Sunday, May 31, 2009

Padres MiLB May 29-31, Players of the Day - Weekend Edition

Friday, May 29, 2009

Hitter(s) of the Day

James Darnell (Low-A): 3-3, 2B, 3B, R, 2 BB
Sawyer Carroll (Low-A): 2-5, 2B, SO
Dan Robertson (Low-A): 2-5, 2B, RBI, SO
Eric Sogard (AA): 2-4, 2B, R, BB
Mike Baxter (AA): 4-5, 2 2B, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI, SO
Mitch Canham (AA): 2-4, 2B, R, RBI, SO

Pitcher(s) of the Day

Jeremy Hefner (High-A): 5.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 SO, 0 HR
Mat Latos (AA): 7.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 7 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

Jaff Decker hit his 7th HR and didn’t make the list…

Mat Latos doesn’t think AA is all that hard.

…Neither does Mike Baxter (hitting .374).

Saturday, May 30, 2009

Hitter(s) of the Day

Drew Cumberland (Low-A): 2-3, R, BB, SB, HBP
James Darnell (Low-A): 3-3, 2B, HR, R, 3 RBI, BB, SB
Cedric Hunter (AA): 2-4, 2B, SO

Pitcher(s) of the Day

Nick Schmidt (Low-A): 5.1 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 SO, 0 HR
Cory Luebke (High-A): 6.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 SO, 1 HR
Cesar Carrillo (AA): 7.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

Lance Zawadzki was promoted and played in AA Saturday (he went 1-4 with an RBI and a strikeout in AA debut).

Sunday, May 31, 2009

Hitter(s) of the Day

Dan Roberterson (Low-A): 2-4, R, 2 BB, SB
Drew Cumberland (Low-A): 3-5, 2B, 2 R, RBI, BB
James Darnell (Low-A): 3-5, 2B, R, 2 RBI, SO
Logan Forsythe (High-A): 2-4, 2 R, BB, CS
Mike Baxter (AA): 3-4, 2B, 3B,

Pitcher of the Day

Jeremy McBryde (High-A): 6.2 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

Before the season a buddy, loyal reader Paul R., asked me an interesting question, “Who would be the idea Padres position-player of the day (who would it best – for the Padres – to emerge and have a player of the year-type season)?”

That is a great question. Now if you think about it, the obvious candidates are Jaff Decker, Kyle Blanks, Cedric Hunter, etc. But if you think about the Padres biggest position-player organizational hole is SS. And the most talented SS in the system is Drew Cumberland. Drew, however, has been sidelined by injuries and only managed 206 AB in 2008. Again this season, Drew is about 75 at-bats behind the team-leaders in that category. If Cumberland could put together a “Player of the Year” type season, it would go a long way towards shoring up the organizational weakness.

So far this season, when Drew has been in the lineup, he’s hitting about as well as the Padres could have hoped (.365/.450/.469).

Interviewed...

Mark Schruender, over at Fantasy Baseball Hot Stove, interviewed me regarding some Padres' happenings. Check it out if you don't think this 'blog quite satisfies your Peter Friberg fix...

With the third pick...

The Padres have been linked (first here) to five potential candidates. Here are my reports from those five (in order of my personal ranking):

Dustin Ackley 1B/OF U. North Carolina

.414/.517/.768 with 16 2B, 4 3B, 20 HR with a 48/30 BB/SO ratio and went 13/17 in stolen base attempts

Ackley led his team in batting average, on-base percentage, slugging rate (by nearly 200 points), home runs, tied for the lead in triples, walks, stolen bases, runs, and RBI… Statistically, there is not a single stat that causes concern – he even strikes out less than 13% of his at-bats.

Dustin is frequently compared to Chase Utley and gets occasional Carlos Beltran comps… He’s a 4-tool player with his only below-average tool being his arm. He’s currently getting back to 100% from Tommy John surgery and has been thus-limited to first base. Nearly everyone assumes his future home is centerfield (though his college coach said he could be an above-average second-baseman).

Ackley is a well-above average hitter (3 consecutive season batting over .400) with at least average pop (20 HR - 40 XBH in junior season). He’s usually rated at 65-70 as a runner (20-80 scale). He has really only played CF in the last two weeks and in doing so has alleviated any concerns about future ability there (most scouts said he would play there, however with the Tommy John recovery, he was limited to 1B for most of the season).

Ackley is rated by every analyst I can find as the #2 prospect in the draft. Seattle’s General Manager, Jack Zduriencik, is famous for playing things close to the vest and going away from “conventional wisdom.” Seattle has also been seen scouting Tanner Scheppers which furthers speculation that they may not pick Dustin Ackley. If that does happen, the Padres will take Ackley.

Donovan Tate CF Cartersville HS (GA)

.488 with 11 2B, 1 3B, 9 HR, and 17 SB

Donovan Tate may have the highest upside of any hitter in this draft. He’s a true 5-tool talent in CF. He’s drawn comparisons to Arizona centerfielder, Chris Young, and Atlanta OF Jeff Francoeur (for his athleticism).

He is considered a tough-sign and has a commitment to UNC to play QB and CF.

The one concern is according to his Baseball America scouting report, “He can get pull-happy and doesn't have a natural feel for hitting, but that doesn't significantly limit his ceiling.” Most experts say that if he gives up football he will fully develop his hitting tool.

Aaron Crow RHP Fort Worth Cats (Ind. Baseball)

0.00 ERA in 2 starts, 11 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 13 SO

Crow is listed at 6’3” but that is reportedly an exaggeration. He was considered the top collegiate right-handed pitcher in the 2008 draft and Washington drafted him 9th overall but failed to sign him so he is pitching in the indy leagues and is back in this draft.

He features a 92+ mph fastball that can touch 96 and last year he showed the ability to keep that velocity late into the games.

In my opinion, Crow is the best combination of velocity, stuff, and polish (by anyone not named Strasburg) in the draft. Tanner Scheppers has more velocity, Alex White may have more stuff, and Mike Leake could have more polish but none of those three pitchers can say they are above-average in all three.

Already 22 years old, Crow should not require a great amount of development in the minors and has a solid chance of being the first player from this draft to reach the majors.

Zach Wheeler RHP East Paulding HS (GA)

0.30 ERA in 69.0 IP with 28 H, 17 BB, 135 SO

Has low-to-mid 90’s FB and power-slurve. Like a lot of HS power-pitchers, he doesn’t throw a changeup but that’s partly because throwing a changeup would speed up a high school hitter’s bat…

Baseball America has Wheeler ranked 13th but most say it’s unlikely he falls past the Braves at 7. He’s not an over-draft at 3 (you could make a case for about 10+ guys at #3) and probably has the upside of a #2 starter.

