SB Nation - Cla Meredith

Rays 3, Orioles 0: Snoozer

Stacey — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 02:34:26 -0000

2 months ago: Baltimore Orioles pitcher Mark Hendrickson throws to a Tampa Bay Rays batter in the first inning of a baseball game, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2009, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Gail Burton)

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This would have been a good game to watch if I was a Rays fan. Young prospect bounces back from a bad second start to throw a complete game, 10 K shutout. Pretty good. I'm not a Rays fan, though, so this game was pretty sucky.

With Brian Matusz being shut down, the Orioles turned to their bullpen in the hopes that they could put together 9 innings of not-sucky pitching. And guess what? They did! Mark Hendrickson allowed two runs in 3.1 innings, followed by Dennis Sarfate, Cla Meredith, Brian Bass, Chris Ray, and Alberto Castillo. Chris Ray (who else) gave up one run, but the rest held the Rays down.

Unfortunately their efforts would not be rewarded. The Orioles loaded the bases with no outs in the first inning against Wade Davis but couldn't score a run. Nick Markakis, Melvin Mora, and Luke Scott left the runners stranded and that was as close as the Orioles would get for the rest of the night. Davis dominated the Orioles for the rest of the night, allowing just three more hits.

Losing sucks, but you know what? In their last four series against the Texas Rangers, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, and Tampa Bay Rays, this team has gone 6-6. Would any of you have guessed that would happen? I know I wouldn't. Hooray not playing losing baseball over the last 12 games!

Tomorrow the Red Sox and their fans invade Baltimore one last time. I'll thankfully be out of town. The good news is that the Orioles have a history this year of winning games when I'm out of town. Maybe that streak will continue!

NL West Report: Talent in, Talent out at the trade deadline.

Rox Girl — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 01:30:57 -0000

The good news for competitors in the NL West this week is that none of their rivals added what we would consider a major impact talent at the trade deadline along the lines of a Cliff Lee, Matt Holliday or Victor Martinez, the bad news is that this means that neither did they, leaving the division in pretty much the same state it was last week save for the one team at the very bottom, who did wind up making a very interesting move on Friday. The overall talent flow still seems to be flowing into the division rather than out, however, and the division as a whole still seems to be on the ascent.

NL West Report

San Francisco (58-47, t-2nd, W2, 7.0 GB)

Last Week: 6-1. 3-0 vs. Pirates, 3-1 vs Phillies. At some point you've just got to forget the projections and say a team is what it is. The Giants really seem to be that team this year, similar to the 2007 Diamondbacks, where they are combining some excellence in pitching with a favorable circumstance or two (in this case a deadly home field advantage) to mask over their flaws. While sweeping a rebuilding Pirates team isn't a huge accomplishment, taking three of four against the defending world champions is. The Giants are a very real threat, but an up and down one.

Pace: 86-76.

Divisional Change: Gained 3.0 games.

This Week:

News: The Giants were the most active NL West squad at the deadline, acquiring Ryan Garko from the Indians in exchange for Scott Barnes and Freddy Sanchez from the Pirates in exchange for Tim Alderson. Both prospects were immediately downgraded by pundits from potential aces to potential fifth starters after the transactions.

Ryan Garko

#23 / First Base / San Francisco Giants

Height: 6-2

Weight: 225

Bats: R

Throws: R

Born: Jan 02, 1981

Freddy Sanchez

#21 / Second Base / San Francisco Giants

Height: 5-10

Weight: 190

Bats: R

Throws: R

Born: Dec 21, 1977

Kidding about that last part, sort of. Barnes wouldn't have been a name most Giants fans would recognize, but he's a decent LHP prospect a bit beyond the Keith Weiser level but quite a bit below the Bumgarner level. With Barnes and Connor Graham added to their pitching depth the last couple of weeks, the Indians have put quite a dent on the starting talent in the Cal League's North division. I was curious about the amount of articles downplaying Alderson that came after the trade compared to the hype he was getting before it.

Grant's reactions to both trades at McCovey Chronicles were suspiciously understated:

Sanchez

Garko

Clearly something's up with these players that they're not telling us about, like how they wouldn't tell us that Fred Lewis will eat the children of Rockies fans if we let them stay out to late or how Pedro Feliz was able to control the forces of nature of his mind as long as he wore a Giants uniform and the Giants were playing the Rockies. You're not fooling me this time Grant, word to Rockies pitchers: approach these two players like you would Babe Ruth. If Babe Ruth was alive. And not really old.

Players Gained:

Freddy Sanchez
Ryan Garko

Players Lost:

Tim Alderson (AA)
Scott Barnes (A+)

SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS INJURIES

15-DAY

PLAYER	INJURY TYPE	INJURY DATE
Rich Aurilia	toe	07/21/2009
Nate Schierholtz	hip	07/27/2009
Andres Torres	hamstring	07/31/2009

60 DAY DL / OUT FOR THE SEASON

PLAYER	INJURY TYPE	INJURY DATE
Randy Johnson	trapezius	07/06/2009
Noah Lowry	ribs	03/27/2009
Kelvin Pichardo	shoulder	06/28/2009
Joe Martinez	concussion	04/10/2009

Arizona (46-59, 4th, W1, 19.0 GB)

Last Week: 3-3. 1-2 vs Phillies, 2-1 @ Mets.

Pace:

Divisional Change: Gained 0.5 games.

This Week: The Snakes wrap up a long road trip with three game series @ Pittsburgh and @ Washington

News: The Diamondbacks had a quiet week leading up to the non-waiver trade deadline, but general manager Josh Byrnes expects August's waiver trade market to be active.

Brandon Webb finally decided to undergo the knife to fix his ailing shoulder, but no timetable has been established for when he is expected to return to the mound. Will the Diamondbacks pick up his $8.5 million option for 2010? Byrnes is taking a wait and see approach.

Brandon Webb

#17 / Pitcher / Arizona Diamondbacks

Height:6-2

Weight:230

Bats:R

Throws:R

Born:May 09, 1979

Steve Gilbert writes that Byrnes' faith in his core is a large part of the reason why the trade deadline was so quiet for Arizona:

"There are a lot of components there that we think are real positives," Byrnes said. "I think a lot of the pieces to get back to winning are already in place."

Certainly Justin Upton has to be a major component that Byrnes is thinking of, AZ Snakepit's Jim McClennan took a look at the elite club the phenom's track thus far puts him in.

The Snakes are negotiating with Daniel Cabrera for added pitching depth

Added Comment: Arizona remains a flawed team for 2010 until it gets the pitching ironed out, but a very dangerous one for 2009. The fact that they didn't sell off at the deadline doesn't leave them nearly as weak as other non-contenders. I'm relieved that the Rockies only have six more games against this team compared to nine for the Giants and ten for the Dodgers, because it really looks like they've finally righted the ship in Phoenix. Over the last thirty games, the D-backs have scored the fourth most runs in the NL in going 16-14. Other key potential spoiler series for Arizona will be in Philadelphia at the end of August and at Chicago for the last series of the season in October.

