Padres Draft Results!

The 2011 Draft has officially closed and in addition to first round draft pick Cory Spangenberg, drafted back in the June amateur draft, the Padres have signed three more of their top four picks. Joe Ross, a right-handed pitcher from Bishop O'Dowd High in Oakland CA was signed for $2.75 million. Michael Kelly, another right-handed pitcher from West Boca Raton (Fla) High,  was signed for $718k, and catcher Austin Hedges from Junipero Serra, CA was signed for $3 million. Ross is the younger brother of Oakland A's pitcher Tyson Ross and had a fastball that reached 96 mph in the spring. Kelly was 8-1 with a 1.89 ERA this past season and a fastball at around 94 mph. "He has a delivery that works," Padres assistant manager Jason McLeod said. Hedges was called by scouts the best defensive catcher in the draft.
What potential does 2012 hold with these three new athletes officially wearing a Padres uniform? Only time will tell!

Ludwick and Adams gone, Heath stays

With Sunday's game 1:05 start being only 5 minutes after the 1:00 trade deadline the air around Petco Park was thick with anticipation. The names on the chopping block were Ludwick, Bell, and Adams. The ones that got chopped: Adams and Ludwick. Ludwick was announced in the starting lineup and Adams was traded about twenty minutes of the game's start. To say Manager Jed Hoyer and the Padres trade team was cutting close is putting it mildly. Of Mike Adams and Heath Bell, Adams was still under club control for another year and a half, Bell is a free agent at the end of the season. If Bell were to leave as a free agent, the Padres would get two draft picks as compensation. So, were another team to acquire him it would essentially only be as a rental for the next two months, but Adams will be under the Rangers control for another year and a half. In exchange for Adams the Padres picked up two minor league pitchers; Robbie Erlin and Joe Wieland. Hoyer held a news conference almost immediately following the trade news and I was there for your inside scoop into the mindset of the manager.
"You hate to be in the position of the seller," Hoyer noted. "The goal is to win games but we just have not done enough of that, so we are the sellers this season. Our goal now is to create a championship organization, I don't think it's any secret that we are not going to the playoffs this year so we are going to strike deals that build talent base. With this ballpark you can never lose sight of the bullpen, that's why we went for the two young pitchers we did. We were very impressed with how polished they are."
"Our depth was tested this year, last year we were fortunate, we were more tried with injury this year. You want a core group but you also want to strengthen your farm system."
If there was one thing Hoyer was emphasizing it was the farm system and how important it is to the Padres to continue to build young talent.
Ludwick was also traded in the final moments before the deadline to the Pittsburgh Pirates for a player to be named later or cash compensation. Ludwick, unlike Adams who said, "I came in this morning prepared to be the closer. I honestly thought Heath would be moved. This is a shock," was prepared for his impending trade.
"I knew I was going to get traded," Ludwick said. "Jed (Hoyer's) been honest since day one, I have nothing bad to say about the club. You can take me to my grave on that."
Ludwick, no stranger to the trading game, this will be his seventh in eleven years in the league, while sad about leaving San Diego where "everything was great, we just didn't win," is excited about the prospect of being in playoff contention.
"I'm excited to for the chance to get to the play-offs," Ludwick said. "And the central area is a place where I'n familiar."

So let me ask you, with all these last minute deals...first of all, what do you think about trading Adams over Bell, and secondly, what do you think about the emphasis on young players as opposed to veterans who know the game?

In the Blink of A Trade

With the deadline fast approaching, trade talks seem to be the only talks in the dugout. Heath Bell, Ryan Ludwick, and Mike Adams are all candidates for a last minute trade, but no one is exempt. Bud Black discussed what would happen in the event of even today's starter Aaron Harang being traded within the next hour.
"In that hypothetical situation," Black stated." Anthony Bass would be the starting pitcher."
You just never know when that call could come, or who it could come for. Buddy himself was subject to just such a surprise trade. He was warming up during a game against the Toronto Blue Jays when his coach got the call that he no longer needed to warm up...he had been traded to the Blue Jays. From dugout to dugout in a matter of minutes. The intricacies of baseball pale in comparison to the unpredictability of baseball.

Speaking of unpredictability, Nick Hundley was out taking BP this afternoon. He showed up before the first group batted and ran the bases as well as threw to second a few times, with his throws appearing to be normal, if not just a hair lower than they normally are. He batted with the last group during BP and Buddy said he may very well be in a rehab assignment by early next week.

Bell's Question is No Longer "If" But "Who"?