Mike Minor LHP Vanderbilt

3.64 ERA in 99 IP with 95 H, 31 BB and 103 SO

Minor has a 86-89 FB with a once-rated above-average slider, a solid curve and plus changeup. He also has a premier pickoff move.

Minor is a solid pitcher and is climbing up draft boards. Nearly every expert has Minor rated in the 30s in terms of overall draft ranking, but several experts are telling us he’s going to be drafted top 15.

I frequently defend the Padres organization when they make non-conventional picks, receive low organizational rankings, or are otherwise slighted. However this smells like a colossal over-draft. There is one possible explanation. This draft is universally called a less than top flight draft and there are some top shelf prospects available in the international market (teams are eligible to sign international free agents on July 2). If the Padres are eschewing top-5 draft prospects with $5-6+ million signing bonus demands (Tate, Turner, Green, and other all are asking for $6m or more – Ackley, I think, is right there as well) so they can spend more on the international market for higher tiered prospects then this pick might be defensible.

***

As I stated earlier, these picks are listed in order my personal ranking.

If it were up to me the Padres would also consider Jacob Turner, Tyler Matzek, and Mike Leake (each ahead of Minor).

With just over a week to go until the amateur draft, several experts have noted that this is a “workout” draft. Teams will make their final decisions based on individual workout that players will have for them. Expect to hear a lot of “[draft prospect] was in [MLB city] for an individual workout,” this coming week. Teams will likely host 3-4 players each as they try to dial in whom the like at their draft slot.

There will be a lot info/rumors flying around. This is going to be fun (unless we take Minor).

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Padres MiLB May 28, Players of the Day

Hitter(s) of the Day

Luis Durango (AA): 2-3, R, 2 BB, 2 SB, 2 CS
Mike Baxter (AA): 2-3, 2B, 3 R, RBI, BB, SB

Pitcher of the Day

Corey Kluber (High-A): 7.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 8 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

Late eveing… nothing to say people… sorry.

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Padres MiLB May 26-7, Players of the Day

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Hitter of the Day

Chad Huffman (AAA): 3-4, R, SO, SB

Pitcher of the Day

n/a

Commentary

Huffman’s really coming around. He’ll have a rough time breaking into the Padres lineup, but his job is to make their decision a tough one.

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Hitter(s) of the Day

Eric Sogard (AA): 2-5, 2B, R, 2 RBI, SO
Will Venable (AAA): 3-4, 2 HR, 3 R, 3 RBI, SO

Pitcher of the Day

n/a

Commentary

Nice to see Sogard back on this list…

Monday, May 25, 2009

Padres MiLB May 22-25, Players of the Day - Weekend Edition

Friday, May 22, 2009

Hitter(s) of the Day

Jaff Decker (Low-A): 1-2, HR, 2 R, RBI, 3 BB
Dan Robertson (Low-A): 4-6, HR, R, 2 RBI
Luis Durango (AA): 2-3, 2B, 4 R, 2 BB
Mike Baxter (AA): 5-5, 2B, 2 R, 4 RBI

Pitcher of the Day

n/a

Commentary

Will Inman made his AAA debut Friday night.

Saturday, May 22, 2009

Hitter(s) of the Day

Drew Cumberland (Low-A): 2-4, 2 R, BB, SB
Sawyer Carroll (Low-A): 3-5, 2 2B, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI, SO
Allan Dykstra (Low-A): 2-5, HR, R, 2 RBI, 2 SO
Mike Baxter (AA): 2-3, 2B, 2 R, BB
Mitch Canham (AA): 3-4, 2B, 2 R, BB, SB
Kyle Blanks (AAA): 1-3, HR, 2 R, BB

Pitcher of the Day

Mat Latos (AA): 4.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

Generally I would not put a 3 BB/4 SO performance up on my Pitcher of the Day list. However, Latos is the organization’s top pitcher and this was his AA debut. He would have gone deeper into the game but a nearly-hour long rain delay ended his debut.

Sunday, May 22, 2009

Hitter(s) of the Day

Drew Cumberland (Low-A): 3-5, 2 R, RBI
Allan Dykstra (Low-A): 2-3, 2 R, RBI, 2 BB
Cedric Hunter (AA): 4-5, R

Pitcher of the Day

Cory Luebke (High-A): 8.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 3 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

Drew Cumberland has been back for 5 games. He has 2+ hits in each of those games. Because of the near-month he was on the DL, Cumberland has only played 19 games. However, in those 19 games, he has 9 stolen bases and is yet to be caught.

Allan Dykstra is coming around… He’s hit .359 over his last 10 games to raise his average to .235 (still not good – but at least it’s not sub-Mendoza anymore). I suspect he’ll continue (not this pace) to raise his average to a more respectable high-200 rate. Despite the low batting average, Dykstra still maintains a .400+ on-base percentage.

Monday, May 22, 2009

Happy Memorial Day! To all of you who served, thank you. To those of you who have loved ones who served, thank you for supporting them! And to those of you who have loved ones who paid the ultimate price, your loss saddens me, but your sacrifice testifies to the price of our freedom. God bless you all and God bless America.

Hitter(s) of the Day

Jaff Decker (Low-A): 1-2, R, RBI, 2 BB, SB, CS
Blake Tekotte (Low-A): 2-4, R, 2 RBI, SB
Felix Carrasco (High-A): 3-4, 2B, 2 RBI, SO

Pitcher(s) of the Day

Nick Schmidt (Low-A): 4.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 SO, 0 HR
Jeremy McBryde (High-A): 7.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 SO, 1 HR

Commentary

By the way, I know a lot of you liked other players left on the draft board more than Nick Schmidt, but even such, he’s a nice pitcher to have in the system.

I’m did lots of pre-draft work over the long weekend so I’m a little light on commentary tonight.

Friday, May 22, 2009

Decker & Pelzer on BA PHS

Low-A OF Jaff Decker and High-A RHP Wynn Pelzer each made this week's Baseball America Prospect Hot Sheet in the "In the Team Photo" honorable mention catagory.


Low Class A Fort Wayne LF Jaff Decker (Padres) hasn't had any problems acclimating to the Midwest League. Decker hit .409/.480/.727 (9-for-22) with two home runs this week, upping his season line to .320/.490/.613 in 75 at-bats. The 19-year-old Decker didn't make his season debut with the TinCaps until April 24, but he's already tied for the team lead in home runs with five, and he ranks fifth in RBIs with 16...

and...