Players Gained:

Brandon Allen (AAA)
Cole Gillespie (AAA)
Roque Mercedes (AA)

Players Lost:

Felipe Lopez
Tony Pena

Arizona Diamondbacks Injuries

15-Day

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Eric Byrnes	hand	06/26/2009

60 Day DL / Out for the season

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Tom Gordon	hamstring	05/04/2009
Conor Jackson	pneumonia	05/12/2009
Brandon Webb	shoulder	04/07/2009

Los Angeles (62-36, 1st, L1)

Last Week: 3-4. 1-3 vs Cardinals. 2-1 vs Braves. The Dodgers road trip started out poorly against Matt Holliday and the Cardinals, but much like the Rockies, the Dodgers finished well, going over the last four games of the trip, against much tougher competition than we had to face.

Pace:

Divisional Change: Lost 0.5 games to Colorado and 3.0 games to San Francisco

This Week: The Dodgers return home where they will face a Brewers team (3 games) that's been caught in a rut for much of the last two months and then get a four game set against the Braves who will want revenge for losing a series in Atlanta this weekend.

News: The Dodgers had been rumored for much of last week to be in on every prominent trade target supposedly available, and apparently came close to reeling in Adrian Gonzalez and Heath Bell in a mega deal with the Padres. Unwilling to part with prize major league talent such as Matt Kemp and Clayton Kershaw (wisely, I might add, Kershaw's change-up is starting to be as devastating as his fastball and curve) Los Angeles wound up making one major move, trading minor leaguers Josh Bell and Steve Johnson for Orioles closer George Sherrill.

George Sherrill

#0 / Pitcher / Los Angeles Dodgers

Height: 6-0

Weight: 230

Bats: L

Throws: L

Born: Apr 19, 1977

The Dodgers made one other minor depth move to clear a roster space for Sherrill, trading Claudio Vargas to Milwaukee for catcher Vinny Rottino. Rottino actually has an engaging baseball biography, as he was an undrafted free agent out of college and wound up getting signed out of a try-out camp. He caught for team Italy in the WBC this Spring. Still, not going to supplant team Canada's catcher anytime soon.

Even with the Sherrill addition, Los Angeles continues to wage a war against an unseen and unknown enemy as the workload for their young pitching continues to mount. Chad Billingsley seemed like he might be the latest to succumb when he was pulled from Sunday night's start with what turned out to be just a case of leg cramps. Rockies and Giants fans are all hoping this menace proves more real than it has, but that just might be wishful thinking on our parts. Sherrill hasn't been the only cavalry to arrive to rescue Los Angeles' young arms, as both Jason Schmidt and Hong Chi Kuo made returns from long injury absences this week.

Eric Stephen's monthly reviews are always worth reading to catch up on the rest of the Dodgers news.

Players Gained:

George Sherrill
Vinny Rottino (AA)

Players Lost:

Josh Bell
Steve Johnson
Claudio Vargas

Los Angeles Dodgers Injuries

Probable

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Chad Billingsley	hamstring	08/03/2009

Questionable

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Casey Blake	wrist	08/03/2009

15-Day

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Will Ohman	shoulder	05/28/2009
Ronald Belisario	elbow	07/06/2009

60 Day DL / Out for the season

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Eric Milton	lower-back	06/28/2009
Doug Mientkiewicz	shoulder	04/17/2009
Xavier Paul	ankle	05/21/2009

San Diego (43-63, 5th, W2, 22.0 GB)

Last Week: 5-2. 3-1 @ Reds, 2-1 vs Brewers. Visiting Cincinnati has become a medicinal spa retreat for ailing NL West teams, as the Padres and Rockies combined to go 6-1 against the hapless Reds. San Diego carried their winning ways home with them against the Brewers.

Pace:

Divisional Change: Gained 2.0 games.

This Week: Braves (3 games) fans and Mets (4 games) fans will learn just how easy it is to go into PETCO Park and win series.

News: The Padres traded away their erstwhile ace Jake Peavy to the Chicago White Sox in the trade deadline's most surprising move. Peavy must have felt like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day in getting a chance to change a decision he made two months ago, for whatever reason, the White Sox held more appeal this time around.

Coming back from Chicago are four of the White Sox better prospects in Clayton Richard, Aaron Poreda, Dexter Carter and Adam Russell. This move was typical of other blockbusters in 2009, where the selling team generally walked away with the buying team's quality depth, but not their creme de la creme as far as talent is concerned.

jbox gets oddly, I don't know, pragmatic, in his review of the trade at Gaslamp Ball.

Clayton Richard

#41 / Pitcher / San Diego Padres

Height: 6-5

Weight: 240

Bats: L

Throws: L

Born: Sep 12, 1983

The Heath Bell/Adrian Gonzalez trade to the Dodgers wasn't the only big deadline deal that San Diego was involved in that fell through, apparently there was also a blockbuster that could have send Gonzalez to Seattle, Felix Hernandez to the Red Sox, and a bushel of prospects to the Padres that got nixed by the Mariners. The day was so busy, that Kevin Towers told the LA Times Bill Shaiken:

"It's almost comical," he said. "I wish we had a video camera in there. You tend to worry about everything moving so fast."

Players Lost:

Players Gained:

Ryan Webb (AAA)
Craig Italiano (A+)
Sean Gallagher
Aaron Poreda
Clayton Richard
Dexter Carter
Adam Russell
Oscar Salazar

San Diego Padres Injuries

15-Day

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Chris Young	shoulder	06/15/2009
Nick Hundley	forearm	06/18/2009
Brian Giles	knee	06/19/2009
Edgar Gonzalez	concussion	07/19/2009

60 Day DL / Out for the season

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Mark Worrell	elbow	03/27/2009
Cha Seung Baek	forearm	03/30/2009
Shawn Hill	elbow	04/26/2009
Cliff Floyd	shoulder	06/18/2009

Poll

Which NL West team helped itself the most via non-waiver trades?

Arizona: The D-backs didn't sell low on their players and added a couple of key parts for 2010 and beyond.

3 votes

Colorado: The Rockies major weakness was the bullpen and they addressed it without giving up top ten prospects.

98 votes

Los Angeles: The Dodgers got the one elite reliever dealt this year.

22 votes

San Francisco: The Giants held onto most of their elite prospects, including their very best, and still added the bats they needed.

90 votes

San Diego: The Padres were in desperate need of restocking the system and added a boatload of talented young arms.

29 votes

242 votes | Poll has closed

Royals 5, Orioles 3. So, Bruce Chen, huh?

duck — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 02:41:05 -0000

More photos » by Gail Burton - AP

Rich Hill prepares for yet another awful pitch. (AP Photo/Gail Burton)

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Losing teams find ways to lose. And tonight, the Orioles found a way to lose to Bruce Chen and the Royals. Yup, Bruce Chen, ex-Oriole, last seen getting whiplash watching balls fly over the fence in 2006. He of the 6.58 ERA, the 1.462 WHIP and measly 5.5 K/9 in 2009.

And sure enough, the O's scored in each of the first two innings. Granted, KC scored in the first as well, but the O's couldn't lose to Bruce Chen, could they?