Heath Bell is almost certainly getting traded from the Padres. After months and months of discussion the question is no longer "if" he will be traded, it is "who" will pick him up? Several teams are in the conversation, especially the Rangers and the Cardinals. But all you needed to do to get that information was turn on SportsCenter or go on MLB.com. It's no longer a secret. But how exactly does the Heater feel about all these rumors and no action? Or about leaving San Diego in general?
"I don't want all the money," Heath said. "I want to create a legacy, you know like Trevor Hoffman did? I want that, I don't care about the money at all."
Manager Bud Black, as opposed to discussing the actual placement or possibility of a trade, looked at the way Bell is handling the situation.
"I'd say he's handling it different than most," Black said. "Most players are guarded when they talk to the media, Heath is very open, it's in his nature and he's open publicly with his feelings."
While it is Jed Hoyer who is making all the phone calls and exploring all the options, Black is kept informed as far as who Hoyer is looking at acquiring or giving away.
And at this point the situation has come to feel like a Band-Aid that has been on too long. It just needs to be ripped off so Heath can adjust both himself and his family to the move as quickly and painlessly as possible. The only question now is, will the scar be in the shape of Texas or a Cardinal? Deadline's Sunday, the wait will be over soon!

Richard down...possibly out?

Clayton Richard went in for shoulder surgery today at around 2:30 pm, manager Bud Black casually mentioned at the end of his news conference before today's game between the Padres and the Rockies. Thus far, all Buddy knows is that it was an exploratory surgery and promised more details following tonight's game. However, the recovery time at best is 6-8 weeks...I'm no math major but even I know that 8 weeks is two months and that's the end of the season folks. No word as to what could happen in the off-season but it looks like, at least for 2011, Richard's shoulder has finished him off.

Headley's Hurt

Chase Headley did not start today due to aggravating his right shoulder during Wednesday’s 5-1 victory over the Boston Red Sox. Buddy Black said that his shoulder acted up in his last AB and he simply had not recovered enough in the off day to start today. The Padres are going to take it day by day but he is out of the lineup today.

Rizzomania!

New Padre Anthony Rizzo

21-year old Anthony Rizzo has made his way through the Padres tunnel for the first time and there were four television cameras there to watch him do it. If Rizzo thought his time to shine was not going to come until the first pitch, he thought wrong. But Rizzo handled the cameras that became his shadow like a 21^st year veteran as opposed to the first day rookie he actually is. Even the ribbing from teammates could not faze his calm persona.

“Hey Rizzo,” teammate Orlando Hudson called from the dugout while Rizzo was taking fielding practice at first base. “Baby they got all the cameras on you! When you move they move baby! After nine years you get over that, they don’t care about you after that!”

Rizzo just acknowledged Hudson’s teasing, his grin a mixture of gladness at being accepted as one of the guys but uncertainty at the heart behind the teasing. With Anthony Rizzo being listed in black and white on the starting roster, the game will decide if the kid if worth the hype.

Oh The Pitchers You Choose

Mike Adams winding up

While the Padres have been lacking in run support, and wins, and hits, they have been excellent in their bullpen. The only proof you need of that, outside of the 3.46 ERA that places them fifth best in the National League and tenth in the Major Leagues, is the duel between Padres’ Mike Adams and Cardinals’ Albert Pujols during last night’s game. The battle between Adams and Pujols left the air crackling with electricity. It was a clutch out that kept the Padres within range of a win. With seven men eagerly waiting in the Padres bullpen, how does skipper Bud Black decide which one will be the best for a particular situation? I caught up with him today in the dugout and here’s what he said:

“I don’t want to say that there are loosely defined positions, but there are particular spots where each pitcher feels comfortable. Adams comes in usually in the eighth with either a lead or a tie, and that’s home or away. Gregerson and Leubke in the seventh and Bell in the ninth.”

So there you have it, straight from the GM himself, the key to utilizing all the potential in the Padres’ magnificent bullpen. 

Venable To San Antonio, Deduno DFA'd, and Tekotte in a Padres Uniform: What Happened?

This morning Will Venable was optioned to the AAA San Antonio Padres club. While fluidity in the roster is much more common in baseball than in most other sports, the move today was not exactly expected or simple. Because Venable was optioned to Tucson Bud Black brought up Blake Tekotte, a left-hander from Columbia, Missouri. It is Tecotte’s first callup of his career. In order to make room for Tecotte on the roster Black decided to designate pitcher Samuel Deduno for assignment. This means that the Padres have 10 days, from the date of designation, to return Deduno to the 40-man roster, or to trade, release, or outright him to the Minors. But, all is not lost for Deduno, since he was designated for assignment he was required to clear outright waivers. While he is on those waivers another team can buy him for the price of $20,000, which is the price of the outright waiver. The Padres also still have to pay the remaining salary to Deduno if he is not picked up by another team.