Only Mat Latos and Simon Castro, among Padres farmhands, can challenge high Class A Lake Elsinore RHP Wynn Pelzer for the distinction of having the most arm strength in the organization. Thus far, the 22-year-old has handled his assignment to the California League with aplomb, starting twice this week and going a clean 2-0, 1.88, while allowing three runs on seven hits while racking up 20 strikeouts and three walks in 14 1/3 innings. On the season, his 51 strikeouts rank third in the Cal League, and his 3.55 ERA ranks seventh...

Decker, in my opinion, is one of the best young hitters in all the minor leagues. And I won't go that high in my praise for Pelzer, but I will say that not only is just a step behind Latos in terms of arm strength, but he's also not that far off Latos' pace in terms of upside.

Unfortunately, as I pointed out in last night's post, Kyle Blanks is quite cold lately. He headlined BA's "Not-So Hot Sheet."

Kyle Blanks, lf/1b, Padres: While it's probably not a pure cause-and-effect relationship, Blanks, since playing his first game in left field for Triple-A Portland on May 10, has gone 6-for-43 (.140) with a lone extra-base hit (a home run). The 22-year-old also has struck out at an uncharacteristically high rate in that span—18 times in 43 at-bats, or 42 percent of the time. Kudos to Blanks for his willingness to play the outfield, where he hasn't roamed since 2005, but he won't be in line for a big league callup until he snaps out of his funk. This week, Blanks batted .087/.250/.087 (2-for-23) with five walks and seven strikeouts.

Thursday, May 21, 2009

Padres MiLB May 21, Players of the Day

Hitter(s) of the Day

Drew Cumberland (Low-A): 2-5, 3B, R, RBI, SO
Jaff Decker (Low-A): 2-4, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB, SO
Logan Forsythe (High-A): 0-1, 2 BB, HBP
Craig Cooper (AA): 3-4, 2 2B, SO
Matt Antonelli (AAA): 2-5, SO, SB
Will Venable (AAA): 2-4, 2B, R, SO
Chad Huffman (AAA): 1-3, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI, BB

Pitcher(s) of the Day

Stiven Osuna (Low-A): 6.0 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 SO, 0 HR
Brad Brach (Low-A): 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 SO, 0 HR
Wynn Pelzer (High-A): 7.2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 10 SO, 0 HR
Ernesto Frieri (AA): 5.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

What a day…

As I’m sure you’ve heard, the Padres agreed to a trade that would send Jake Peavy to the Chicago White Sox for (reportedly) Aaron Poreda, Clayton Richard, and two other pitchers. Jake Peavy exercised his right to veto the trade and will remain with the Padres.

Several of you have asked for my take on things, here’s the version that fits here: I would love to add Aaron Poreda to the system (LHP who throws 95+) and obviously it would be interesting to know who the other two pitchers would have been, but it’s rarely beneficial to trade away a true ace. I’m not trying to ride the fence – I can see the upside of both results.

Speaking of trades, Jody Gerut was traded to Milwaukee for Tony Gwynn Jr. The Padres will save at least $1m on the deal.

Mike Adams, yes that Mike Adams, pitched a scoreless inning (he actually started the game) with 1 walk and 2 strikeouts in San Antonio Thursday night.

Cubs prospect, and once-rumored future-Padre, Josh Vitters is getting tons of love for his hot start (.357/.385/.593) as a 19 year-old in the Midwest League (and deservedly so). But how about Jaff Decker? Decker has much better plate discipline and they have very similar HR rates (Vitters has 8 HR and is hitting 1 every 17.5 AB – Decker has 5 but is hitting 1 every 15 AB). Now Vitters does play a tougher defensive position (3B vs. corner OF) but Decker is easily every bit the hitter that Vitters is. So far this season, Decker is hitting .320/.490/.613.

I’m not certain Craig Cooper is a real “prospect” but he’s quite versatile and athletic and has always put up solid statistics:

College (Notre Dame):

Fresh: .303/.397/.385
Soph: .360/.441/.617
Junior: .325/.446/.502
Senior: .425/.522/.654

Professional:

Eugene (SS): .320/.418/.485 (60 games in 2006)
Ft. Wayne (Low-A): .333/.423/.476 (6 games in ’06)
Lake Elsinore (High-A): .317/.423/.476 (124 games in ’07)
San Antonio (AA): .282/.354/.407 (121 games in ’08)

So far this season Cooper is hitting .371/.438/.517 (38 games)

As to his athleticism and versatility, Cooper played some CF in college and reportedly plays an above-average 1B (though when I saw him Lake Elsinore he looked rough) and can play either corner OF.

Kyle Blanks will be okay, but he has gotten cold. In his last 10 games (going into Thursday’s action) Blanks is hitting .111 with 16 strikeouts in 36 AB. He went 1-3 Thursday night with a walk.

Who's #3?

The second iteration of the Padres draft discussion is up at John Sickles’ site. Please head over and vote/discuss!

Padres MiLB May 20, Players of the Day

Hitter(s) of the Day

James Darnell (Low-A): 2-3, HR, 4 RBI, BB, SO
Logan Forsythe (High-A): 4-7, HR, R, RBI, BB, SO
Yefri Carvajal (High-A): 2-4, 2 2B

Pitcher of the Day

Jeremy McBryde (High-A): 7.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 6 SO, 1 HR

Commentary

Big news Wednesday with Mat Latos' and Will Inman's promotions. Latos was not promoted to High-A as I assumed, he was skipped High-A and was sent to AA. Will Inman was promoted from AA to AAA.

He didn’t make my Pitcher of the Day list, but Tim Stauffer had yet another strong relief outing. Stauffer has pitched in 4 games since his return to action and in each outing he has gone 2+ innings, allowed 1 hit, struck out 1+ without a walk and more importantly without allowing a run (totals: 8.2 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 SO, 0 HR).

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

People Do Not Know Moneyball

Okay, I have a bone to pick with a guy named Pevey. No, not Jake - Marty Pevey, Peoria (Cubs’ Low-A) Manager…

Baseball America has a fantastic daily article called, “Daily Dish.” In Wednesday’s Dish, BA profiled Josh Vitters, Cubs’ 3B prospect (and the main player the Padres were reportedly getting if Peavy was traded to the Cubs), and his hot start (.371/.400/.598).

In the article, Pevey said,

"I spent 16 years with Toronto, who was the epitome of "Moneyball." They found out that didn’t really work, so they’re back to normal baseball, getting a good pitch to hit and hitting it hard.”

How many people are going either not read or not understand and yet continue to opine regarding the content thereof and then go further and misrepresent the facts anyway?