Rich Hill answered the question rather convincingly. Hill, who knew, stone cold knew, that his pitching career could be decided by tonight's effort, lasted seven outs. He gave up three runs, four hits, walked three, struck out one and generally looked clueless. His delivery looked awful, he had no idea where the ball was going, and didn't even bother throwing his glove in the dugout when Dave Trembley came out to yank him. And if corporal punishment was legal for pitchers, I do believe Diamond Dave would have taken him behind the nearest woodshed.

Oh, the lineup doesn't get a pass tonight. Did I mention we lost to Bruce Chen? Sure enough, aside from Adam Jones hitting a solo HR and getting hit at an opportune time, the Orioles just didn't get much going. The other RBI was the result of a Matt Wieters single that scored Aubrey Huff, but then third-base coach Juan "Windmill" Samuel had Nolan Reimold try for home, where he was out by about 700 feet, roughly. Maybe 600. Looked like 700 to me.

I could recite the offensive futility of the Orioles in this game, but much like Nickelback songs, it's the same tune, just different details. The bullpen did its job, for the most part, with Brian Bass going scoreless for 3.1 and although single runs were scored against Matt Albers and Danys Baez (whose trade values sinks like a rock with every appearence), Cla Meredith came in and threw a shutout inning to finish the 9th. But the bullpen didn't really lose this one. Rich Hill did.

Losing teams find a way to lose, and having a starter like Rich Hill in the rotation certainly increases the odds. And it's getting damn frustrating to watch.

Poll

Who was the Most Birdland Player for Monday, July 27, 2009?

Nolan Reimold (2-3, 1 BB)

41 votes

Adam Jones (1-3, HR, HBP)

33 votes

Aubrey Huff (2-4, 1BB)

3 votes

Brian Bass (3.1 IP, 0 ER, 4 H, 1 BB, 1 K)

36 votes

No one - 3 runs against Bruce Chen? Are you kidding me?

138 votes

251 votes | Poll has closed

GM Towers: "Hate to lose, hate to lose the way that we do"

jbox — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 20:07:35 -0000

XX Sports Radio: Kevin Towers Interview (MP3) with Darren Smith

Padres been getting decent pitching but have had problems scoring. It will be nice to have David Eckstein and Henry Blanco back.
At the end of the year hopefully the Padres will get Young and Peavy back.
"Hate to lose, hate to lose the way that we do". If the Padres weren't suffering from injuries than they would be performing better than they are. "I'm sure it's not fun for the fans". The Padres are going through the growing pains.
"Hopefully we can find something positive here in the upcoming months to give of us a little bit of momentum going into the off season, because this feels a lot like Groundhog Day and a lot like last year.
Towers says the injuries are a result of "Two years of bad luck", it's not the fault of trainers or team doctors. It's nothing they could have prevented.
Addressing his quotes in the UT, Towers thinks Adrian Gonzalez is at the point where he is frustrated as well. He's at the stage where he wants to win. Adrian looks at the young players and talk of Peavy moving and realizing that there isn't a chance of winning in the foreseeable future.
It's highly unlikely anything will happen before the deadline in terms of trading Adrian. At the end of the season Towers will sit down with Moorad, Garfinkel and Black to see what they need to do to turn the team around. They might talk about locking him up in a long term deal, but they'll discuss that at the end of the season.
Even if Adrian Gonzalez thinks it's best to move him, he'd have to realize the backlash the Padres would face moving such a popular player.
To convince Adrian to stay in a long term deal, they'd have to show him the talent of the young players. In the next two months those guys will have to start producing. It will give the fans and Towers some hope.
Kyle Blanks will probably start playing a lot more. Towers talked to Black about it after the game. They will make a move in the next couple days when Eckstein comes back. More than likely it will be an outfielder and you'll see Blanks out there more often. The move will more than likely be a younger player with options.
The PTBNL in the Scott Hairston trade will be named the last week in July. There were two players they identified that they would choose from. The one they are leaning towards has been mentioned (Sean Gallagher).
Cla Meredith was passed up by other guys in the bullpen (Mojica, Gregerson and Adams). He wasn't pitching in a significant role. His velocity dropped from 90mph to 84mph. He didn't have the sink he once had. Lefties were hitting .300 against him. He was arbitration eligible next year and he'd still probably be a 11th or 12th pitcher. With Edgar Gonzalez going down they thought Oscar Salazar would give them a right handed bat off the bench and be more valuable for the team.
Towers responds to Krasovic's assertion that players had tuned out the hitting coach. "Being named a hitting coach for the San Diego Padres in Petco Park is literally a death sentence. It has not worked out for many that have been here." There is a huge age difference between Jimmy Lefebvre and the players. The players need to look in the mirror. "If they tune him out than they are evidently not tuning in the right person right now because it's not working either."
Towers says that Moorad and Garfinkel are evaluating all the Padres employees.
Tony Gwynn and Everth Cabrera are two of the better players and they didn't come from the Padres system.
On Mat Latos: "Liked it, liked the stuff, nice to see 98 pop up there on the scoreboard the first pitch of the game." He probably could have gotten out of the game with just the solo home run. The first start was a good one. He thinks he'll be better against the Nationals. He'll have a pitch count of 75 to 90. He has the ability to throw 90 pitches in 7 innings. Keeping a player from doubling their innings from one year to the next makes sense to Towers.
The bullpen has been the best part of the club this year. They just need to figure out how to score some runs. "We're not doing it now, so we're going to have to find a way."
Things are moving slow with Donovan Tate. His agent is working to sign other players first. The local area scout is keeping in contact with Tate.
Towers isn't getting many calls because they don't have many active players that are playing well.

Yankees 6, Orioles 4: Swept out of town

Stacey — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 21:13:33 -0000

More photos » by Kathy Willens - AP

4 months ago: Baltimore Orioles pitcher Jason Berken wipes his face during the first inning against the New York Yankees in their baseball game at Yankee Stadium Wednesday, July 22, 2009 in New York. Berken gave up four runs in the inning. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

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Here are some ugly stats for you:

The Orioles are now 1-14 on the road against the AL East this season. With three games @ Boston coming up this weekend, they could easily be 1-17 by Monday.
The Orioles have lost their last 10 games on the road against the Yankees.
After scoring 21 runs in three games vs the White Sox (and still losing 2 out of 3), the Orioles managed only 9 in three games vs the Yankees.
In this three game series, the Yankees scored a total of 12 runs. 5 of those runs scored were by players on base via walk.

Ok enough of that. So the Orioles just got swept, but just how bad was it? Well, it was bad. Game one featured great pitching and no offense. Game two featured awful pitching and mediocre hitting. Game three featured bi-polar pitching and bad offense (at least until the Yankees decided to give the struggling Brian Bruney a chance in the 9th)

With the imminent promotion of Chris Tillman, Jason Berkan was pitching for his job today. Like David Hernandez before him, Berken had trouble getting out of the first inning. I chalked David Hernandez's up to nerves about pitching at Yankee Stadium for the first time. I suppose it could be the same for Berken, but for some reason I'm not feeling very charitable about it. Perhaps it's because Hernandez was able to work out of his jam but Berken ended up allowing 4 runs. It took him 31 pitches to get out of the inning and it looked like he wouldn't be long for the game. Considering Rich Hill had forced the bullpen to work 5 innings yesterday, that didn't bode well.

