Game 4 Report

The first two losses sucked. We didn’t execute… In Game 4, the Padres held Pujols in check 0 for 3 with a walk (he scored in the sixth after leading off the inning with a that walk).

If I told you before the game that we would hold Pujols hitless in three at-bats, and only allow seven hits and two walks, you would probably take it. I would.

However, the Cardinals racked up two of their hits (mixing in a hit-by-pitch and a walk) in their 2-run first inning. The Cardinals then got 3 more hits (mixing in their other walk, a Padre fielding error, and a squeeze-bunt by Eckstein) in their 4-run sixth inning.

The only hitting category where St. Louis had the advantage was in extra-base hits. San Diego had one (Ryan Klesko’s pinch-hit double in the ninth) and St. Louis had two (a double by Yadier Molina in the first and scorer’s gift-triple off Juan Encarnacion’s bat – it was a double and he advanced to third on the throw home in the decisive sixth inning).

Like I said, the first two losses sucked, on its own, this one was easier to take. Unfortunately the three losses knocked our Padres out of the playoffs.

Last season’s Padres were ridiculed for backing into the playoffs with an 82-80 season. This pre-season, Las Vegas set the over/under on our win total at 78 and all the experts said it would be a Los Angeles-San Francisco fight for the NL West. Personally, I thought the Padres would battle the Dodgers for the NL West title (lucky guess I suppose) while winning approximately 85 wins… If you told me before the season the NL West would be won with 88 wins I wouldn’t have been surprised but I would not have expected the Padres to be repeat NL West champions.

My hat is off the Padres on their 2006 season. It was more than the experts expected, and more than I expected.

As we start to think about the Padres 2007 season, keep in mind that the Padres will be getting virtually all of their best players back while taking roughly $25 million off the books. San Diego should be an even better team next year.

Congratulations to the Cardinals and good luck against New York.