Moneyball has one philosophy: find inefficiencies and exploit them. In the late 90’s and early this decade that was on-base percentage…

So let’s get back to Pevey’s idiotic quote. “They found that didn’t really work…” “That,” is clearly Moneyball philosophies as he understands them. And by looking at previous comments in the article, we can tell Pevey is defending Vitters’ lack of walks (3).

The author, Jim Shonerd, wrote, “The only offensive category Vitters has really been lagging behind in is walks…”

So if we use basic logic here we can see that Pevey is deriding walks as an end-goal (I’ve got no problem with that). But he also said that Toronto is having success because they’ve gone away from that.

Now let’s look at some stats:

In Moneyball Billy Beane said strikeouts are the worst outs you can make. He also said that on-base percentages were more accurate predictors of success than batting averages. Walks are just one component of an on-base percentage. Ergo the more walks, the higher the on-base rate (In a perfect world a hitter bats .400 and doesn’t need to take a walk but what happens when the pitcher stops throwing strikes?).

So, based on Pevey’s comments Toronto shouldn’t be anywhere near top-of-the-pack in walks… Guess what, Boston leads the AL with 168 walks (yeah, that’s clearly not working), Toronto has 158 (the top 6 AL teams: Boston 168, Cleveland 161, New York 161, Tampa 160, Toronto 158, and Minnesota 156 – there’s 20-walk drop-off after the Twins).

Toronto’s current philosophies align perfectly with those perceived Moneyball ideals. Sorry Pevey.

The old-guard feels pushed aside (and rightly so) and is lashing out against the new way of doing things. But you can’t push guys like Pevey completely aside because their in-game management is critical to players’ development. Look, I cannot tell you how generate more power in your swing. I can’t watch you pitch and fix your mechanics. Guys like Pevey can. So I’m not saying Marty is a complete moron. If he was he wouldn’t have the job he does. He just needs to make sure he’s aware of the facts before he shoots his mouth off…

Latos to AA / Inman to AAA

Hat tip to loyal reader, LynchMob...

MadFriars.com is reporting that Padres' über-pitching-prospect, Mat Latos, has been promoted to AA - skipping High-A.

Correspondingly, Will Inman, who has spent part of 3 seasons in AA has been promoted to AAA Portland.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Padres MiLB May 19, Players of the Day

Hitter(s) of the Day

Drew Cumberland (Low-A): 1-3, 2 R, RBI, BB, 3 SB
Lance Zawaszki (High-A): 2-4, 2B, HR, 2 RBI
Chad Huffman (AAA): 2-4, HR, R, 2 RBI

Pitcher(s) of the Day

Simon Castro (Low-A): 5.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 SO, 0 HR
Brad Brach (Low-A): 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 SO, 0 HR
Corey Luebke (High-A): 7.0 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

System sweep!

Low-A: The Fort Wayne TinCaps beat the South Bend Silver Hawks 6-3 on the road.
High-A: The Lake Elsinore Storm beat the Lancaster JetHawks 4-1.
AA: off
AAA: The Portland Beavers beat the New Orleans Zephers on the road 5-1.
MLB: The Padres hosted and beat the Giants 2-1.

Now even though the Padres won 2-1, they put on a clinic in the fourth inning demonstrating how to lose games.

Scott Hairston singles.
With Adrian Gonzalez batting, Scott Hairston stole second base.
Adrian walks.
Kevin Kouzmanoff grounds into a fielder’s choice, A. Gonzalez out at second (1 out, Hairston to third base).
Chase Headley hit by pitch.
Nick Hundley pops to shallow right-field (2 outs).
Chris Burke grounds into fielder’s choice, Chase Headley out at second base (3 outs).

1st & 2nd with no out – no execution…
Bases loaded with 1 out – no execution (Hundley swung at a first-pitch breaking ball)…
Kouzmanoff, Headley, and Burke all had 0-2 counts. Headley was let off the hook by taking a pitch off his leg, but each of the three failed to have quality at-bats. I can understand taking a guess on a first pitch and swinging for the fences when the bases are empty, but with runners in scoring position, the Padres need to be disciplined and have quality at-bats. I’m not even upset that they didn’t score, I’m upset in the manner in which they failed to execute.

***

Drew Cumberland returned to action today with the TinCaps.

Chad Huffman is quietly showing that the San Antonio Missions’ home park had more to do with his poor 2008 numbers (.284/.383/.419 with 9 HR) than actual talent (.265/.381/.530 with 8 HR so far in 2009).

Brad Brach, the TinCaps’ closer, has pitched 16.2 innings so far this year and has allowed only 6 hits and 2 walks while striking out 21.

Monday, May 18, 2009

Padres MiLB May 18, Players of the Day

Hitter(s) of the Day

Blake Tekotte (Low-A): 2-5, HR, 2 R, RBI, SO
James Darnell (Low-A): 3-4, R, BB
Logan Forsythe (High-A): 2-4, 2B, RBI

Pitcher(s) of the Day

Mat Latos (Low-A): 6.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 8 SO, 0 HR
Cesar Carrillo (AA): 7.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

Seriously… Let’s hope Mat Latos didn’t sign a long-term lease in Ft. Wayne. He won’t be there long.

Latos: 3-0, 25.1 IP, 10 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 27 SO, 1 HR

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Padres MiLB May 15-17, Players of the Day, Weekend Edition

Friday, May 15, 2009

Hitter(s) of the Day

Jaff Decker (Low-A): 3-4, 2B, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI, BB
Allan Dykstra (Low-A): 3-5, 3B, R
Logan Forsythe (High-A): 2-4, 2B, HR, R, 2 RBI, BB

Pitcher of the Day

n/a

Commentary

Decker is batting .316/.513/.649 as a 19 year old - one of the younger players in the Midwest League. Decker threw 93 mph off the mound in high school. He’s a legit right-field prospect.

Saturday, May 16, 2009

Hitter(s) of the Day

Allan Dykstra (Low-A): 2-4, 2B, R, HBP
Chad Huffman (AAA): 2-2, HR, R, RBI, 2 BB

Pitcher of the Day

Wynn Pelzer (High-A): 6.2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 10 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

The Fort Wayne TinCaps took a 2-2 tie into extra innings Saturday. Brad Brach pitched his second scoreless inning to keep the score tied in the top of the tenth. Then (from the MiLB.com recap):

- Jeudy Valdez grounds out, shortstop Reynaldo Navarro to first baseman Nelson Gomez.
- Jaff Decker singles on a ground ball to center fielder Alberto Diaz.
- Pitcher Change: Bayron Zepeda replaces Justin Mace.
- Sawyer Carroll singles on a line drive to left fielder Brendan Duffy. Jaff Decker to 2nd.
- Allan Dykstra hit by pitch. Jaff Decker to 3rd. Sawyer Carroll to 2nd.
- Matt Clark strikes out swinging.
- James Darnell walks. Jaff Decker scores. Sawyer Carroll to 3rd. Allan Dykstra to 2nd.

