Even with Jake Peavy, the San Diego Padres were among the worst teams in MLB.
Now that Peavy will likely be out a couple months with an injured ankle, the ultimate question for the 2009 season has become: Are the Padres now the worst team in MLB?
The Padres have an 11 ½ game “lead” on the Washington Nationals, so they probably won’t finish with the majors’ worst record.
In fact, San Diego would have to go a paltry 35-65 over its final 100 games to “match” last year’s record of 63-99.
But without Peavy (or even with him), don’t for a minute think that the team is certain finish with a better mark than last year.
In Peavy’s absence, the only legitimate major-league starter in the rotation is Chris Young. And he’s not exactly having a great year with a 4-6 record and 5.21 ERA.
Outside of closer Heath Bell, can you even name three other pitchers in the bullpen?
As for the offense, it begins and ends with Adrian Gonzalez. And now that other teams have figured out it’s best to walk Gonzalez, it further lessens the Padres’ chances of having many major rallies.
Oh, sure, Tony Gwynn Jr. has shown some spark as a leadoff batter and Kevin Kouzmanoff went through a recent hot streak of driving in runs. But neither player has enough of a major-league pedigree to say he will succeed over the long haul.
Speaking of the long haul, it looks like a long summer for the Padres.
Now that Peavy will likely be out a couple months with an injured ankle, the ultimate question for the 2009 season has become: Are the Padres now the worst team in MLB?
The Padres have an 11 ½ game “lead” on the Washington Nationals, so they probably won’t finish with the majors’ worst record.
In fact, San Diego would have to go a paltry 35-65 over its final 100 games to “match” last year’s record of 63-99.
But without Peavy (or even with him), don’t for a minute think that the team is certain finish with a better mark than last year.
In Peavy’s absence, the only legitimate major-league starter in the rotation is Chris Young. And he’s not exactly having a great year with a 4-6 record and 5.21 ERA.
Outside of closer Heath Bell, can you even name three other pitchers in the bullpen?
As for the offense, it begins and ends with Adrian Gonzalez. And now that other teams have figured out it’s best to walk Gonzalez, it further lessens the Padres’ chances of having many major rallies.
Oh, sure, Tony Gwynn Jr. has shown some spark as a leadoff batter and Kevin Kouzmanoff went through a recent hot streak of driving in runs. But neither player has enough of a major-league pedigree to say he will succeed over the long haul.
Speaking of the long haul, it looks like a long summer for the Padres.
1 comment:
Louise,
I hope you're right. It is just kind of scary to think what things might be like without Peavy.
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