled the front office this years was how Bochy used Todd Walker in the last part of the season. Walker was brought over to the Padres to play third base. When that experiment looked bad, Russell Branyan was brought in. Rather than going to the bench, Walker got lots of playing time as a platoon player at second base with Josh Barfield. Barfield, who was a star on this team during the season ended up sitting a lot near the end of the season.

It's doubtful that the Padres traded Mark Loretta last year to make room for Todd Walker to play second base. Loretta was dealt so that Barfield could play.

Bochy did play another rookie at a key position this year: Adrian Gonzalez at first base. Gonzalez even slumped a bit during the year and Bochy essentially stuck with him. But there was nobody on the team good enough to play first base regularly so Gonzalez's position as a starter was safe and ended up one of San Diego's most potent bats. Lucky for him Ryan Klesko was not available until the very end of the season.

This fan is not sad to see Bochy go. He's often touted as San Diego's winningest manager because he has more wins as a Padres manager than any other. But he's also the losingest manager because he has more losses than anyone else. More importantly, he's got a losing record as a manager.

In sports, winning is everything. The St. Louis Cardinals are the only real winner in Major League Baseball this year because they won the World Series. The Detroit Tigers are first among the losers for having lost the World Series. Everybody else is just a loser.

-tdr

Padres Season Goes To Waste

Nothing in baseball matters but winning. The team that loses the World Series is just the top loser. Winning the Western Division is cold comfort for this Padres fan when the season is followed by the team's embarrassing performance in the playoffs.

Despite Sunday's loss the pitching staff did not lose the series. The series was lost by the hitters. The worst thing about the team's offensive performance in the playoffs is that it was typical of what fans had to watch all year. The players on the Padres have got to be some of the worst situational hitters in major league baseball. And has the team ever heard of a hit and run? The strange thing is there was a time when manager Bruce Bochy would do the hit and run and other offensive plays to get the defense moving and open up holes. Now he seems to sit back and wait for one of his players to deliver the big hit. All of us have been waiting pretty much all year for that.

O well, there's always next year. But if the same players and management all come back fans will have to suffer through the same offensive malaise. Some kind of reconstruction is in order. Here are some suggestions.

FIND SOME RIGHT HANDED POWER. Enough with the lefthanded bats. Petco's left field is not that deep and homeruns can fly out of the park in that direction. Get some players that can take advantage of that.

Keep Roberts.
Exercise the option on Cameron.
Trade Giles for a true number 2 hitter.
Put Gonzalez in the third slot.
Play Barfield every day.
If Walker stays make him a bench player not a platoon player with Barfield.
Keep Greene.
Keep Blum for when Greene injures his hand for the third year in a row.
Get A-Rod and put him at third.
Keep Piazza and Bard but even out their playing time.

Let Bochy go.

-tdr

Padres Win One And Give The Ball To Woody.

The Padres came back from the brink yesterday and beat the Cardinals to remain in the playoffs. (So, what's new for Padres fans? This team does nothing the easy way.) Woody Williams will start today. Some have questioned that move and suggested that Jake Peavy should start. I'll go on the record today, 5 hours before the game, in support of manager Bruce Bochy's decision. Williams is the unsung hero of the Padres pitching staff. He's been successful this year, he pitches like a pro, and he can be counted on to keep it together under pressure. If anybody can get the Padres back to San Diego for a fifth game on Monday, Williams can.

-tdr

Padres Game 1 Fiasco

When I wrote last week that the Padres look like a team of destiny, today's game is not what I had in mind. The game was a typical Padres loss. No clutch hitting.

It didn't help matters that Mark Bellhorn was sent up to pinch hit with the bases loaded and 1 out in the 7th inning. Fine, the pitcher was leftie Tyler Johnson and Bruch Bochy clearly was going with the lefty-righty matchup. But here's a question. What is Bellhorn doing on the post-season roster? Whose decision was that? He's batting under .200 and has struggled miserably for the last month of the season. Here's another question. Why not break convention and send up a lefty against the lefty? Especially when the lefty available to pinch hit was Ryan Klesko. Klesko has been pinch hitting since he came off the DL and he has looked great. He's also a proven hitter who can drive the ball and he doesn't strike out as much as Bellhorn does. Klesko batting would have increased the odds for a productive out.