(I don’t like to give “Hitter of the Day” awards to multi-hit performances unless they include something extra: multiple walks, stolen bases, and/or extra-base hits. Decker and Darnell each could have made today’s list but I felt this recap might be better way to acknowledge their contribution - especially given the team effort on the win.)

Pelzer went off!

He’s been on this list a couple times but with the hot start Latos is having as well as some of the system’s hitters, Pelzer’s flying a bit under the radar.

Pelzer’s season stats:

5-1, 3.79 ERA, 38 IP, 31 H, 13/41 BB/SO ratio, 2 HR allowed

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Hitter of the Day

Mike Baxter (AA): 3-4, 2 2B, R, RBI

Pitcher(s) of the Day

Anthony Bass (Low-A): 6.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 SO, 0 HR
Will Inman (AA): 7.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 7 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

Eric Sogard returned to action today going 0-3.

Mikey’s famous!

Seriously though, Baxter is really having a nice year. He’s hitting .329/.380/.483 and has 18 XBH (39% XBH rate).

Cesar Ramos again did not make my list (any time a pitcher walks more hitters than he strikes out that will automatically exclude him from my list). But he did pitch 5.1 innings and allow only 1 run (5.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 2 SO, 1 HR). But if we look at Ramos’ season so far it’s actually quite interesting. So far Ramos has made 8 starts. On April 25th (Ramos’ 4th start) he allowed 6 earned runs. In his next start he allowed 3 earned runs. In every other start he allowed 2 or fewer earned runs. Overall he is sporting a 3.27 ERA over 44.0 innings. His peripherals are not quite as nice. He has allowed 1 more hit than innings he’s pitched for a .266 BAA and he’s walking nearly as many hitters as he’s striking out (19 to 24). What do we make of Ramos? Is he another Mark Buehrle? Or is another pitcher with too few strikeouts who won’t cut it at the big league level?

Last year, Inman just about removed himself from prospect status when he walked 71 in 135.1 innings. So far this year, Inman has walked 8 in 44.1 innings. Welcome back Will.

Friday, May 15, 2009

Latos back in BA PHS

Latos makes a repeat appearance in Baseball America's Prospect Hot Sheet - this time as honorable mention...

Low Class A Fort Wayne RHP Mat Latos (Padres) has torn right through the Midwest League in his second go-round. In his only start this week, Latos, 21, tossed seven innings and allowed only one run on three hits while fanning seven, and he did it against Great Lakes, the MWL's best offensive team. The run was the first he'd allowed in three starts, and he's 2-0, 0.48 in 18 2/3 innings, so he may not be in Low-A much longer .

Thursday, May 14, 2009

Padres MiLB May 14, Players of the Day

Hitter of the Day

Lance Zawadzki (High-A): 2-4, 3B, HR, R, 2 RBI, BB
Luis Durango (AA): 2-3, 2 BB, SB
Cedric Hunter (AA): 3-6, 2B, 3 RBI

Pitcher(s) of the Day

Cory Luebke (High-A): 5.2 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 6 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

This just in: Zawadzki can hit – or at least, he’s seriously hot. In 91 AB the infielder has 3 doubles, 2 triples, and 9 home runs.

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Padres MiLB May 13, Players of the Day

Hitter of the Day

n/a

Pitcher(s) of the Day

Mat Latos (Low-A): 7.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 7 SO, 1 HR
Tim Stauffer (AA): 2.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

Latos is a stud! He also can’t be staying in Fort Wayne very long.

Season stats:

18.2 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 19 SO, 1 HR

Midwest League hitters clearly can’t hit him. The Padres have to be promoting him to High-A soon.

Tim Stauffer's presence on this list is significant… Even when he was up and down as a starter in ’06-08 he would show us a few 93 mph fastballs. Before I go on, let’s review so no one makes inaccurate judgments:

May 2003: Tim Stauffer is one of 4 consensus top players in the upcoming draft (along with Delmon Young, Rickie Weeks, and Kyle Sleeth).
June 2003: In his last collegiate game in the Super Regionals (I think) Stauffer’s coach leaves him in the game for 150+ pitches.
June 2003: The Padres draft Stauffer #4 overall.
August 2003: Stauffer signs for approximately $750,000 (MLB recommended amount for slot is $2.8m) after revealing that he had something wrong with his shoulder (he only found out in July when he had an MRI).
April 2004: Stauffer makes his professional debut and spends only dominant 35 innings in High-A. Scouts, however, say that while he is overpowering High-A hitters, his pitches do not have the movement they had in college. His fastball is now straight.

The rest of his history is similar. He was not dominant in AAA (he skipped AA) but he did post a 3.54 ERA in 81 innings in 2004. He made his MLB debut the next year and was hit pretty hard. In 94 big league innings between ’05 and ‘07, Stauffer has posted a 6.37 ERA.

Why did I tell you all that? Stauffer missed all of 2008 recovering/rehabbing from an injury and is just now pitching again in official games. If he can get a little more “stuff” back that he previously lost, he could end up as a nice bullpen arm. Will he ever be the stud he was in 2003 as a University of Richmond Spider? No. But that does not mean he cannot be effective. We’ll keep tabs on him.

John Sickles' Mock Draft

I have volunteered to be the Padres GM for John Sickles Mock Draft on June 6. Please stop by and comment/advise!

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Padres MiLB May 12, Players of the Day

Hitter(s) of the Day

Lance Zawadzki (High-A): 2-5, 2B, 4 RBI, 2 SO
Felix Carrasco (High-A): 3-5, 2B, R
Luis Durango (AA): 2-5, 2B, 2 R, RBI
Mike Baxter (AA): 2-5, 2 2B, R, 3 RBI, 2 SO
Kellen Kubacki (AA): 1-1, 2B, R, RBI

Pitcher of the Day

Cesar Ramos (AAA): 8.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 5 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

Matt Antonelli was back in the lineup for the first time this season.

So apparently Lance Zawadzki feels bad for not hitting doubles and he's trying to make up for lost time. In his first 19 games he had zero doubles, he has three doubles in his last two games.

Mikey's famous!

