Padres aren't much of a hit

The Padres are at a crossroads.

Not only have they lost five of six games, their biggest weakness is being exposed.

This is a team that flat out can’t score runs, meaning the pitching staff has to be “on” every night in order to win.

Monday night’s 4-3 loss to San Francisco in 11 innings was a perfect example.

Scott Linebrink has an impressive 2.20 ERA, yet it proved to be the difference when he gave up a run in the eighth inning that allowed the Giants to tie at 3-3.

From then on, it was back to a Padres’ offense that can’t hit in the clutch.

Is help on the horizon? Not likely.

General Manager Kevin Towers told Channel 4 San Diego that the Padres have little to trade at the Triple A level. That means the Padres would likely have to break up their stellar bullpen to acquire a proven power hitter.

The hitting deficiency didn’t seem to matter when the Padres were first in the NL West. But now that they’re in third place (albeit just one game behind Arizona), their shortcomings are starting to open some eyes.

Speaking of, you might want to keep closing your eyes when the Padres are at bat.