The Bellhorn at bat was the crucial at bat of the game and deserved a proven hitter who is on his game, not somebody who has struggled for more than a month now. Instead, Bochy sends up Bellhorn and saves Klesko for the 9th with nobody on when the game was all but over. The fact is, Tony LaRussa outmanaged Bochy.

Here's another fact. Chris Carpenter outpitched Jake Peavy. Padres fans like to believe that Jake is our team's superstar pitcher. Today should cast a lot of doubt on that belief. Peavy may not be a number 1 starter and he probably shouldn't be the go-to guy for pressure games in post-season.

Next game will have David Wells starting. He's another guy who doesn't deserve to be on the post-season roster for any game in which he has to bat or run the bases. He'll probably pitch well enough but his fielding, hitting, or baserunning will hurt the team at least once on Thursday. There's a real possibility the Padres will head to St. Louis two games down and only then will the team's most reliable pitchers, Woody Williams and Chris Young, take the mound.

-tdr

Padres Playoff Rotation?

The Padres are looking like a team of destiny this year. Hey, we can dream can't we? Apparently it's too soon for the team's real coaching staff to think about the playoff starting rotation. (Here, third story down.) Not too soon for an opinionated fan, however.

Woody Williams has been there and done that in many years in the majors. He's been sharp all September and is pitching like the veteran he is. He's a pro who can be trusted not to meltdown in the crucible of the playoffs. He'd be my number 1 starter.

Jake Peavy would be second just because he's Jake Peavy, an intensely competitive pitcher, who is brilliant when he is on. His competitiveness shows on the mound and is the thing that apparently ticked off the Dodgers first base coach when the Padres played in Los Angeles last week. The Jake Peavy Show can get a bit old, even for a loyal Padres fan, especially when the sizzle is not matched by the steak. There's been more sizzle than steak most of the year from Jake, as evidenced by his losing record this year, but his last start looked like the Jake Peavy of old.

Chris Young deserves to pitch second or even first based on his excellent performance all year. The guy is also as calm as a plant on the mound. But I'd pitch him third because with home field advantage in the playoffs, (it's looking that way at this time), he'd start the first away game. Young has not lost an away game since, well, it seems like forever.

Then Clay Hensley because of his consistently strong September performances and because David Wells does not deserve to start any post-season game in which he has to bat.

Then for game 5, back to Woody Williams.

Why diss Boomer, you might ask? Well, the team isn't winning when he starts. He pitches fine, but he can't hit, he can't field, he can't run, and each of those weaknesses has hurt him in his starts for the Padres. He's out of shape. The only reason he would take up space on my post-season roster, would be for World Series games when a designated hitter could take his place in the batting order. But, hey, I'll admit it, I'm still ticked at him for playing for Boston last year and not the Padres when we needed him more than we do this year.

-tdr

Technorati: Padres, Baseball, MLB.

Padres Trade For David Wells Pays Unusual Dividend.

David Wells was scratched from the Padres lineup for tonight's game against the Cardinals due to an outbreak of gout. (Here.) What century are we living in again? This is the first risk factor listed on the Mayo Clinic's website:

"Lifestyle factors. Excess consumption of alcohol is a common lifestyle factor that increases the risk of gout. Excess alcohol generally means more than two drinks a day for men and more than one for women. Gaining 30 pounds or more than your ideal weight during adulthood also increases your risk." (Here.)

Enough said.

-tdr

Technorati: Padres, MLB, Baseball.

Padres v. Dodgers: National League Championship Preview?

This last weekend's games between the San Diego Padres and the Los Angeles Dodgers was a great baseball series, with pitching duels, a blowout, and a slugfest that ended historically with 5 homeruns by the Dodgers over the 9th and 10th innings. For this Padres fan last night's game was painful to watch. The final two innings of the game were the most unbelievable baseball I've ever seen and I hope never to see its like again. But as Josh Barfield said, "We split the series, and they're a half-game ahead. We can pick up that half-game, no problem." (Here.) As Neil Young once sang, "Tonight's the night."