Kellen finally did what he does so well – hit an extra-base-hit - this one came as a pinch-hitter.

I’ve said many times I’m not Cesar Ramos’ biggest fan. But he’s had a few of these impressive games. If he can string some more of these together, he’ll justify the Padres use of the 35th pick in the 2005 draft. As of now, I remain unconvinced.

Baseball America profiled Cedic Hunter and Luis Durango on Tuesday.

Monday, May 11, 2009

Padres MiLB May 11, Players of the Day

Hitter(s) of the Day

Cedric Hunter (AA): 2-4, 2B, R,
Will Venable (AAA): 1-3, 3 R, 2 BB
Chad Huffman (AAA): 3-5, HR, 2 R, 4 RBI, SO

Pitcher of the Day

n/a

Commentary

I wrote a ton over the weekend. Go back and read that – again.

Oh yeah, Blanks homered again.

Sunday, May 10, 2009

Padres MiLB May 8-10, Players of the Day - Weekend Edition

Kevin Towers is an excellent GM. Some of his notable skills are one, making the most of trades and two, building a bullpen. So when the Padre bully struggled in 2008 I figured it was an anomaly. Now this year’s team construction is/was hampered by outgoing owner, John Moore’s divorce. As such, it’s hard to know how much of this bullpen’s composition and performance to blame on Kevin Towers and how much to blame on Moores.

2009 Bullpen statistics (as of May 9):

9-8, 4.60 ERA in 107.2 IP, 112 H, 11 HR, 50 BB, 81 SO, and 1.50 WHIP

Those stats do not lead to confidence in our ‘pen…

And don’t forget, with 14 of their 31 games at Petco those stats probably should look worse. It has to be time to pull the trigger on some bullpen changes.

May 8, 2009

Hitter(s) of the Day

Logan Forsythe (High-A): 2-5, 2 2B, R, 2 SO
Felix Carrasco (High-A): 3-5, 2B, 2 HR, 3 R, 3 RBI, SO
Mike Baxter (AA): 2-3, 2B, 2 R, 3 RBI, 2 SF
Kyle Blanks (AAA): 1-3, HR, 2 R, RBI, BB
Chad Huffman (AAA): 2-5, HR, R, 4 RBI, 2 SO

Pitcher of the Day

Simon Castro (Low-A): 5.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

Forsythe: 39

Mikey’s famous!

Baxter doesn’t get a lot of love as a prospect – and realistically, he’s not a top prospect. However, he is a legitimate athlete and he could be one of those guys who can play a bunch of different positions and be a decent left-handed bat off the bench. He’s currently enjoying his best statistical season as a hitter.

This just in, Kyle Blanks is pretty good…

Blanks was one of nine 1B on Baseball America’s Top 100 list (here are those 9 1B, the minor league level they are playing at, and their current stats):

#17 Lars Anderson – AA: .236/.293/.368
#18 Logan Morrison – AA: .333/.556/.1.167 (2 games)
#23 Justin Smoak – AA: .354/.463/.566
#24 Eric Hosmer – Low-A: .221/.344/.299
#35 Yonder Alonso – High-A: .271/.328/.486
#44 Angel Villalona – High-A: .318/.345/.477
#50 Kyle Blanks – AAA: .304/.408/.559
#76 Chris Carter – AA: .288/.385/.459
#87 Freddie Freeman – High-A: .255/.336/.447

(statistics as of Saturday morning)

I’m not going to go out on a limb and say Blanks should top the 1B list, but I will say I think he’s underrated within this group.

Huffman’s been in a funk… It’s good to see him have a good night.

May 9, 2009

Padres prospect news of the day: Kellen Kulbacki was in the San Antonio lineup for the first time of the season Saturday night. I spoke with him just 3-4 days ago and he knew he was close to coming back (he was in extended Spring Training in Arizona) but he didn’t know when the Padres would move him to San Antonio.

Hitter(s) of the Day

n/a

Pitcher(s) of the Day

Jeremy McBryde (High-A): 7.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 SO, 1 HR
Wade LeBlanc (AAA): 5.1 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

Forsythe: 40? Does a “reached on error” count? Unfortunately, no… It was a nice run to begin a professional career…

Wade pitched in relief… Which is especially interesting considering the lack of LHP in the big league bullpen.

May 10, 2009

Happy Mothers’ Day honey! Thank you for being the mother of our two boys. I love you!

Hitter(s) of the Day

Jaff Decker (Low-A): 2-3, HR, R, RBI, 2 BB, SO
Sawyer Carroll (Low-A): 3-4, 2 2B, RBI, BB
Lance Zawadzki (High-A): 3-5, 2B, 3B, R, RBI
Yefri Carvajal (High-A): 2-5, 2B, R, 2 RBI, SO
Mike Baxter (AA): 3-5, 2B, R, SO
Cedric Hunter (AA): 3-5, 2B, 2 R, RBI

Pitcher(s) of the Day

Ernesto Frieri (AA): 6.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 5 SO, 1 HR
Joe Thatcher (AAA): 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

Before I comment on any hitters or pitchers performances on my list, Kyle Blanks played LF tonight. Nice!

So is Jaff Decker just hot, or is overmatching the Low-A competition? Jaff is hitting .317/.548/.659. He has 13 hits in 15 games and of those 13, 8 are extra base hits.

Going into Sunday’s game Lance Zawadzki had 8 XBH on the season. In a statistical oddity, all 8 were home runs. On Sunday, Lance hit his first double and his first triple of the season. Overall Lance is hitting .338/.407/.688.

Mikey’s famous!

Cedric made my opening-day “hitter of the day” but had been conspicuously absent (until the May 5 list) since then. However, if we look at his eight games, (Sunday through Sunday) we can see that he’s on quite a roll:

.387 with 3 2B, 8 runs scored, 3 RBI, 3 walks, and only 1 strikeout

Now there's the Cedric we know and love!

Padres Targeting Athleticism in June Draft - Tate?

The San Diego Union Tribune has an article out today about the Padres intentions in June’s amateur draft and in the article they profile Donovan Tate.

The articles opens, “For several months, even years now, Padres scouts and some franchise veterans have talked about a crying need for the organization to become more athletic, in particular, to invest heavily in “live-body” athletes and pitchers with powerful arms…”

It is well known that the Nationals intend to draft Stephen Strasburg number 1 overall. After that, it’s anyone’s guess. Even if we believe the comment above, it really doesn’t point to what the Padres are likely to do with that third pick as nearly every top 10 candidate fits that profile.

As for Donovan Tate, I am intrigued by his athleticism but worried about scouting reports such as this one which says, “There are some questions about his bat and how long it will take to develop.”