After the first inning, however, Berken looked like a new pitcher. He pitched a total of 6 innings on 89 pitches. If you take out the 31 pitch first inning, he averaged 11.6 pitches per inning. In those five innings he allowed just three base runners. Jorge Posada hit a solo HR in the third, Nick Swisher walked in the fourth, and Robinson Cano singled in the 6th. At the rate Berken was going I'm surprised he didn't go out for the 7th. If you just check the box score today, it'll look like Jason Berken pitched another lousy game. And as far as results go, he did. 6 ER in 6 innings is very bad. But the way he pulled himself together was a little impressive. It certainly made me wish that we'd see Rich Hill be the one to get the boot when Tillman is called up.

Cla Meredith made his first appearance as an Oriole today. He started his O's career by hitting Brett Gardner. You hate to see the lead off man get on, but throwing at a Yankee is always at least partly acceptable. He followed that up by striking out Derek Jeter. He then allowed a single to Johnny Damon but got Mark Teixeira to line into a double play.

The offense today was the Nick and Adam show. The Orioles were held scoreless by A.J. Burnett until the 7th inning when Robert Andino (remember him?) led off the inning with an infield hit. Adam Jones followed that with a double to put runners on 2nd and 3rd and one out. Nick Markakis plated Andino with a sacrifice fly, then Adam scored on a wild pitch. Then in the 9th inning, with the Yankees winning 6-2 and two outs, Adam and Nick hit back-to-back HR. That forced the Yankees to bring in Mariano Rivera, who predictably struck out Aubrey Huff to end the game.

The rest of the hitters were kind of sucky. ZAUN went 2-3 with a walk and Luke Scott had a hit and a walk, but that was it. The Orioles left 9 men on base today and leave New York at a season awful 12 games under .500

Poll

Who was today's Most Birdland Player (MBP)?

Adam Jones (4-5, 2 R, 1 RBI, 2B, HR)

129 votes

Nick Markakis (1-4, 1 R, 2 RBI, SF, HR)

3 votes

Cla Meredith (Beaned a Yankee as his first official act as an Oriole, struck out Derek Jeter)

88 votes

No One

12 votes

232 votes | Poll has closed

Tuesday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 15:01:50 -0000

More photos » by Gene J. Puskar - AP

Jeff Karstens is stopped by umpire Chad Fairchild, right, and Jason Kendall from getting to Chris Smith after being hit by a pitch in the eighth inning on Monday. No players were ejected, and the Pirates won 8-5. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

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Some things to read while changing your misleading name.

Thanks to Tristarscoop for picking up the slack while I was away yesterday. Between getting married, honeymooning, buying a house, moving, being in another wedding and now a funeral, I feel like I've been away more than I've been home in the last two months, but (knock on wood) I should be back for the long haul now...at least through the end of the week.

Did you skip out early on last night's game? I almost went to bed in the seventh inning and would have missed the bench clearing incident involving Chris Smith and Jeff Karstens. Smith hit Karstens with a pitch in the eighth inning but later said the pitch wasn't intentional, which is probably the same thing Karstens said after hitting Ryan Braun in April. This HBP had some increased historical significance, being the 600th plunking at PNC Park.

Because the mess happened so late last night, possibly after many Brewer bloggers had gone to bed, there wasn't a lot of reaction to it on the web this morning. Don't be surprised, though, if Jason Kendall picks up a suspension of a game or two for his actions in the shoving match that followed. Kendall shoved Jeff Karstens down the first base line and was later involved in a shouting match with Pirates pitching coach Joe Kerrigan.

The incident also overshadowed the Brewer debut of Felipe Lopez. Lopez missed an early flight because he was waiting for his bats and would not have been in the starting lineup if not for the rain delay, but went 4-for-4 with a triple and a walk, becoming the first Brewer to record four hits in their debut since Chuckie Carr in 1996. TheJay sent me that link, and also this note:

By the by, it took Jody Gerut only 20 games (5 starts) over six weeks to reach four hits.

Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic discussed the D-Backs' reasons for trading Lopez. He (Lopez, not Piecoro) stands a good chance of being a Type B free agent this offseason, but had also been vocal about enjoying playing in Arizona. The D-Backs would have had to offer him arbitration to receive any compensation if he left, but weren't willing to pay him the $5-6 million he would have received if he accepted the offer. They also seem to think Roque Mercedes is similar in value to the compensation pick they could have received.

Manny Parra has allowed just 12 baserunners in 13 innings since returning from AAA and lowered his ERA from 7.52 to 6.37 in the process. Has he figured it out? Zach Sanders of Baseball Digest Daily seems to think so.

In the minors:

Cody Adams, the Brewers' second round pick from 2008, has been suspended for 50 games after testing positive for amphetamines. (Also noted in FanShot) Adams wasn't pitching well for the Timber Rattlers in the first place, but will now be set even farther back.
While the struggle to draw fans to games in Huntsville has drawn some negative attention this season, the Nashville Sounds are just happy the attention isn't on them. Despite making some improvements to Greer Stadium, the Sounds' attendance is down from last season, and ranks 15th in the 16-team PCL.
2009 draftee Josh Prince is the Prospect of the Week over at Between the Green Pillars. Battlekow interviewed Prince back on June 23.
The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers lost 15-1 to Lansing last night but still lead by two games in the Midwest League West Division Second Half Standings.
The Cub Reporter has a nice interview with Nashville hitting coach Sandy Guerrero, perhaps better known for being Prince Fielder's BP pitcher at the Home Run Derby.

Ever thought about attending a Brewer Fantasy Camp? Bill Schroeder has the sales pitch for you.

On rankings:

FanGraphs ranked Ryan Braun #8 in their Trade Value rankings, one spot ahead of Tim Lincecum. I love Braun, but if the Giants called and offered Lincecum I'd have a hard time turning it down.
The Brewers dropped four spots to 18th in WhatifSports' Power Rankings.

Around the majors:

Angels: Released reliever Rudy Seanez, who had been pitching in AAA. (h/t Diamond Notes)
A's: Placed Jason Giambi on the DL with a strained quad.
Mets: Placed starter Fernando Nieve on the DL with a leg injury.
Nationals: Placed Scott Olsen on the DL with a back injury and designated Julian Tavarez for assignment.
Orioles: Acquired reliever Cla Meredith from the Padres for infielder Oscar Salazar.
Padres: Placed catcher Edgar Gonzalez, who was hit in the head by a pitch over the weekend, on the DL.
Phillies: Designated reliever Tyler Walker for assignment.
Rangers: Placed Frank Francisco on the DL with a mild case of pneumonia.
Red Sox: Designated Julio Lugo for assignment.
Reds: Placed Ramon Hernandez on the DL with inflammation in his knee.
Tigers: Placed Joel Zumaya on the DL with a sore shoulder.
Twins: Signed Mark Grudzielanek to a minor league deal.

Last week I mentioned that I had participated in SBNation's NL Central Roundtable, and linked to part 1 of the conversation. Part 2 is up over at Viva El Birdos. It was written prior to the Lopez acquisition, but there's still some relevant stuff in there.