The two teams don't face each other again in the regular season this year. But both teams have a good chance of making the playoffs and might face each other in round two of the National League playoffs. This Padres fan hopes so. That would be one heck of a playoff series.

tdr

Padres Won't Make Playoffs With Silent Bats.

For the second Friday in a row the Padres were almost no-hit. Last night it was Greg Maddux and the Dodgers. (Here.) Last Friday it was Matt Cain and the Giants. (Here.)

Last night's victim was David (Boomer) Wells, who pitched decently but not well enough to win for a team that could manage only two base hits. Worse, he had to leave the game because of a painful ankle he injured running the bases in a prior game.

The Padres' weakness all year has been hitting not pitching, but instead of trading for an impact hitter to get the team to the playoffs, management traded for Wells. Wells has pitched three times since joining the Padres and well enough to win twice. But the team has scored only seven runs and gone 1-2.

The trade for Wells has gone as could have been predicted: no real harm but also little benefit. Good pitching keeps you in the game so your hitters can win the game, and if your hitters don't hit, you can't win. But this has been discussed before. (Here.)

So let's talk about Padres pitching instead. The conventional wisdom about the Padres is that having Wells in the rotation for the final month and the playoffs benefits the team because he's a seasoned pro who has performed in the post-season. In addition to Wells, the sports commentariat and fans talk about starters Peavy and Young and then the bullpen.

One name is nearly always missing from discussions of Padres pitchers and he was here all year: Woody Williams. Williams deserves more recognition than he gets. He's a solid veteran starter who knows how to pitch, and, unlike Wells, he can field, hit, and run the bases too. He's been a boon to the Padres this year. I'd start him over Boomer any day. (Woody is on the mound against the Dodgers tonight. It will be interesting to see how he fares.)

-tdr

Technorati: Major League Baseball, San Diego Padres.

Big Pitch Little Hit Wins One For The Padres Today

The Pads beat the Reds today, but barely. (Here.) Weak-hitting San Diego took the game 2-1 when a Josh Bard grounder just made it through the infield with the bases loaded.

The hefty lefty David Wells pitched a strong six innings, and Cla Meredith, and Trevor Hoffman nailed down the victory. Meredith is nearly unhittable this year.

Portly pitcher Wells pitched well but was an embarrassment on the bases when he got thrown out by a mile at home plate in one inning. The defense of the southpaw with the masticating maw was a bit off too when he was slow coming off the mound in another inning allowing a bunt single. But overall, the beer-bellied mercenary hurler earned his money today.

-tdr

PS: Today's victory raised the Padres record to 8-10 for home games with Mister Americano in the stands. They're 1-0 when Mister Americano follows them on the road due to a victory in Anaheim. I'll be at Wednesday's game against the Rockies in San Diego and Friday's against the Giants in San Francisco on Friday.

Technorati: Baseball, MLB, Padres.

David Wells, The Padres, And The Playoffs.

Mister Americano is going to today's Padres game against the Reds. David Wells is set to start his first game for the Padres this year.

Judging by the talk radio phone calls, Padres fans are excited about Boomer "coming home" to San Diego. Count this fan out.

Last year, the Padres needed Wells more than they need him this year but he wasn't around because two years ago Wells abandoned the Padres for the Red Sox. So much for home town loyalty.

The Pads remain ahead in the Wild Card race but have fallen four games behind the Dodgers in the Western Division. San Diego's weakness all year has been hitting. Pitching has been the team's strength.

Two trading deadlines have come and gone now and what have the Padres done to increase the team's chances for the playoffs? Not much, really. Russell Branyan and Todd Walker to play third base. Both players are looking pretty good so far but neither is an impact player and the team still considers third base a hole that needs filling.

The one impact player the Padres picked up is Wells. The portly player is a proven playoff pitcher. But the team has to make it to the playoffs first. Wells is a starting pitcher so he will play every five days. He's not going to make an impact day to day the way a proven major league hitter would have.

That being said, the trade is not bad for the team. If Wells performs like he has in the past month for Boston, his addition will be positive. The team has not given up much to get him in George Kotteras, a minor league catching prospect. The Pads are strong behind the plate and won't miss his loss much.

