Roy Oswalt, Jake Peavy share lack of results

Roy Oswalt and Jake Peavy are the best of buddies.

This MLB season, they also share something else in common … lack of success.

Oswalt is having a subpar season for the Houston Astros. Peavy is performing even worse for the San Diego Padres.

So? Don’t expect to see them as teammates on the National League’s All-Star team.

Oswalt is 1-2 with a 4.50 ERA; his only win coming in a 12-5 decision over the hapless Padres last Sunday.

Peavy is merely 2-5 with a 4.30 ERA.

For Oswalt, a slow start typifies not himself; but the way his Astros have performed the last several years. They always seem to be slow starters who make a move toward the top too late in the season.

Peavy’s fate could be even worse for the Padres, who are trying to rid his $11 million salary this season to go from a $43 million payroll to below a team-mandated $40 million payroll.

The primary trade partners are considered to be the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs. As Peavy struggles, each team must also struggle in determining just how much it is willing to surrender for Peavy and a three-year, $52 million contract.

It just so happened that Peavy pitched Tuesday in Chicago, so his status was a hot topic after his 6-2 loss to the Cubs. He told respected writer Chris Jenkins of the San Diego Union-Tribune:

“With all the speculation, yeah, I thought I might be pitching in Chicago. Obviously, I approved a trade, so I thought about it and certainly felt this was a place that would be fun and interesting to play. I've been coming here six, seven years. Great atmosphere. Great city. Great team. So I thought about it over the winter.”

As the Padres continue to plummet, Peavy better start thinking again about where his next address will be.

Manny Being Manny? Dodgers schedule favorable without him

Manny Ramirez’s 50-game suspension brings up an interesting point for teams attempting to catch the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West.

After the San Francisco Giants play a three-game series this weekend in LA, remaining NL Worst teams won’t be able to beat (or lose) to the Dodgers for quite awhile head-to-head.

The Dodgers have 12 straight games out of the division before a three-game series at Colorado, then it’s four games at the Chicago Cubs before LA comes back home to host the Arizona Diamondbacks in a three-game series.

In all, the Dodgers will play only 14 of their 50 games sans Manny vs. the NL West.

So, how’s that for scheduling? (Could be tough on the Dodgers, since they seem to play much better vs. the NL West.)

Even before the Manny situation, the MLB schedule was once again quite bizarre.

After all, the Giants play six games in LA the first five weeks of the season vs. their fierce rivals. In the final 21 weeks, the Giants only come to Dodgers Stadium once again on Sept. 11-13.

In fact, after the teams play Sept. 18-20 in San Francisco, they don’t even meet again during the final two weeks of the season. How’s that for head-to-head competition between arguably the two best teams in the NL West?

Last season, the Dodgers played nine September games against the weak San Diego Padres … winning seven.

Any wonder why the Dodgers won the NL West?

This time, western division teams will still be seeing Manny a vast majority of the time that they play the Dodgers.

And that may not be good for anybody trying to catch the runaway Dodgers without Manny until he returns July 3 in … of all places … San Diego.

Will there be an Angels-Dodgers Freeway World Series?

Jake Peavy may very well be a member of the Chicago Cubs before the 2009 MLB season is over.

Too bad that the Cubs would then discover that Peavy is no more successful in the postseason than they are.

On the other hand, the Los Angeles Dodgers are an ace pitcher away from being very good. Don’t be surprised if they turn the corner in July by dealing for the likes of a Roy Halladay from the Toronto Blue Jays.

That being said, here’s one blogger who believes there will be a Southern California Freeway World Series this year between the Dodgers and Anaheim Angels.

Predictions

AL West
Los Angeles
Texas
Oakland
Seattle

AL Central
Cleveland
Minnesota
Detroit
Kansas City
Chicago

AL East
Boston
New York
Tampa Bay
Baltimore
Toronto

NL West
Los Angeles
San Francisco
Arizona
Colorado
San Diego

NL Central
Chicago
Cincinnati
St. Louis
Milwaukee
Houston
Pittsburgh

NL East
Philadelphia
New York
Florida
Atlanta
Washington

Wild Cards: Yankees, Mets

World Series: Angels over Dodgers

Peavy needs to be more careful in words, deeds

Jake Peavy needs to grow up sometimes when it comes to the things he says and does.