Happy birthday today to former Brewers Lance Painter (42), Geoff Jenkins (35) and CC Sabathia (29).

Oh, and I already knew Amy K. Nelson was a baseball writer, but discovering that she's also an old school video gamer made her infinitely cooler in my book.

Drink up.

Manny Is Back - Morning Links Edition

Eric Stephen — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 14:00:22 -0000

Its been 58 days since Manny Ramirez has played in a game -- it was Blogger Night at Dodger Stadium -- and tonight marks his return in front of a Dodger-heavy crowd at Petco Park. Here's a look at some news around the web regarding Manny Ramirez and the Dodgers:

Manny's return expected to be a spectacle - MLB - Yahoo! Sports
Bernie Wilson forecasts Friday night in San Diego, which might include more Dodger fans than Padre fans:

"I wouldn’t be lying to say that when he steps to the plate here he’s going to probably feel like he’s at home," said Padres reliever Cla Meredith, who’s been disappointed with the dwindling crowds during San Diego’s dismal season. "There’s no doubt about it."

Dodgers eagerly await Manny's return | dodgers.com: News
Ken Gurnick chronicles the Dodgers' reaction to Manny's return, and provides this classic quote from Rockies' manager Jim Tracy:

"Let's face it, it's like acquiring a player in a trade that you haven't had for the past 50 days."

Thanks, Jim!

When it comes to Manny, what would Nietzsche do? - Los Angeles Times
I had the pleasure of meeting Kurt Streeter covering Sunday's Dodger game, and here he has a unique way of looking at the Manny Ramirez situation: by incorporating the works of Socrates, Plato, and other famous philosophers.

"Gentlemen, this is simply a matter of what I long ago called the categorical imperative," chimed Immanuel Kant (Manny-applicable quote: "By a lie, a man annihilates his dignity as a man.").

Glenn Dickey: Ramirez’s return tonight will be greeted with forgiveness by Dodger faithful | San Francisco Examiner
A look at the difference between sportswriters' outrage and fans' acceptance regarding performance enhancing drugs.

There’s a serious disconnect between fans at games and most baseball writers, as well as mostly older fans who watch on TV and revile the "cheaters." The stay-at-home fans revere the records, which I don’t because they’re affected by the vast changes in the game. Pitching records were mostly set in the early part of the 20th century, the "dead ball" era. The hitting records are mostly being set in this era because of steroids, overexpansion, a livelier ball and more hitter-friendly parks, not necessarily in that order

Anyone Think It's Time to Add A Hall of Fame Bat? - Mike Scioscia's Tragic Illness
MSTI points out the reasons why the Dodgers desperately need Manny's bat back into the lineup

Optimist Bell ready for Manny
Chris Jenkins of the San Diego Union-Tribune tells us that Padres' closer and quote machine Heath Bell sees opportunity for the Padres with Manny Ramirez in town:

"I think it's a good thing for San Diego because it'll mean sellouts," Bell said. "We'll be on national television (Saturday), be on the ESPN highlights. San Diego and L.A. are rivals, so everybody gets amped up for this anyway.

ESPN - The B.S. Report
Keith Law joined Bill Simmons to discuss all things baseball, and they both had nice things to say about the Dodgers. Law stated the Dodgers were the best team in the National League, one that could hang with any team in American League, and Simmons, the well-known Red Sox fan, mentioned he would pick the Dodgers if he were forced to pick a new team to root for. Also, Simmons called Jonathan Broxton "terrifying."

It's back to the bench for Dodgers' Juan Pierre - Los Angeles Times
Dylan Hernandez reports on perhaps the one Dodger not enthused to see Manny back.

Inside the Shell -- Manny being Manny, being cheap | The Hive
There are reports that Manny Ramirez bucked tradition by not paying for the postgame spread at both of his minor league rehab stops - in Albuquerque or with Inland Empire. If true, that's pretty weak.

Sons of Steve Garvey: Ethier Muscles In On Martin's Yoga Mat Turf
Steve Sax of SOSG details the latest promotion by the Dodgers.

I will be in San Diego tonight in a group of 20 True Blue LA faithful Dodger fans, as we try to bankrupt the Padres in the AM/PM all-you-can-eat section. If you are there, stop by section 227, rows 10-14, to say hello.

MLB Trade Market Shaping Up To Be A "Bear Market"

Matt Buggenhagen — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 16:48:33 -0000

More photos » by Lenny Ignelzi - AP

(AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi)

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If you’re looking for fireworks in July, make sure to attend a July 4 barbeque, because it certainly doesn’t seem like we’ll be getting them on the July 31 trade deadline.

In a recent column on ESPN.com, Jayson Stark suggests that this could be the weakest trade market in quite some time.

Specifically, the fact that as of yesterday there were only 6 teams who are currently 6 games or more below .500, meaning the ratio of buyers greatly outweighs the sellers.

Stark quoted an AL executive who said, "Some of these teams that are in it don’t even want to be in it. I think they’d rather unload some guys and dump some money. But when you’re a few games out, it’s hard to explain that to your fans."

However, Stark does make a few suggestions on some trade possibilities. He selected the nine teams currently ranked at the bottom nine of the ESPN.com power rankings, then selected the most likely trade candidate from each team.

Here are of few of Stark’s suggestions.

Washington Nationals- Nick Johnson, 1B

Baltimore Orioles- Danys Baez, RHP

Arizona DiamondBacks- Doug Davis, LHP

San Diego Padres- Cla Meredith, RHP

Kansas City Royals- Ron Mahay, RHP

Houston Astros- LaTroy Hawkins, RHP

Pittsburgh Pirates- Jack Wilson, SS

Cleveland Indians- Mark DeRosa, 3B

Oakland A’s- Matt Holliday- LF

One noticeable thing missing from this list is the presence of any premier starting pitchers. With injuries to Jake Peavy and Eric Bedard, and the likelihood that the Astros will not part ways with Roy Oswalt, the market will be very limited. Some other notably possibilities will be Boston Red Sox SP Brad Penny and Pittsburgh Pirates SP Ian Snell

Phillies at Padres: June 1-3

Matt Swartz — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 21:00:20 -0000

More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

Adrian Gonzalez leads the majors in homeruns despite hitting at Petco Park. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

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The Phillies crept back barely into first place this weekend, maintaining a half game lead by sweeping the Nationals. The Padres had an early season lead in the West when they came to Philadelphia during the second weekend of the season, and they took two of three from the Phillies before the fourth game of the series was rained out. Now, the Padres are back down to .500 at 25-25. The Phillies themselves sit in first at 28-20.

Monday's game pits Joe Blanton against Kevin Correia. Correia is an okay pitcher who is able to put up decent number in a pitcher's park, though not particularly this year. Blanton is coming off a solid starts in which he pitched seven scoreless innings and struck out a career high eleven batters.

Tuesday's game will be a tough one as still-a-Padre Jake Peavy goes up against Antonio Bastardo, who will be making his major league debut. Bastardo is a lefty who has torn through AA and AAA this year, earning him the start in Myers' stead. Peavy is putting up another solid season, despite swirling trade rumors.