That being said, the atmosphere around the dugout this afternoon was a little heavier than normal. Sure, the players were still joking with each other and getting excited for the game, but there was a finality, a fear in the air that had not been there before any previous games. Black’s team meeting last night added to the air of replacement. On a team where there are no league-renowned names such as Adrian Gonzalez or David Eckstein anymore, anyone can be replaced, as Black proved last night.

When asked why Black chose to bring up Tekotte as opposed to Cunningham or another player he responded, “Blake is flexible. He can play all the outfield positions. He’s what we need at this point. He fits the bill and works well as a left-handed batter.”

Black, while dancing around the topics discussed at the team meeting with more grace than a ballerina, was very explicit about what they look for when they are looking at which player to bring up to the majors.

“It is performance based,” Black stated. “What can they add to the team and what do we need at the time.”

According to Black, Tekotte fits the bill. With no appearance in tonight’s 3-1 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals, the mysterious Blake has yet to prove he was worth the trade. But tomorrow is another day, and one look at the child-like grin that was plastered on Tekotte’s face all throughout batting practice assured you that he has every intention of staying right where he is. 

Just An Ocean Away

What began as a national pastime has become an international game. Teams around the league are widening their focus to include overseas prospects. And as more and more of these foreign development programs discover untapped potential in international talent, international leagues are becoming more credible. The Padres have long been scouring foreign lands for their talent and before Friday’s game one of the greatest Padres’ Japanese talents returned to his stadium. Akinori Otsuka was a Padres’ relief pitcher from 2003 to 2006 before being traded to the Texas Rangers, along with pitcher Adam Eaton, and minor league catcher Billy Killian, for Chris Young, Adrian Gonzalez (now having an All-Star season with the Boston Red Sox after his trade during the past off-season), and outfielder Terrmel Sledge.

Trevor Hoffman 1995 Signature Card

Japanese Baseball Card Menko 1976

Otsuka was born in Chiba, Japan and played in the Japanese League with the Chunichi Dragons before his career to the US. Before the game I got a chance to catch up with Aki and discuss a pillar of any baseball fan’s memorabilia: the baseball card. In Japan the cards are completely different than the ones found here in the US. The Japanese cards are cartoonish, depicting caricatures of the players as opposed to the real still-life photos found in American cards. And while American cards are always found in the typical rectangular shape, Japanese cards vary in shape and size. Some cards came looking like masks with holes punched out for eyes, some were circular, and some were the size of a stick of gum. But one thing that transcends the differences across the ocean is the magnetic draw of the cards for children of all ages. Aki remembers going to the store every single day after school and buying a bag of what would be equivalent to potato chips here in the US, for thirty cents and excitedly opening it to see what card would be inside.

“My favorite card to get was Sadaharu Oh,” Otsuka tells me with a grin. “He had 868 homeruns and he was the general manager of the 2006 Baseball World Classic Team, where I was the closer.”

When I asked him what it was like to work under the man he had admired so much throughout his young life, his broken English turned into the star-struck speech of every child with a hero.

“It was everything I could imagine. When he came out of the tunnel and I was right there, it was just…” his sparkling eyes and Cheshire grin said more than words ever could.

Duck and Cover

During Thursday’s game against the Seattle Mariners, Padres shortstop Jason Bartlett took a ground ball and in an attempt to do his usual side arm flip for the out at first he clipped the left hand of fellow shortstop Brendan Ryan. According to the Major League Baseball Official Rules Section 7.09 (e)

“If, in the judgment of the umpire, a base runner willfully and deliberately interferes with a batted ball or a fielder in the act of fielding a batted ball with the obvious intent to break up a double play, the ball is dead. The umpire shall call the runner out for interference and also call out the batter-runner because of the action of his teammate. In no event may bases be run or runs scored because of such action by a runner.”

Throughout the 60s and 70s is was fairly common for a shortstop or second baseman to actually aim for a runner who was coming in to a slide too high trying to break up a double play. Bob Stanton, a Channel 4 Padres reporter, noted that once you got hit with a ball coming at you that fast you thought twice about sliding in high and late. Padres’ manager Buddy Black noted the next day, that there was no history between Bartlett and Ryan, it probably just happened. After the play was over the two shook it off. Ryan was fine, although a trainer did come out to inspect his left hand, and Bartlett continued on as the game ended 1-0 in the Pads favor. And just in case you were not sure that professional baseball players are really just kids who get to play the sport they love and call it work, the next day the team was already making light of the situation. During batting practice Bartlett and Jorge Cantu were fielding practice grounders at second base. In between turn Bartlett picked up the ball and wheeled towards Cantu, motioning as if he was going to take his head off with his point blank throw. Cantu ducked quickly in mock fright, but Bartlett with a smile and a laugh allowed the ball to fall harmlessly to the ground. Two grown-up boys just teasing each other and expressing their love of the game.