The Padres’ ace pitcher stayed silent all winter when it came to possibilities of him being traded to the Chicago Cubs, etc. … which was probably his best course of action.

Why should he be silent more often?

Because as a celebrated athlete, Peavy does get caught up at times in thinking that he and his peers are above the law.

Rather than try to say it myself, consider a “right on” letter to the editor from Bob Bagnall of San Diego in the San Diego Union-Tribune on Sunday:

“So Jake Peavy asks, in reference to baseball players found to have used steroids, “How can you fault a guy for trying to make a living for his family?” Apparently Peavy makes no distinction between those who choose to adhere to laws, ethics, morals and values as they struggle to make livings for their families, and those who choose to ignore them.

So I guess someone robbing or cheating someone else should also be absolved as long as he makes it clear he's doing so to support his family. Unfortunately, Peavy has a history of acting as if sports stars are above the law. He was arrested and jailed after ignoring an Alabama airport official's request to move his unattended truck, responding “Write me a ticket” and “Call a real cop.” (“Peavy gets arrested on disorderly charge,” Jan. 5, 2007 U-T)

I'm a huge, lifelong Padres fan. And I hope Peavy spends his entire, sure-to-be-stellar career in San Diego. But I had also hoped that exposure to influences such as Bud Black and Greg Maddux had resulted in some necessary maturing on his part. His statement here makes me question that. Thank goodness Maddux is back in a coaching role, and Peavy also has an honorable teammate like Chris Young to show him the way. Hopefully he'll listen.”

Well said, Bob.

New York teams say 'bye' to MLB playoffs

What’s the best storyline about the upcoming Major League Baseball playoffs?

How about the fact that there are not any New York teams involved for the first time in more than a decade …

As much as the TV networks jam New York down our collective throats, it’s nice to see the playoffs commence with some truly compelling possibilities for smaller market teams.

What about:

Tampa Bay being in for the first time ever
Milwaukee being back for the first time since winning the World Series in 1982
The chance of Minnesota getting back in if it survives in the AL Central

Then the bigger markets:

The Chicago Cubs trying to win a World Series for the first time in 100 years
The Los Angeles Dodgers trying to win their second playoff GAME since a World Series title 20 years ago
Philadelphia looking for its first championship in 28 years
The Anaheim Angels shooting to win it all for the second time in six years
The Boston Red Sox attempting to make it three titles in five years

The happiest guy of all in the playoffs may be Manager Joe Torre of the Dodgers.

He’s taken so much criticism for the Yankees seemingly losing in the first-round each year lately. (Without him, the Yankees won’t face such a fate while looking from the outside in from the beginning.)

That coincides with the best news of all: No New York teams!

Padres should trade Maddux to Chicago Cubs

The Padres should do Greg Maddux a favor and trade him to a contending team – the Chicago Cubs.

The last-place Padres aren’t doing Maddux any good, but vice versa isn’t necessarily true.

Maddux is winless in eight starts since career victory No. 350 on May 10, yet it isn’t his fault at all.

Since then, Maddux is 0-2 with a 2.70 ERA and has watched the beleaguered Padres’ bullpen blow the lead four times after he left a game while in line for win No. 351.

This has to stop!

The Padres have long coveted Cubs outfielder Matt Murton, so a Maddux-for-Murton trade could certainly be in line at this point since Murton does little more than warm Chicago’s bench.

Plus, sending Maddux to the Cubs could turn out to be one of those Cinderella stories that are few and far between in Major League Baseball.

Maddux pitched his first career game in relief for the Cubs on Sept. 10, 1986; remaining with Chicago until playing for Atlanta (1993-2003) and returning to the Cubs (2004-July 2006).