Wednesday's game pits the Phillies' J.A. Happ against the Padres' Chris Young. Chris Young has been okay this year, but has struggled to strike out as many hitters and has walked quite a few more as well. Happ has been solid in his first couple starts since joining the rotation after a solid display in the bullpen early on.

All three games will be pretty late in the eastern time zone, so stay tuned to The Good Phight for coverage if you have some silly reason that you can't stay up til one in the morning.

MATCHUPS

Monday, 10:05-- Joe Blanton (R) vs Kevin Correia (R)

Tuesday, 10:05-- Antonio Bastardo (L) vs Jake Peavy (R)

Wednesday, 10:05-- J.A. Happ (L) vs Chris Young (R)

After the jump, I breakdown the players and their splits.

PADRES

LINE UP

(1) RF Brian Giles (L): .192/.282/.285

proj: .280/.375/.420
bb: 13%
k: 12%
gb: 37%
iff: 11%
ifh: 4%
babip: average overall
s/c/z: excellent eye and excellent contact skill
r/l: .966/.788 ops; 0.6 vs 0.9 k/bb
h/a: about the same
p/o: pull hitter
other: none

(2) 2B David Eckstein (R): .246/.326/.322

proj: .275/.340/.350
bb: 7%
k: 9%
gb: 47%
iff: 12%
ifh: 7%
babip: pretty good on groundballs but pretty low on line drives, high groundball rate helps-- about average overall
s/c/z: very good contact and sees a lot of pitches in zone. swings at below average number of strikes but average number of non-strikes.
r/l: .700/.741 ops; k/bb is 1.2 vs 0.8
h/a: .738/.687
p/o: slight pull hitter but spreads ball around pretty well
other: used to steal bases more frequently but only tried 3 times last year and was caught once. He hasn't tried to steal yet this year. In 2007, he cut back to 11 attempts.

(3) OF Scott Hairston (R): .326/.387/.560

proj: .255/.325/.465
bb: 8.5%
k: 23%
gb: 36%
iff: 16%
ifh: 12%
babip: slightly below average, .290ish, since he pops out a lot, but good on groundball since he gets infield hits and decent on line drives as he has some power
s/c/z: slightly below average contact
r/l: 3.5 vs 2.5 k/bb; .712 vs .842 ops
h/a: a bit better at home in career but seemingly mostly luck so far
p/o: definite pull hitter
other: none

(4) 1B Adrian Gonzalez (L): .287/.394/.641

proj: .280/.355/.500
bb: 10%
k: 21%
gb: 41%
iff: 5%
ifh: 2%
babip: above average, around .315, rarely pops out, though doesn't get many infield hits. power indicates he should do well on linedrives
s/c/z: swings at average amount of balls, but lets fewer strikes pass than other players; somewhat below average contact
r/l: .886/.743 ops; 1.9 vs 3.0 k/bb
h/a: far more power on road (park effects) but slightly better k/bb at home (1.9 vs 2.4) and better babip at home (.328 vs .283)
p/o: somewhat of a pull hitter but spreads ball around pretty well for power hitter
other: far more success against finesse pitchers

(5) 3B Kevin Kouzmanoff (R): .228/.281/.348

proj: .275/.325/.455
bb: 5.5%
k: 20%
gb: 41%
iff: 6%
ifh: 4%
babip: average all around, low on groundballs and high on flyballs due to infield hit/fly rates
s/c/z: free swinger and chases a lot of pitches while at it, pitchers don't throw him that many pitches out of strike zone, despite that and somewhat low contact rate
r/l: typical
h/a: better on road, even at k/bb rates
p/o: pull hitter
other: struggles against power pitchers

(6) LF Chase Headley (S): .236/.309/.366

proj: .265/.345/.430
bb: 10%
k: 27%
gb: 38%
iff: 2%
ifh: 4%
babip: projection systems have him high-- like .330s+, but it seems like it he should be around .310 or so, since even though he pops out rarely, he doesn't get many infield hits and his groundball rate was abnormally high last year. even then, given that his eye is nothing special and his contact skills aren't great, he's likely due for a drop-- i think his overall projections are probably high
s/c/z: not a great eye and prone to chase, poor contact skills
r/l: only 140 career PA as RHB so it's tough to know
h/a: not enough info, so far better away but mostly luck based stats
p/o: definite pull hitter both ways
other:

(7) C Nick Hundley (R): .250/.348/.408

proj: .235/.285/.400
bb: 7%
k: 23%
gb: 37%
iff: 12%
ifh: 7%
babip: projected to be poor and tough to tell from small mlb sample size
s/c/z: average all around so far, it seems
r/l: very small sample size but 5.0 vs 2.9 k/bb difference
h/a: 3.1 vs 5.3 k/bb
p/o: spreads ball around pretty well
other: none

(8) SS Chris Burke (R): .206/.270/.324

proj: .245/.325/.370
bb: 9%
k: 17.5%
gb: 38%
iff: 18%
ifh: 7%
babip: projected around .285 which might be a little high given popout rate and lack of significant power or contact skill, though he has some success with groundball babip
s/c/z: decent eye, somewhat patient, okay contact, sees a lot of strikes
r/l: .648 vs .730 ops; 2.3 vs 1.8 k/bb
h/a: .708 vs .652 ops; 2.1 vs 2.2 k/bb
p/o: pull hitter
other: none

BENCH

C Henry Blanco (R): .172/.273/.345

proj: .240/.290/.350
bb: 6%
k: 19%
gb: 37%
iff: 13%
ifh: 6%
babip: not much power and tendency to pop up; below average
s/c/z: good eye, okay contact
r/l: a little more power right-handed
h/a: a little better k/bb at home but fewer extra base hits
p/o: pull hitter
other: none

IF Edgar Gonzalez (R): .180/.261/.426

proj: .270/.330/.400
bb: 8%
k: 22%
gb: 46%
iff: 2%
ifh: 4%
babip: definitely above average, rarely pops out and makes solid contact
s/c/z: great eye and good contact
r/l: k/bb of 4.7 vs 1.6; .685 vs .750 ops
h/a: typical given park effects
p/o: slight pull hitter
other: none

IF Josh Wilson (R): .209/.292/.279

proj: .245/.305/.365
bb: 7%
k: 20%
gb: 43%
iff: 10%
ifh: 6%
babip: projected slightly below average, around .295, which seems about right
s/c/z: not a great eye but somewhat patient, above average contact, sees a lot of strikes
r/l: .600 vs .594 ops in 259/104 PAs; 3.3 vs 2.9 k/bb
h/a: .578 vs .623 ops; 4.9 vs 2.3 k/bb
p/o: somewhat of a pull hitter
other: none

OF Tony Gwynn Jr. (L): .320/.393/.440

proj: .250/.315/.330
bb: 8%
k: 16.5%
gb: 49%
iff: 5%
ifh: 8%
babip: projected around .305 which seems about right
s/c/z: very patient with pretty good eye and above average contact, sees a decent amount of strikes
r/l: .599 vs .688 but only 30 career PA vs LHP; 2.3 vs 4.5 k/bb
h/a: .585 vs .628 ops; 1.6 vs 4.1 k/bb
p/o: pull hitter
other: none

