Did Padres' GM wake up Dodgers?

As spring training begins this week, the last thing a Major League Baseball team wants to do is wake up a sleeping opponent.

Yes, the Los Angeles Dodgers have been sleeping for years.

Yes, the Padres have totally dominated them in head-to-head competition.

So, why did Padres’ General Manager Kevin Towers wake up the Dodgers with the following statements at a recent luncheon concerning the Padres-Dodgers exhibition games March 15-16 in Beijing, China?

“My hope is we can kick their tails over there and give them a little taste of what we're going to give them over the course of the season,” Towers said, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune.

Whoops, sounds like the Padres are already bragging about their dominance over the Dodgers.

Don’t think for a second that the Dodgers won’t have those comments posted in their clubhouse when they play the Padres this year, beginning with an April 4-6 series in San Diego!

Interleague schedule favors Padres

When it comes to interleague play, the Padres have it much easier than their two California rivals in the NL West.

The Padres get to play Seattle each year as their “natural rival.” The Los Angeles Dodgers must face the Anaheim Angels; while the San Francisco Giants are matched up against the Oakland Athletics.

Think about it for a minute. The Padres play a Seattle team that traditionally battles Texas for last place. The Dodgers and Giants are playing the year-in and year-out top two teams in the AL West.

Let the interleague numbers tell the story:

The Padres are 26-24 vs. the Mariners; 48-63 vs. the rest of the American League.
The Dodgers are 26-30 vs. the Angels; 54-51 vs. the rest of the AL.
The Giants are 27-29 vs. Oakland; 59-46 vs. the rest of the AL.

Broken down, the Padres have a winning record against Seattle and losing record against the rest of the AL. The Dodgers and Giants have losing records vs. their “natural rivals,” but winning records against the remainder of the AL.

The next time the Padres complain about their schedule, it could be worse. They could be playing the Angels or Athletics every year in interleague action.

Wells needs to produce

With Clay Hensley on the disabled list, the Padres need to add a new starting pitcher.
Or is that two?

David Wells has not exactly been looking like Sandy Koufax lately … or David Wells, for that matter.

In his last two starts combined, Wells has surrendered nine runs on 17 hits and three home runs in 10 innings. He gave up just two runs in seven innings three starts ago, but was touched before that start for five runs on eight hits in 2 1/3 innings by the Dodgers.

Either this is just a blip on the radar, or a trend is starting to develop. If it’s a bump in the road, fine. If it’s a pattern, the Padres must reconsider their investment in a 43-year-old pitcher making $3 million in base salary this year.

Wells, making his sixth start of the season tonight at Florida, is to be paid bonuses for his 11th through 27th starts this year. If all is met, he’ll make an extra $3 million.

This is the same Wells that the Padres let pitch on short rest the final day of 2004 to make a $250,000 bonus. It’s also the same Wells who walked away to the Boston Red Sox in 2005.

David Wells: Worth the investment? Let the next few starts unfold.

Padres aren't exactly a steal

While Mike Piazza was the primary catcher for the Padres in 2006, they allowed opponents to be successful on stolen bases an alarming 85 percent of the time.

Piazza has moved on to Oakland … but the percentage is even worse in San Diego this year. Through the first month of the season, the Padres have allowed an unbelievable 91 percent (31-of-34) of opponents to be safe on stolen base tries.

Ouch!

In comparison, the Padres aren’t exactly wearing out the basepaths, stealing 10 bases in 12 attempts.

Juan Pierre of the Dodgers has 12 steals by himself thus far. And these are the same Dodgers who were 6-for-6 in steal opportunities against San Diego last weekend.

The Padres probably aren’t going to run away in the NL West this season … and foot speed certainly has something to do with it!

Vin Scully: Simply the Best

Vin Scully is simply the best.

No other Major League Baseball television announcer can compare to the play-by-play voice of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Listening to Scully is like taking a walk along the beach, listening to the waves. It's calm, relaxing and just a joyful sound to hear.

One of the things that makes Scully so great is his knowledge of the opposing team. This past weekend against the San Diego Padres, for instance, Scully came up with some gems that went well beyond the Padre media guide. Did you know ...

Shortstop Khalil Greene's father served as a Marine in Vietnam.

First baseman Adrian Gonzalez comes from a family that owns an air conditioning firm with five locations in San Diego County.

Third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff played on a high school team in Evergreen, Colo., which never had a home game his senior season because of too much snow at 7,000 feet.

Then there are those famed Scully quotes.

After the Dodgers failed on a couple bunt attempts: "The art of bunting. You think it would be so easy."

When San Diego's Marcus Giles swung and missed a pitch from Takashi Saito: Marcus looked back at him as if to say, 'Where did that come from?' Well, it came from Japan."

On Padres hefty pitcher David Wells: "He grew up a surfer. Obviously, he needed a big board. Now, he's 'Hanging 10' on the mound at Petco Park."

Upon Derek Lowe being pulled from a game: "For Derek Lowe, he was cut off at the appropriate number of pitches -- 86."

The Scully quips and quotes are unending. Nobody does it better.

Double Headers are nowhere to be found

What ever happened to the double header in Major League Baseball?

If you have a game snowed out in Cleveland or rained out in Pittsburgh, you’re likely to see a double header scheduled.

Otherwise, you’re going to notice the double header has gone the way of the dinosaur.

Why? The answer is simple: money.

Now that the average player makes well over $2 million annually, owners can’t afford to offer two games for the price of one. The best you’ll get, if you’re lucky, are two-for-one hot dogs once or twice a season.

In fact, instead of the double header, you’ll get what are called "premium" games. For the San Diego Padres, these games include opening night, weekends with the Los Angeles Dodgers or weekends with the Boston Red Sox.

Simply put, a premium game in San Diego means you will pay $7 more than normal for most tickets.

That being the case, why not have a "non-premium" game? Those could occur when teams such as the Washington Nationals (who come in next Monday-Wednesday) are in town.

If the price goes up for the Dodgers, it should go down for the Nationals. The anticipated crowds of 15,000 or so for the Washington games next week will speak loudly for the need of non-premium games, as well as premium games.

Will that ever happen? Chances for non-premium games are about as likely as ever seeing a double header on the original schedule for a Major League Baseball season.

Don't hit the panic button

Don’t let the Padres’ 9-1 loss to the Dodgers in Los Angeles last night ruin your day.
Just put it in perspective.
The Padres lost their first two games against the Dodgers last season. They lost their last contest against the Dodgers in the well-publicized game when Los Angeles hit back-to-back-to-back-to-back home runs.
What happened between those first two losses and the last defeat? The Padres beat the Dodgers 13 of 15 times.
Don’t forget that the Dodgers were about to sweep a three-game series in San Diego last April with a 5-0 lead over the Padres in the ninth inning. That’s when San Diego scored five times in the bottom of the ninth and once in the 10th to pull out an improbable 6-5 win.
Even with that victory, the Padres still finished April with a 9-15 record, standing 5 ½ games out of first place.
What will it mean if the Dodgers sweep this weekend? It will mean both teams still have 150 games to play ... with many ups-and-downs to experience.