AL West is gaining on the Angels

The Anaheim Angels may finally be getting some competition in the AL West division that they have dominated for so long.

Certainly the Oakland A’s made a move in the right direction by signing pitcher Ben Sheets … as long as he’s over the elbow surgery that sidelined him all of last season.

Sheets joins a formidable rotation with two-time All Star Justin Duchscherer, Brett Anderson and Dallas Braden.

In addition, the A’s have added punch and pop with new center fielder Coco Crisp and third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff.

The Texas Rangers certainly have added power with the free agent signing of former Angel Vladimir Guerrero to an already potent offense.

Plus, with Nolan Ryan included in the team’s new ownership group, look for Rangers’ pitchers to take on some of the toughness Ryan displayed in his Hall of Fame career. No more babying pitchers; let’s see how far they can go in a game rather than how soon they can come out!

As for the Seattle Mariners, the likes of standout pitcher Cliff Lee and former Angel third baseman Chone Figgins will be a definite upgrade in 2010.

The Angels? Not only have they lost top players to division rivals; they also lost ace John Lackey to the Boston Red Sox.

When the Angels look back, they are going to find people are gaining on them this season.

Are San Diego Padres now MLB's worst team?

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.

Padres line up well lately

The Padres have won three of four games since they altered their lineup.

This came directly in response to the team losing 18 of 22 previous games.

So is it the new lineup making the difference?

Jody Gerut hasn’t even been here a week since being recalled from the minors and is leading off.

Tadahito Iguchi bats second, and Brian Giles has been moved from first to third in the order.

Adrian Gonzalez is clean-up and Kevin Kouzmanoff bats fifth, each dropping one spot in the order from before.

Perhaps the new lineup is making a difference, but the test of time will tell.

The last time the Padres had a set lineup was on Opening Day, and they won three of their first four games …. just as they have with the new lineup.

History will tell whether the new lineup is a winner, or just a temporary fix for a losing team.

Padres hit the Wall in China

The Padres … or at least half of them … are finding out how the other half of the world lives this week in Beijing, China.

A contingent led by Manager Bud Black is in Beijing to play the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday and Saturday nights (San Diego time) in a two-game exhibition series.

But the real adventure has been the sightseeing, according to media reports.

The San Diego contingent first took a trip to one of the Seven Wonders of the World – the Great Wall of China.

Then four Padres signed autographs at a mall … Heath Bell, Justin Germano, Trevor Hoffman and Kevin Kouzmanoff.

Baseball is basically a side-show to the city that will host the 2008 Summer Olympics.

What does this trip do for the Padres?

It gives those involved a chance to break the monotony during the middle of spring training, among other things.

Sure, they will be tired when they return to Arizona for spring training next week. Then it will set in that they had a once-in-a-lifetime trip.

Jet lag will also set in, but they’ll have plenty of time to get over it before the March 31 season opener vs. the Houston Astros.

Black is managing quite well

Bud Black is doing a masterful job of managing the Padres thus far.

The rookie skipper has made almost all of the right moves and can be praised for two things in particular: his patience and handling of the pitching staff.

Patience was a virtue when Black stuck by rookie third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff while most others wanted him sent to the minors early in the season.

And being a former pitcher and pitching coach, Black has shown he knows how to manage a pitching staff. He certainly deserves much credit for the Padres having the lowest ERA in the major leagues.

Sure, he’s not perfect. He wasted reliever Cla Meredith on an intentional walk Tuesday night because Royce Ring did not have enough time to get warmed up while Greg Maddux was getting battered around in the seventh inning.

But that was an exception.

Black could definitely be considered a frontrunner for Manager of the Year at the halfway point of 2007.

Kouzmanoff should bat seventh

Kevin Kouzmanoff should be batting seventh for the Padres.

Why?

He had an eight-game hitting streak while primarily in the No. 7 hole, recording a .520 batting average with four home runs and 12 RBIs during the streak.

So, the Padres rewarded Kouzmanoff by elevating him to fifth in the order. So, Kouzmanoff responded by going 0-for-7 in the last two games at No. 5, dropping his average from .217 to .205.

During his hot streak, the same people who had wanted Kouzmanoff sent to the minors were talking about him as a possible Rookie of the Year. But batting fifth, he looked like the same guy that the multitudes wanted sent out to Triple-A Portland.

When the Padres lineup comes out tonight in Pittsburgh, you can only hope Kouzmanoff is batting seventh.

Padres suffer power outage

If pitching and defense win championships, the Padres may be in luck.

But if it comes down to power, the Padres may be in the tank.

Why? Five of the eight position players in their starting line-up during last night’s 3-2 win over Cincinnati have not hit a home run in May.

Mike Cameron did homer May 8 against Atlanta. Adrian Gonzalez homered May 9 against the Braves and Khalil Greene hit a round-tripper May 11 against St. Louis.

The remainder of the starting eight?

Brian Giles has not homered in 104 at bats since April 14.
Marcus Giles has not homered in 84 at bats since April 16.
Kevin Kouzmanoff has not homered in 59 at bats since April 14.
Jose Cruz Jr. has not homered in 48 at bats since April 27.
Josh Bard has not homered in 40 at bats since April 30.

Mike Piazza, where are you? (Or for that matter, where are Jack Cust … and Phil Nevin?)

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.

Padres need an early alarm clock

There are two ways to look at it. Either the Padres are a great hitting team in the clutch, or they are incapable of putting away another team’s starting pitcher.
Consider the last four games. The Padres have scored six of their 11 runs in the ninth inning or later.
It breaks down this way: They have scored five runs in 32 innings through the first eight innings of each game, compared to six times in five innings after the eighth.
More than 50 percent of their runs are coming in the ninth or 10th innings? Better hope the starting pitching holds up and the bullpen goes all season without allowing a run.
Kevin Kouzmanoff must be the most relieved man in San Diego today. His single with the infield drawn-in broke a 2-for-20 slump and provided a 2-1 win over Colorado in 10 innings.
The best advice for the Padres from here on out? Bring an alarm clock before the ninth inning!