OF Cliff Floyd (L): 0 for1 with 1 K

proj: .255/.340/.410
bb: 9.5%
k: 20%
gb: 42%
iff: 14%
ifh: 5%
babip: projected around .290 which could be right given powerful slow popout hitter
s/c/z: good eye with so-so contact, but his eye is actually deteriorated
r/l: .856 vs .793 ops; 1.5 vs 3.2 k/bb
h/a: .861 vs .823 ops; 1.7 vs 1.8 k/bb
p/o: pull hitter
other: none

ROTATION

MONDAY OPPONENT: Kevin Correia (R): 5.11 ERA, 4.0 BB/9, 6.6 K/9, 0.9 HR/9, 4.42 FIP, 42%

proj avg: 4.40 ERA, 3.5 BB/9, 6.7 K/9, 1.0 HR/9
gb: 39%
pitches: 60% fb, 27% sl, 9% ch, 4% cb
r/l: 2.3 vs 1.2; .762 vs .819
h/a: similar

Correia vs Phillies:

Rollins: 0/9, 0 BB, 1 K
Victorino: 3/5, 1 HR, 0 BB, 0 K
Howard: 0/3, 0 BB, 0 K
Utley: 1/3, 1 2B, 0 BB, 0 K
Bruntlett: 0/2, 0 BB, 1 K
Ruiz: 1/2, 0 BB, 0 K
Dobbs: 1 BB
Ibanez: 1/1, 1 HR, 0 BB, 0 K
Stairs: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Werth: 1 BB

TUESDAY OPPONENT: Jake Peavy (R): 3.67 ERA, 2.9 BB/9, 10.3 K/9, 0.9 HR/9, 3.13 FIP, 41% GB

proj avg: 3.25 ERA, 2.9 BB/9, 9.0 K/9, 0.9 HR/9
gb: 42%
pitches: 57% fb, 18% sl, 17% ct, 7% cb, 6% ch
r/l: 3.8 vs 2.6 k/bb, .603 vs .740 ops
h/a: .614/.737 ops's, 3.7/2.5 k/bb's

Peavy vs Phillies:

Feliz: 8/39, 2 2B< 1 HR, 1 BB, 9 K
Rollins: 3/12, 1 3B, 1 HR, 3 BB, 1 K
Ibanez: 4/12, 1 2B, 1 HR, 2 BB, 1 K
Werth: 1/11, 0 BB, 7 K
Howard: 2/8, 1 2B< 0 BB, 3 K, 1 SF
Utley: 0/8, 1 BB, 2 K
Stairs: 0/5, 0 BB, 2 K
Victorino: 3/5, 1 2B, 0 BB, 0 K
Coste: 0/3, 0 BB, 0 K
Dobbs: 2/3, 0 BB, 0 K
Ruiz: 0/2, 1 BB (IBB), 0 K

WEDNESDAY OPPONENT: Chris Young (R): 4.45 eRA, 4.45 BB/9, 6.6 K/9, 0.9 HR/9, 4.52 FIP, 32% GB

proj avg: 3.85 ERA, 3.85 BB/9, 8.0 K/9, 1.1 HR/9
gb: 28%
pitches: 75% fb, 18% sl, 5% ch, 2% cb
r/l: 2.6 vs 2.2 k/bb, .647 vs .674 ops
h/a: 2.8 vs 2.1 k/bb

Young vs Phillies:

Ibanez: 6/23, 1 2B, 1 3B, 2 BB, 3 K
Feliz: 2/15, 1 Bb, 3 K
Utley: 4/11, 1 2B, 2 HR, 0 BB, 3 K
Dobbs: 1/8, 0 BB, 4 K
Howard: 1/5, 1 2B, 4 BB, 2 K
Rollins: 1/6, 0 BB, 1 K
Victorino: 2/6, 0 BB, 1 K
Werth: 0/4, 1 BB, 2 K
Bruntlett: 1/4, 0 BB, 2 K
Coste: 2/4, 2 2B, 0 BB, 0 K
Ruiz: 0/3, 0 BB, 0 K
Stairs: 1/3, 1 2B, 0 BB, 1 K

NOT FACING US THIS SERIES: Josh Geer (R): 5.17 ERA, 1.5 BB/9, 4.6 K/9, 1.7 HR/9, 5.20 FIP, 44% GB

proj avg: 4.70 ERA, 2.8 BB/9, 5.0 K/9, 1.1 HR/9
gb: 35%
pitches: 64% fb, 22% ch, 14% sl

Geer vs Phillies:

Bruntlett: 0/3, 0 BB, 0 K
Coste: 0/3, 0 BB, 1 K
Feliz: 1/3, 0 BB, 1 K
Howard: 2/3, 1 3B, 0 BB, 1 K
Ibanez; 1/3, 1 2B, 0 BB, 0 K
Stairs: 0/3, 0 BB, 1 K
Utley: 1/3, 1 HR, 0 BB, 0 K
Victorino: 1/3, 0 BB, 0 K
Cairo: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K

NOT FACING US THIS SERIES: Chad Gaudin (R): 4.76 ERA, 5.9 BB/9, 8.2 K/9, 0.2 HR/9, 3.94 FIP, 48% GB

proj avg: 4.10 ERA, 3.7 BB/9, 7.2 K/9, 0.9 HR/9
gb: 44%
pitches: 64% fb, 28 sl, 8% ch, 0.1% cb
r/l: .744 vs .812 ops; 2.7 vs 0.8 k/bb
h/a: .780 vs .773 ops; 1.6 vs 1.5 k/bb

Gaudin vs Phillies:

Ibanez: 7/18, 2 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 3 BB, 5 K, 1 SF
Feliz: 2/8, 1 BB, 2 K
Stairs: 3/6, 1 2B, 1 HR, 1 BB (IBB), 0 K
Dobbs: 2/2, 1 2B, 0 BB, 0 K
Werth: 0/1, 1 BB, 1 K
Bruntlett: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Coste: 1/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Howard: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Rollins: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Ruiz: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Utley: 1/1, 0 BB, 0 K

BULPEN

CL Heath Bell (R): 1.27 ERA, 2.5 BB/9, 11.0 K/9, 0.0 HR/9, 1.57 FIP, 51% GB

proj avg: 3.30 ERA, 3.2 BB/9, 9.0 K/9, 0.7 HR/9
gb: 50%
pitches: 72% fb, 28% sl
r/l: 4.7 vs 2.2 k/bb but .687 vs .616 ops since more power surrendered to lhb
h/a: .573/.726 ops split but k/bb even

Bell vs Phillies:

Utley: 2/8, 1 2B, 2 BB, 1 K
Howard: 1/8, 0 BB, 4 K
Rollins: 0/8, 0 BB, 0 K
Feliz: 2/6, 0 BB, 0 K
Ibanez: 2/4, 1 BB (IBB), 0 K
Victorino: 1/5, 0 BB, 1 K
WertH: 1/4, 0 BB, 2 K
Ruiz: 0/1, 0 BB, 1 K, 1 Sac
Stairs: 0/2, 0 BB, 2 K
Bruntlett: 1 BB
Coste: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K