Additionally, Tate is a top-flight high school football quarterback and has committed to U. North Carolina to play football and baseball. The U.T. reports, “…He has enlisted baseball agent Scott Boras as an adviser, and it's believed he is strongly interested in starting his baseball career.” Though that quote doesn’t gel with a March 24 Baseball America article (subscription required),

The son of former NFL running back Lars Tate, Donavan Tate is talking about playing quarterback at the University of North Carolina these days more than the MLB Draft.

"I want to attend college and play both sports," Tate said. "That's been my plan since I was a little kid. So I'm going to get started early, get acclimated to campus, throw some footballs around and get ready for the upcoming season."

I’m not convinced Tate is the best choice for #3 but there’s also the chance he could wind up being the best player in the entire draft. He is obviously an intriguing candidate.

Saturday, May 09, 2009

"Mikey's Famous!"

This story was written from my faulty memory as told by loyal reader, Paul R.

Paul was living in New York City. One night in June Paul was riding the train home from a Mets game back to his apartment. Now Paul is from San Diego and is a life-long Padres and Chargers fan. And he’s also every bit the draft-nerd as the writer of this blog. So one evening, on the train, Paul overheard three college-age guys talking about their friend Mike having been drafted by the Padres… Paul was sitting fairly close so he asked, “Mike Baxter?”

The three friends, in unison, looked at each other and yelled, “Mikey’s famous!”

The story doesn’t end there…

A couple years later, after a Cal League game, I was in the Storm clubhouse and met Mike Baxter and told him about my friend Paul. He had heard the story from his end and thought it was pretty cool to hear the other side of the story.

So, from now on, whenever Mike Baxter deserves mention as a “Hitter of the Day,” you’ll see “Mikey’s famous!” in the commentary…

Friday, May 08, 2009

Latos #4 on BA PHS

RHP Mat Latos was rated the 4th hottest prospect on Baseball America's weekly Prospect Hot Sheet.

"...[Latos] didn't get back on the mound until this week after battling an ankle injury this spring, but he made a loud statement when he did."

...they also said...

"Latos' stuff has never been in doubt, and he shouldn't stay in low Class A long if he stays injury free and keeps dominating."

Jaff Decker made the "In The Team Photo" honorable mention catagory,


Low Class A Fort Wayne LF Jaff Decker (Padres) didn't fare well in the cold climates of the Midwest League in April, but the 19-year-old is heating up. Since May 1, the Padres' 2008 first-round supplemental pick has batted .357/.640/.714 (5-for-14) with two doubles and a home run on Thursday night . . .

And High-A infielder Lace Zawadzki is on "Helium Watch."

"...[A]ll he's done is hit since returning on April 16. He's up to .349/.431/.683 with seven homers in 17 games on the year..."

Thursday, May 07, 2009

Padres MiLB May 7, Players of the Day

Hitter(s) of the Day

Jaff Decker (Low-A): 1-2, HR, R, RBI, BB, SO
Logan Forsythe (High-A): 3-4, 4 R, BB
Felix Carrasco (High-A): 3-4, 2 2B, HR, 3 R, 4 RBI, BB, SO
Luis Durango (AA): 2-4, 2 R, BB, SB

Pitcher(s) of the Day

Mat Latos (Low-A): 5.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 SO, 0 HR
Zachary Herr (Low-A): 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO, 0 HR
Will Inman (AA): 8.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 5 SO, 0 HR
Cesar Ramos (AAA): 7.2 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 SO, 1 HR

Commentary

Forsythe: 38

During the off-season, we heard that Latos would be pitching in Lake Elsinore for the season. After a minor pre-season injury (and a 2008 season where Latos tossed only 56 innings) the Padres sent Latos back to Low-A Fort Wayne. If he keeps pitching like he did in his 2 seaon-opening performances (combined: 11.2 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 12 SO, 0 HR) he’ll be pitching in Lake Elsinore shortly.

Herr gave up a hit! Herr gave up a hit! Stop the presses! That makes 3 hits in 13.1 innings. Cut the guy! Who cares that he’s only given up 6 combined hits and walks in those 13.1 innings with a 0.00 ERA.

Should the Nats &/or Padres take a hitter or a pitcher?

So everyone says the Nationals should take Stephen Strasburg #1 overall... Or should they? For that matter, what should the Padres do?

Thanks to loyal reader Paul R. for the link.

Wednesday, May 06, 2009

Padres MiLB May 6, Players of the Day

Hitter(s) of the Day

Jaff Decker (Low-A): 0-2, R, BB, SO, 2 HBP, 2 SB
Allan Dykstra (Low-A): 2-2, 2B, HR, R, 4 RBI, 3 BB
Jeudy Valdez (Low-A): 3-5, 2B, 2 R, SO
Logan Forsythe (High-A): 1-2, HR, 2 R, 2 BB
Yefri Carvajal (High-A): 3-4, 2B, 2 RBI
Will Venable (AAA): 2-3, 2B – Game 1
Kyle Blanks (AAA): 2-4, 2B, RBI, SO – Game 2

Pitcher of the Day

n/a

Commentary

Forsythe: 37

How ‘bout Jaff Decker’s night? Going hitless usually excludes a hitter from this list, but this was such an unusually successful night, I had to include it if only for reasons of curiosity. While Decker couldn’t manage a hit, he got on base 3 times and stole 2 bases… Not bad for the man with a Matt Stairs comp. Oh, by the way, Matt Stairs is a career .266/.358/.484 hitter. You know, maybe that Matt Stairs comp isn’t so bad, Stairs stole as many as 23 bases as a minor leaguer…

In the first inning of the Kane County vs. Fort Wayne game, Allan Dykstra walked to load the bases… In the third inning, with Jaff Decker on third base, Dykstra walked again. In the forth inning, Dykstra hit a grand slam. In the sixth inning, Dykstra led off the inning with a double. In the eighth inning, the Kane County Cougers’ pitchers resumed their wisdom of walking Allan. He’s not having a good season, but he’s showing some power and his walk-rate is expectedly impressive and he has 9 XBH on the season.

How soon until Kevin Towers orders Grady Fuson to get Blanks (.316/.414/.558) to play games in the OF so he can send Kouzmanoff (.221/.264/.308) to the minors and call up Gigantor?

Tuesday, May 05, 2009

Padres MiLB May 5, Players of the Day

I hope you had a happy and safe Cinco de Mayo!