Nevertheless, the team has done next to nothing to fortify its weak hitting and instead has done what it always does, concentrate on strengthening their already formidable pitching staff. The team has a shot at the playoffs through the Wild Card but it will be lucky if it makes it far in the playoffs. Pitching keeps you in the game, but it's hitting that wins the game and this team doesn't hit.

-tdr

Technorati: Baseball, MLB, Padres.

Padres Land Utility Player With Weak Bat.

The Padres have made another blockbuster trade. Tampa Bay's utility player Russell Branyan is now a Padre. He played the corner outfield and corner infield positions for the Devil Rays in 64 games this year. Productive hitters are the Padres most pressing need. So how does Branyan measure up?

"He's hitting .201 with 12 home runs, 10 doubles and 27 RBIs." (Here.)

O boy!

-tdr

On Your Way, Jose. (Canseco, That Is.)

San Diego's minor league team, the Surf Dawgs, traded Jose Canseco to Long Beach. (Here.) Canseco lasted one game in San Diego and then demanded to be traded for family reasons.

Good riddance. San Diego doesn't need an admitted steroids user playing baseball in town, especially at a stadium named after a true class act, Tony Gwynn.

Canseco's short tenure in San Diego stands in stark contrast to another famous former leaguer who played for the Surf Dawgs. Rickie Henderson was on the team last year. He was a joy to watch. Henderson looked like he was having fun on the field and there was something about him that said Major Leagues.

Below are some low res photos of Rickie at bat taken with my cellphone at a Surf Dawgs game last year. Enjoy.

-tdr

Technorati: Baseball.

San Diego Prays For Global Warming.

The weekend games between the San Diego Padres and Seattle Mariners saw a record number of homeruns hit at Petco Park in a three-game series: 14. Petco is notorious for being a pitcher's park where it is nearly impossible to hit the ball out. Padres fans wonder why opposing players don't seem to have a problem going yard there but that would be another story.

Here's the reason given for all the baseballs flying out of the park in San Diego this weekend:

"The ball's really carrying well right now," right fielder Brian Giles said yesterday after the Padres' 40th home game. "It's warm and humid. Hopefully it stays warm and humid the rest of the year."

Reliever Scott Linebrink, who sits in the home bullpen beyond center field, said "the atmospheric conditions are what causes (the ball) either to jump or fall short. The weather being hot like it is, and watching the ball jump out of the yard in batting practice, I think everybody wasn't surprised."(Here.)

The news story gave other possible reasons including changed air flow due to new construction and some other flat earth theories that prevent San Diegans from facing Al Gore's inconvenient truth. The Earth's warming will cause more homeruns to get hit out of Petco Park. Maybe the future doesn't look so bad after all.

-tdr

Technorati: Global Warming, Baseball, San Diego Padres.

Ban Grimsley From Baseball.

While baseball's attention has been focused on the steroids rumors surrounding Barry Bonds, it turns out that the Justice Department has been quietly investigating a journeyman Arizona pitcher who has used performance enhancing drugs, including steroids, for years. (Here.) Worse yet, Jason Grimsley is using Human Growth Hormone, which is not detectable with a urine test.

Grimsley supposedly names other players who have been cheating. It's past time for baseball to clean house. Last year's Congressional hearings proved that baseball won't do anything unless Congress forces it to. Maybe it's time for some more show hearings in D.C.

The first action baseball should take is to ban Jason Grimsley from baseball. Grimsley is no Shoeless Joe Jackson or Pete Rose but he's put himself in their class with his actions.

-tdr

Technorati: baseball, steroids.

Bonds Passes Ruth.

Mister Americano was at Petco Park on Sunday watching the Padres beat the Cardinals by doing something they've rarely done all year: hitting the damn baseball!

Midway through the game, the scoreboard showed a replay of Barry Bonds hitting number 715 to pass Babe Ruth as baseball's all-time left-handed homerun hitter. What a sad day for baseball.

For the record, the crowd booed. Not the kind of booing you usually hear at a game. This was different. There was muttering and a stirring in the crowd and then the booing started. This was an expression of smoldering anger.