As the Cubs seek their first World Series title since 1908, Maddux could be the missing piece to the puzzle in their starting rotation.

It would be quite a story if Maddux could go back and help the Cubs win the World Series in likely his final season.

Frankly, it’s the type of story that happens once every 100 years or so on the north side of Chicago.

Edmonds key reason Chicago Cubs are winning

The St. Louis Cardinals didn’t want Jim Edmonds back after eight seasons with them.

The Padres didn’t want him around after the first 1 ½ months of the 2008 season.

So what is Edmonds doing these days?

How about helping the Chicago Cubs on their way to a possible first World Series title in 100 years?

The Cubs have Major League Baseball’s best overall record (48-28) and have won 14 straight at home.

In his last 10 games, Edmonds is batting .333 with three home runs and nine RBIs.

In Saturday’s 11-7 win over the Chicago White Sox, Edmonds hit two home runs in the same inning.

“Whenever you get done tying me to the Cardinals, it'll be fine so I can start getting a little bit of Cubs' history in my background,” Edmonds told reporters after Saturday’s game.

It now appears the Padres let Edmonds go too early. Perhaps they/he rushed him back into the lineup too soon after suffering a spring training injury.

For now, it looks like Edmonds is the Cubs’ gain … and a big loss for the Padres and Cardinals.

Chicago Cubs just keep on pounding

How about those Chicago Cubs?

After watching the Cubs pound the Padres the last two nights, it’s obvious this is a team with legitimate high hopes in 2008.

The Cubs are flat-out beating the Padres; rather than having the Padres beat themselves as they do so often.

What’s most impressive about the Cubs is how they just seem to hit line drive after line drive after line drive.

Padres’ catcher Michael Barrett, who played for the Cubs until last June, is certainly aware of his former team’s offensive prowess.

“One thing that’s impressive about them is that they have such a high on base percentage,” Barrett told the Associated Press. “The biggest thing about that lineup is that they really forced us to come to them. You don't see them making too many quick outs.”

Speaking of, it’s hard to get quick outs when you don’t throw strikes.

Padres starting pitcher Wil Ledezma threw 100 pitches in 4 2/3 innings Tuesday night, including 61 to the last 12 batters he faced (averaging more than five pitches per batter.) Ledezma walked five and went to full counts on eight of 21 batters; a terribly high percentage.

But that’s the way the Cubs play, forcing pitchers to get behind in the count because they’re evidently afraid to throw strikes.

Of course, the Padres are an easy target this season. But considering the Cubs have won nine straight and boast the best record in baseball, don’t be surprised if/when they play deep into October this season.

Can Cubs win it all this year?

Go Cubs go,
Go Cubs go,
Hey Chicago, whaddya say,
The Cubs are gonna win today!

Back in 1984, that was the theme song for the best Chicago Cubs team in decades.

Of course, that team made it all the way to the National League Championship Series; only to win the first two games and lose three straight to the Padres … who went on to lose the World Series to Detroit.

As the Cubs begin a three-game series in San Diego tonight at Petco Park, this is arguably their best team in a century. And, yes, it has been a century since the Cubs won their last World Series in 1908.

It’s interesting that the Cubs have won seven straight games, all against the Weak Weak West of the NL (three vs. the Los Angeles Dodgers; four vs. the Colorado Rockies.)

Alfonso Soriano is certainly playing like a Most Valuable Player … but we can’t call him an MVP candidate since every player is technically a candidate for the award.

Derrek Lee is having a great year, Japanese import Kosuke Fukudome is off to a hot start, and Jim Edmonds is playing 10 times better than he did for the Padres.

The pitching staff is again led by Carlos Zambrano, who gets the start in the series opener vs. the Padres.

Are the Cubs good enough to win the World Series for the first time in 100 years?

We say “yes” from this vantage point.

Do the Padres need Mark Prior?

If all goes well, Mark Prior could be pitching for the Padres by June.

But do they really need him?

Maybe not, at this point.

The Padres lead the major leagues with 14 quality starts (six innings minimum, no more than three earned runs) in 19 games through Sunday.