Hitter(s) of the Day

Jaff Decker (Low-A): 2-3, 2B, RBI, 2 BB
Lance Zawadzki (High-A): 2-5, HR, R, 4 RBI, SO
Cedric Hunter (AA): 3-4, 2B, 2 R, BB
Mike Baxter (AA): 3-5, 2 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI, SO
Kyle Blanks (AAA): 3-4, HR, R, RBI,

Pitcher of the Day

n/a

Commentary

Forsythe: 36

In 11 games, Jeff Decker has 9 strikeouts (not good). He also has 9 hits and 14 walks for a .511 on-base percentage. Oh yeah, of those 9 hits, 5 are XBH (4 2B & 1 HR).

Zawadzki: 7 XBH and all 7 are HR

This is a good day. Cedric Hunter has been struggling. It’s nice to see him break out in a big way. I had a feeling that he might be back Sunday when he went 1-3 with a double… But this was nice. Welcome back to the list Cedric.

Mikey’s famous!

Blanks: .318/.423/.568 – No… He’s not a top prospect. What were you thinking getting excited about a Padres prospect?

Monday, May 04, 2009

Padres MiLB May 4, Players of the Day

Hitter(s) of the Day

Sawyer Carroll (Low-A): 1-3, R, 2 BB, 2 SB
Jaff Decker (Low-A): 1-2; 2B, R, 2 BB
Lance Zawadzki (High-A): 3-5, HR, R, RBI, SO
Mitch Canham (AA): 2-3, 2B, R, 2 RBI, BB

Pitcher(s) of the Day

Zachary Herr (Low-A): 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0 HR
Jeremy McBryde (High-A): 6.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 8 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

Not surprisingly, the TinCaps' CF speedster, Blake Tekotte, leads the team with 9 stolen bases. What is surprising is that the team's 6'4" RF is hot on Blake's heals with 7 SB - 6 in the last 4 games.

Zawadzki now has played 14 games in 2009. In those 14 games, he has 18 hits. Of those 18 hits, 6 are extra-base-hits. Of those 6 XBH, all 6 are home runs. Yes, the same hitter who had 26 2B, 5 3B, and 7 HR in 2008 now has 0, 0, and 6.

In and of itself, Herr’s performance does not merit inclusion on this list. However, in 12 innings so far this season he has allowed only 2 hits while striking out 19. The TinCaps are using Herr (him?) as late-innings reliever (though not the closer). The soft-tossing lefty will be an interesting pitcher to watch throughout the season.

Sunday, May 03, 2009

Padres MiLB May 1-3, Players of the Day, Weekend Edition

Friday, May 1, 2009

Hitter of the Day

Lance Zawadzki (High-A): 3-5, R, 2 RBI, BB, SO

Pitcher of the Day

Jeremy Hefner (High-A): 6.1 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 6 SO, 1 HR

Commentary

John Conniff of MadFriars.com turned me on to Zawadzki. He’s an interesting guy to watch. He can definitely hit. His 5 HR pace the Storm and he got there in 7 to 9 games fewer than other players on the club. He also is 3-for-4 in stolen base attempts… The most encouraging thing about him is that he’s doing all that as a SS. I have no idea how good his range is, but Baseball America rated Zawadzki’s arm as the best infield arm in the system. Like Jason Bartlett a few years ago, Zawadzki might be one of those unheralded Padres prospects who works out. Let’s just hope we get more out of Zawadzki than we got out of Bartlett (Bartlett was traded to the Twins for Brian Buchanan in Nov. 2007).

Saturday, May 2, 2009

Hitter(s) of the Day

Sawyer Carroll (Low-A): 3-5, 2B, 2 RBI, SO, SB
James Darnell (Low-A): 1-2, 2B, R, 3 BB

Pitcher(s) of the Day

Mat Latos (Low-A): 6.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 SO, 0 HR
Will Inman (AA): 5.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 SO, 0 HR

Commentary

I’ve haven’t been following Sawyer Carroll closely, because I’m not sold on his “prospect” status. That said, he’s hitting fairly well… Nearly 41% of his professional hits have been for extra bases.

Mat Latos made his season debut Saturday night and looked as good as the Padres could have hoped. He needs to keep producing, but it’s unlikely he’ll be in Fort Wayne very long.

Will Inman strugled last year walking 71 in 135.1 IP - which works out to a 4.7 BB/9 IP. This year he has only allowed 5 BB in 24.0 IP (1.9 BB/9). If he keeps that up, he will vault himself into the Padres consideration as a solid starter (perhaps a #3 or #4 slot in the rotation).

Sunday, May 3, 2009

Hitter(s) of the Day

Sawyer Carroll (Low-A): 2-4, R, RBI, 2 SB
Logan Forsythe (High-A): 1-1, R, 4 BB
Luis Durango (AA): 3-4, 2 R, RBI, SB, CS

Pitcher of the Day

n/a

Commentary

If you didn’t see my post below, Blanks is now taking fly balls in the outfield… He hit his fifth HR on Sunday, but since it was his only hit of the day and the only time he reached base, I didn’t feel he comfortable naming him one of my Hitters of the Day.

Forsythe is often overshadowed by his fellow 2008 draftee and fellow third baseman, James Darnell. But don’t forget, the Padres drafted Forsythe 46th overall and Darnell 69th. Additionally, the Padres assigned Forsythe to the higher minor league level as well. Allowing me to make this comparative argument, Forsythe is hitting well: .321/.480/.487. Now, I’m not saying Forsythe is better than Darnell, but we need to be aware of how good Forsythe is too.

Blanks Impresses in LF

At this point Blanks is just taking pre-game fly balls in the outfield. And while Fuson doesn't seem overly impressed...

Fuson described the results as "OK."

...and fellow Portland Beaver, Drew Macias does seem impressed...

"I think he's going to be fine," said Macias, who has played for both Triple-A Portland and the Padres this year and is rated by Padres manager Bud Black as the best all-around defender among Padres outfielders and prospects. "He's got enough athleticism, especially for his size."

...we can be impressed that Blanks is simply taking fly balls there at all. It would be best if we can find a way to get Blanks & Gonzalez bats in the lineup together - or if we can spin Blanks off for pitching (and having Blanks as tradebait for two positions is better than one).

Friday, May 01, 2009

James Darnel #7 on BA PHS

If you have been following my 'blog, you know that James Darnell has been hitting well lately... Baseball America just ranked Darnell #7 on their Prospect Hot Sheet saying Darnell is, "a potential five-tool third baseman who ranks second in the MWL in on-base percentage (.481) and fifth in slugging (.589). "

Overall statistics: .286/.481/.589 with 6 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 22/14 BB/SO ratio, 4-1 in stolen-base attempts.