Why I hate Real Baseball

Well, yeah, the Padres lost to LA last night. Gotta give em their props. Starting an outfield in which none of the hitters had averages above .200, the Dogs managed to steal a win from the first place Padres and halt their eight game tailspin.

But the day was a bad one for the Friars all the way around. First, it appears that the injury bug plaguing the Dodgers has now spread to the San Diego clubhouse. The Pads announced that starting catcher Ramon Hernandez and starting pitcher Adam Eaton would be going to the disabled list. Also, it is looking likely that starting first baseman Phil Nevin will miss more time (and possibly even land on the DL) due to a strained oblique muscle. Obliques are notoriously difficult injuries to manage and rehab.

Second, on a day when Padres manager Bruce Bochy finally received a two-year contract extension, he displayed some of the annoying skills which have lead me to nickname him The Tinkerer. Now don't get me wrong, I like Bochy and glad he was extended. But he does drive me crazy sometimes with curious late-inning moves.

Exhibit A: The 1998 Braves-Padres NLCS. With the Pads leading the series 3-1 and up 4-2 in the seventh inning of Game 5, it looked like San Diego was on the verge of closing out the Braves and advancing to the World Series. Then The Tinkerer decided to get clever. He brought ace Kevin Brown out of the bullpen on 2 days' rest rather than using fresh relievers like Trevor Hoffman who were accustomed to late inning insertions. What made the move all the more maddening was that Brown, who had been lights-out as a starter in postseason was slated to start Game 6. Using Brown in this situation meant that should a Game 6 be necessary, Brownie would be unavailable. He promptly came in, gave up a three-run jack to Michael Tucker, Atlanta won 7-6 and Game 6 became a necessity. I was horrified. San Diego ended up winning the series and advancing to the World Series thanks to a memorable Game 6 performance by Sterling Hitchcock. But the impetuous move by Bochy was foolish and potentially put the entire series in jeopardy.

Fast forward to last night. With the Dodgers leading 5-4 in the eighth, San Diego loaded the bases. With two outs and Dodger righthander Duaner Sanchez on the mound, The Tinkerer decided to pinch hit for reserve catcher Miguel Ojeda. Although Ojeda is a righty and has had a tough year at the plate, The Tinkerer seems to have forgotten a couple of game-winning HR's Miguel hit last year that caused Bochy to often use him as a late-inning pinch hitter. Nonetheless, Bochy decides to pinch-hit. Fine. Righthanded Xavier Nady, one of San Diego's most-prized young power hitters was sitting on the bench. Although the righty-righty matchup wasn't ideal, it seemed like the right place to use Nady (more on that in a moment). Instead, The Tinkerer called on left-handed Paul McAnulty who just earlier yesterday afternoon had arrived on a plane from AA Mobile. McAnulty lined to second. Rally over.

Are you kidding me?

Nothing against McAnulty. Nothing against playing lefty-righty percentages. But how about THESE percentages? I'm not sure what they are, but rookie hitters making their first Major League appearances probably don't have batting averages above .210. Just guessing here, but I'm pretty sure about that. I wonder what their batting averages look like in eighth inning, bases loaded, two-out, high pressure situations against division rivals? I'm willing to bet they are even lower. It seems to me rather logical that even though you traditionally play the lefty-righty matchup, that in this case it's better to go with the established major leaguer rather than the kid who is more focused on his stomach being in his throat than what Sanchez is throwing. I would have rather seen Bochy stick with Ojeda or bring Nady off the bench. The McAnulty call didn't lose the game for the Padres. The Damian Jackson error on a sure double-play and the Pads stranding 10 runners, including 7 in scoring position is what lost the game. But the eighth inning was an opportunity to overcome all of that and using McAnulty in that situation wasn't fair to the kid nor was it fair to the team.

As for Xavier Nady, he is apparently the 25th man on the Padres. Behind even newly-promoted Paul McAnulty. I don't get it. Before the season, Bochy and Padres GM Kevin Towers suggested that Nady would be used as a "super-sub" and had him shagging flies in the outfield as well as taking grounders at first, second and third base. Dave Roberts has missed time in CF. Phil Nevin has missed time at first. Sean Burroughs has not gotten it done offensively at third and Mark Loretta will be out until August at second. And yet Nady finds himself sitting while Miguel Ojeda gets starts in LF? Or Geoff Blum starts at third?

When he was drafted in 1999, the X Man was considered one of the top collegians in the country. As a Scott Boras client, he slid to the second round where the Padres selected him and inked him to a major league contract. He is what I would call a professional hitter. He has raked at every level in the minors but has been blocked by Nevin, Burroughs and Klesko for the last few years on the Padres. He's had mixed success at the major league level, but then again he doesn't get consistent playing time. Nonetheless, anytime the Pads enter trade negotiations other teams ask about Nady. But for some reason The Tinkerer won't play the kid. Maybe he's not that good. But give him a chance. Letting him atrophy on the bench has to be killing whatever confidence he has left. Although Burroughs plays a mean 3B, his inability to drive in runs is a major problem for this team. Since Nady is a natural 3B I would give him the job for awhile to see how he does. But I don't think The Tinkerer will. And if that's the case, you might as well trade Nady. /rant.