After ace Jake Peavy, their best starters have actually been Randy Wolf and Justin Germano at the back of the rotation.

Chris Young (No. 2) and Greg Maddux (No. 3) are the only starters who have had their struggles thus far.

If and when Prior comes back, it will be like trading for him and obtaining another arm.

Should he come close to where he once was with the Chicago Cubs, he will definitely be a shot in the arm for the Padres.

This is a team with an abundance of pitching that is slow on speed and weak in power.

Too bad Prior can’t hit home runs and steal bases.

Barrett is quite a catch

Michael Barrett was obtained by the Padres from the Chicago Cubs last week for his offense.

Or was there a catch to it?

In his first week with the Padres, Barrett is proving to be quite a find behind the plate. Just take the final out in Tuesday night’s 3-2 win over San Francisco in 10 innings for example.

Dave Roberts was on first base for the Giants. Trevor Hoffman was pitching for San Diego. It normally doesn’t matter who’s behind the plate, but this time it was Barrett.

Roberts is one of the best base stealers around. Hoffman has a major league record of 502 saves, but it’s not because he can hold runners on base. And the Padres haven’t had any catcher the past couple of years who could throw out base stealers.

So what happens?

Hoffman uses a slide step instead of his normal high leg kick. Barrett throws Roberts out at second attempting to steal. Game over.

The irony is that the Padres have spent all season saying it’s not that important to throw out base stealers; what matters is concentrating on the batter.

But at least in this case, concentrating on the base runner paid off with a win.

Barrett adds punch to Padres

The Padres sure added punch to their roster today by acquiring catcher Michael Barrett from the Chicago Cubs for back-up catcher Rob Bowen and minor league outfielder Kyler Burke.

But are the Padres adding punch because Barrett is now tied for second on the team with nine home runs?

Or are they adding punch because Barrett duked it out with Cubs pitcher Carlos Zambrano and had a heated discussion with starter Rich Hill, both this month?

The Padres, who also received cash considerations from the Cubs, must also remember that Barrett landed a punch to the jaw of A.J. Pierzynski after the White Sox catcher ran him over at home plate in May 2006. Barrett was suspended 10 games; Pierzynski was fined.

Barrett adds a defensive element that has been missing in San Diego. Although the Padres say they are not concerned by opponents successfully stealing bases close to 90 percent of the time on them, that broken record has to be getting old.

The Padres may very well lose Barrett when he becomes a free agent after the season.

But for now, he may provide the fight they have been looking for in order to stay on top of the NL West.

Interleague play should take a hike

Interleague play needs to go bye-bye.

Started in 1997, it is a concept that simply has no use anymore.

“Maybe it has run it course at this point,” Seattle television color commentator Mike Blowers said while the Mariners were sweeping the Padres last weekend.

Maybe, indeed.

Unless it’s crosstown rivalries such as Yankees-Mets, Cubs-White Sox or Dodgers-Angels; interleague play is just not that interesting.

Everyone wants to play the Boston Red Sox or New York Yankees; but when you’re left with someone such as the Kansas City Royals or Tampa Bay DevilRays, it’s hard to build interest in a National League city.

Please, save the All-Star Game and World Series for interleague play.

As for the Padres, they get lucky this weekend. The only non-interleague matchup of the weekend is their three-game series at Chicago against the Cubs.

Padres hand Cubs another one-run loss

If you can’t appreciate Trevor Hoffman and his Major League Baseball record of 495 saves, consider what it might be like on the other end.

The Chicago Cubs are just 2-10 in one-run games after losing to Hoffman and the San Diego Padres, 2-1, Wednesday night.

Cubs Manager Lou Piniella is obviously tired of watching his team blow close games with lack of clutch hitting and pitching.

“We talk about it way too often,” Piniella said. “I really, really get tired of it. It’s hard explaining it all the time. I really wish you all could sit back here (answering postgame questions) and I could write.

“It just happens too many times. We just leave them on. We’ve got chances to do things with baseball games. We just don’t.

