Thursday, April 21, 2005 |
Winner At Eight: Dodgers 3, Padres 1
And then, J.D. Drew powers one into the stands in the ninth, and damned if Jose Valentin doesn't follow up with a game-winning triple in the tenth.
Or Milton Bradley hits one game-winning jack after another.
There'll be long stretches this year where I'll tear my hair out, times I'll forget about this incredible romp, times I'll find myself requestioning some of DePodesta's moves.
But for now, it's all clicking, in a way the Padres aren't. Look at last night's box score; there's barely a man on there hitting over .250, and most of them are small-sample-size pitchers. That's gonna change, of course, but the real story was continued early-season wildness by the Padres' normally stable bullpen. Linebrink, normally one of their anchor middle relievers, gave up a walk and single in the ninth; his early-season 5.68 ERA likely won't last, but like the Angels' relief corps, he's a guy picked upon the cheap, and for a reason: he's been very, very good with the Padres over the previous two years, but he's also had inconsistant performances over the years, with a career ERA of 3.45.
The Padres for their part are wont to discuss their recent change at the top, the acquisition of former A's CEO and GM (1983-1998) Sandy Alderson for their vacant CEO position. Ducksnorts says it's an "intriguing move", fighting DePodesta's Moneyball fire with fire from a different generation of A's management. Recall that Alderson begat Beane, who begat DePodesta, thus opening a whole series of Vader-Luke possibilities in the NL West, only skipping a generation. (Kevin Towers will remain as GM, for now.)
For their sputtering start, the Pads are likely to tell you about injuries to key players like Dave Roberts, Khalil Greene, and Eric Young. But the real problem the Padres face is that those guys who are in the lineup every day aren't producing. That'll change, but casting an injury magnet like Roberts into a starting role after his extensive downtime in Los Angeles makes one wonder how much good judgement Towers really has. It's not widely recognized because the Pads lack a Bonds-type player, but the barrenness of San Diego's farm system is driving something of a win-now mode. Alderson's ascent to the GM chair might happen sooner rather than later if they don't.
: 4/21/2005 11:15:00 AM
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