It's too depressing to write about this any more. I've written all I really care to write about this subject before. (Here and here, for example.) So I'll just say again what I've said before.

What's good enough for Shoeless Joe Jackson and Pete Rose is good enough for Barry Bonds.

-tdr

Technorati: baseball, steroids, Barry Bonds.

It's Not Petco Park, It's The Weak Hitting Padres

Since the Padres began playing at Petco Park there have been constant complaints by the players about the difficulty of hitting there. The latest theme is that the ballpark was built for low scoring games, 2-1 or 3-2, scores like that. (Here.)

Well, here are some facts from this season's first 25 games at home:

Padres runs scored: 83 or 3.3 runs per game.
Visitors runs scored: 113 or 4.5 runs per game.

But here's where the Padres really show their weakness.

Padres homeruns: 13 or 1 homerun every 1.9 games.
Visitors homeruns: 30 or 1 homerun every 0.83 game.

It's not the park. It's the team. The Padres are a weak-hitting team. Their strengths are pitching and defense. Those are a good foundation for a winning team because good pitching and defense will keep a team in the game. But it's hitting that wins games. You can't win unless you score more than the other team.

The Padres have trouble doing that. Here are two reasons why. Vinny Castilla, the regular third baseman swings at the first pitch every time he bats. Every time! Does this guy know how to take a pitch? Maybe the coaches should force him to take a pitch once in a while. It couldn't hurt. Who cares if Castilla is a veteran? Who cares if giving him the take sign might insult him? Make the guy take a pitch! Castilla's first-pitch swings almost always end up as weak outs. Why Castilla continues to play as many games as he does is beyond me. He's practically a guaranteed out. Sure he can field, but so can Geoff Blum, and Blum can hit.

Free-swinging Mike Cameron bats second. The second hitter should be a contact hitter. Cameron strikes out way too often to bat second. But Bochy has Cameron hitting second. Who knows why? Maybe because he's a veteran and Bochy loves veterans. I don't know. I can't figure it out. Can anybody? Drop Cameron down in the lineup.

Here's a thought. Why not set the lineup using on-base percentage to decide who bats when? Have the player with the highest OBP bat first down to the lowest batting eighth on the theory that players who get on base more often should bat more often and the players who get on base more often should bat near each other to start a rally and keep it going. Here's how the Padres regular lineup would look.

Giles RF 396
Roberts LF 360
Piazza C 348
Cameron CF 333
Barfield 2B 306
Greene SS 304
Gonzalez 1B 291
Castilla 3B 271

Better yet:

Giles RF 396
Roberts LF 360
Piazza C 348
Cameron CF 333
Blum 3B 320
Barfield 2B 306
Greene SS 304
Gonzalez 1B 291

Too mechanical for you? Fine, flip Roberts and Giles so that Roberts can make things happen with his baserunning.

Here's a typical Bochy lineup.

Roberts LF 360
Cameron CF 333
Giles RF 396
Piazza C 348
Greene SS 304
Gonzalez 1B 291
Castilla 3B 271
Barfield 2B 306

Bochy also mechanically replaces players in the lineup based on when the regular player hits not when the replacment player should hit. For instance, Eric Young usually spells Roberts and bats first. This despite the fact that Young's OBP is a paltry 254 and his batting average is 189. Is there an intelligent thought behind that tactic?

-tdr

Not A Good Day For Baseball.

Today Barry Bonds tied Babe Ruth for the title of most career homeruns by a left-handed hitter. (Here.) Too bad.

Here's what Bonds had to say about his own accomplishment:

"This is a great accomplishment because of Babe Ruth and what he brought to the game of baseball and his legacy in the game of baseball," Bonds said. "This and a World Series ring to me would be the ultimate. He changed the game of baseball. ... It's just great to be in the same class."

If only he were.

Bonds is a great baseball player who belongs to a small class of great players and the sooner he joins them the better. We'll say it again. What's good enough for Shoeless Joe Jackson and Pete Rose is good enough for Barry Bonds.

-tdr

Technorati: baseball, steroids, Barry Bonds.