“We’re second in the league in hitting and we’re (2-10) in one-run games. That just really doesn’t add up, does it? No, it really doesn’t.”

But Lou, what do you really think?

Can the Padres step it up?

The Padres have shown the ability to beat poor teams. But can they defeat the good ones?

We should find out this week as they host the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers for three games apiece at Petco Park.

The Padres are 9-0 in series this season against teams currently standing in the bottom two spots of their division. They are 0-3 in series against teams in first- and second-place.

Since Milwaukee leads the NL Central and Chicago is in a virtual tie for second with Houston, this will be a week for the Padres to prove themselves.

San Diego is 4-2 against San Francisco and Colorado; as well as being 2-1 vs. St. Louis, Cincinnati, Florida, Washington and Seattle. Those teams are all within the last two places of their respective divisions.

However, the Padres are just 2-4 against the NL West leading Dodgers, and 1-3 vs. second-place Atlanta of the NL East.

If the Padres are ever going to start beating top-quality teams, this week would be a good time to start.

ESPN's Phillips looks like a genius

Credit Steve Phillips for looking like a genius thus far in 2007.

The ESPN analyst more than went out on a limb before the baseball season when he picked Milwaukee to win the NL Central.

At the time, I’m sure most of us were laughing. But look who’s laughing now (Phillips) with Milwaukee leading the NL Central by seven games over the Chicago Cubs.

St. Louis was the obvious preseason pick in the division, coming off its 2006 World Series title. Houston can always be figured on to make a late-season run, and Cincinnati was hot most of last season. Then there are the Cubs who spent $300 million in the offseason; but are still the Cubs (see: losers).

Hardly anybody could have rightfully picked Pittsburgh to win the division, which left Milwaukee as a solid choice to finish fifth.

Obviously, Phillips saw something that the rest of us did not.

The Cubs will always be the Cubs

Kurt Bevacqua carried a big bat – and a mouth to match – when he played for the San Diego Padres from 1979-80 and 1982-85.
But most times, one couldn’t help but pay attention when Bevacqua spoke.
After the Padres lost their first two games in a best-of-five series to the Chicago Cubs in the 1984 National League Championship Series, Bevacqua made the following claim:
“I’d sure like to go to Las Vegas and bet a lot of money on us to win this series,” he said with a straight face.
Many people had to hold back their laughs. After all, the Cubs had outscored the Padres 17-2 in the first two games of the series and were a virtual lock to win at least one of three games in San Diego.
From there, the rest is history. The Padres became the first team in National League Championship Series to rebound from a two-game deficit and win three straight.
What did Bevacqua know that the rest of the world did not? Quite frankly, the Cubs will always be the Cubs (see: losers.)
They can come within five outs of advancing to the World Series in 2003. They can add $300 million to their payroll in 2007.
But you know what? They’re still the Cubs, and they are still laughable losers.
If you don’t think so, just consider current manager Lou Piniella. It took just nine games into this season for Piniella’s first explosion after the Cubs blew a 5-0 lead with ace Carlos Zambrano on the mound.
“What the hell do you think isn't working? You see the damn game,” Piniella snapped at reporters. “And then I bring in the reliever who's throwing 30- to 40-foot curveballs to boot. I can see. I can start to see some of the ways this team has lost ballgames.”
Get used to it, Lou. You have a pair of pitchers in Kerry Wood and Mark Prior who are making (not earning) a combined $5.325 million this year. Don’t be surprised if the Cubs pay about $1 million per win from those two guys.
Then there are the new players (or newly-resigned players) such as Alfonso Soriano ($136 million), Aramis Ramirez ($75 million), Ted Lilly ($40 million) and Jason Marquis ($21 million, or more than Trevor Hoffman’s current three-year deal.)
The Cubs may appear to have a solid roster as they host the San Diego Padres in a two-game series beginning tonight.
But they’re still the Cubs … so the smartest thing to do is go to Las Vegas with Kurt Bevacqua and bet against them in a game that matters most.