Edward Mujica (R): 2.49 ERA, 2.1 BB/9, 10.0 K/9, 0.7 HR/9, 2.69 FIP, 33% GB

proj avg: 4.40 ERA, 2.8 BB/9, 7.0 K/9, 1.0 HR/9
gb: 28%
pitches: 67% fb, 9% sl, 6% cb, 2% ch, 17% sf
r/l: 8.0 k/bb vs righties, but mostly just no walks; 1.5 k/bb vs lefties in minimal experience
h/a: not enough info

Mujica vs Phillies:

Cairo: 1/2, 0 BB, 0 K
Dobbs: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Ibanez: 1/1, 1 HR, 0 BB, 0 K
Rollins: 1/1, 1 HR, 0 BB, 0 K
Utley: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Victorino: 0/1, 0 BB, 1 K

Greg Burke (R): 1.35 ERA, 0.0 BB/9, 5.4 K/9, 0.0 HR/9, 1.96 FIP, 47% GB

proj avg: 4.50 ERA, 2.8 BB/9, 6.0 K/9, 1.0 HR/9
gb: 53% in majors so far
pitches: 71% fb, 28% sl, 1% ch
r/l: not much of a clear split in minors
h/a: not enough info

Burke: has not played any Phillies

Cla Meredith (R): 3.06 ERA, 3.1 BB/9, 6.1 K/9, 0.5 HR/9, 3.73 FIP, 61% GB

proj avg: 3.70 ERA, 2.6 BB/9, 6.7 K/9, 0.7 HR/9
gb: 69%
pitches: 79% fb (I think sinkers count as fastballs on fangraphs), 18% sl, 3% ch
r/l: 4.3 vs 1.4; .612 vs .794: major ROOGY
h/a: .637 vs .721 and 2.9 vs 2.7 k/bb

Meredith vs Phillies:

Feliz: 1/9, 0 BB, 5 K, 1 SF
Ibanez: 3/5, 1 2B, 1 HR, 0 BB, 0 K
Werth: 1/3, 0 BB, 0 K, 1 SF
Howard: 1/2, 1 BB (IBB), 0 K
Rollins: 1/3, 0 BB, 0 K
Bruntlett: 0/2, 0BB, 1 K
Dobbs: 1/2, 0 BB, 0 K
Utley: 1/2, 0 BB, 0 K
Victorino: 1/1, 1 BB, 0 K
Coste: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Ruiz: 1/1, 1 2B, 0 BB, 0 K

Luke Gregerson (R): 3.38 ERA, 4.6 BB/9, 9.2 K/9, 0.3 HR/9, 3.09 FIP, 46% GB

proj avg: unprojected
gb: very high groundball rates in minors
pitches: 55% fb, 33% sl, 9% ch, 3% cb in majors so far
r/l: much better against righties and walks a lot of lefties in minors
h/a: not enough info

Gregerson vs Phillies:

Howard: 1/2, 1 HR, 0 BB, 1 K
Feliz: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Ibanez: 0/1, 0 BB, 1 K
Utley: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Victorino: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Werth: 0/1, 0 BB, 1 K

Joe Thatcher (L)

proj avg: 4.00 ERA, 3.3 BB/9, 7.1 K/9, 0.8 HR/9
gb: 46%
pitches: 78% fb, 13% sl, 6% ct, 1% ch, 1% cb
r/l: .717 vs .978 ops in majors with 1.1 vs 3.0 k/bb-- reverse split
h/a: 1.3 vs 2.0 k/bb; .725 vs .851 ops

Thatcher vs Phillies:

Feliz: 0/3, 0 BB, 0 K
Bruntlett: 0/2, 0 BB, 1 K
Coste: 1/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Howard: 1/1, 1 HR, 0 BB, 0 K
Utley: 0/1, 0 BB, 1 K
Victorino: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K

Luis Perdomo (R): 4.70 ERA, 4.1 BB/9, 4.1 K/9, 1.2 HR/9, 5.31 FIP, 44% GB

proj avg: 4.90 ERA, 4.6 BB/9, 7.0 K/9, 1.2 HR/9
gb: 47% in AAA
pitches: ?
r/l: not enough info
h/a: not enough info

Perdomo vs Phillies:

Coste: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Feliz: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Rollins: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Ibanez: 1 BB
Werth: 1 BB

PHILLIES

LINE UP

1) SS Jimmy Rollins (S): .226/.270/.337

projection average (proj): .285/.350/.460
projected BB/PA (bb): 8%
projected K/AB (k): 11%
career gb% (gb): 42%
career infield flies/flyball (iff): 10%
career infield hits/groundball (ifh): 5%
batting average on balls in play tendencies (babip): about average overall, though a little bit high popup rate so slightly below average. my system has him at about .308.
swing/contact/zone facts (s/c/z): good eye, pretty selective, but very high contact rate so low walk rate
righty/lefty (r/l): 1.7 vs 1.3 k/bb, mostly because of higher k-rate as lhb. otherwise similar on contact
home/away (h/a): 1.5 vs 1.7 k/bb; .805 vs .739 ops
pull/opposite (p/o): definite pull hitter
anything else (other): stole 47 bases in 50 attempts last year.

2) CF Shane Victorino (S): .293/.342/.449

proj: .285/.345/.430
bb: 7.5%
k: 13%
gb: 46%
iff: 15%
ifh: 8%
babip: slightly above average due to high babip on groundballs-- partly because infield plays in for him and he spreads the ball around well; not that high due to high infield fly rate. my system sees him at .303.
s/c/z: pretety bad eye but high contact rate
r/l: much more power righthanded (1.6% to 3.8% HR rate), but much better k/bb as lefty: 1.65 vs 1.88; higher babip lefty also (.316 vs .286)
h/a: far fewer walks on road but nearly exactly the same strikeout rate, same power, same babip
p/o: pull hitter both ways
other: stole 36 of 47 bases last year

3) 2B Chase Utley (L): .294/.430/.550

proj: .295/.380/.525
bb: 9.5%
k: 18%
gb: 37%
iff: 10%
ifh: 6%
babip: distinctly above average historically and for projections too; seemingly strong power leads to high line drive babip rate and reasonably high groundball babip especially for pull hitting lefty; high on flyballs despite high infield fly rate since he hits deep flyballs. my system has him at about .308, but he beats projection systems consistently.
s/c/z: pretty good eye, somewhat selective, somewhat high contact rate
r/l: not significant-- only 1.7 vs 2.0 k/bb; .919 vs .865 ops
h/a: similar k/bb home & away; better hr at home-- probably park factors; higher babip at home too
p/o: pull hitter
other: much better against power pitchers relative to other hitters

4) 1B Ryan Howard (L): .266/.340/.573

proj: .275/.375/580
bb: 14%
k: 33%
gb: 40%
iff: 2%
ifh: 4%
babip: low on groundballs over time as he pulls the vast majority of them; very very high on flyballs because he almost never pops out in the infield at all and many of his flyballs are very deep. also since so few of his flyballs stay in the park (only 2/3 or so), a higher percentage of his balls in play are line drives-- which he does well on like many power hitters-- his low contact rate means he sometimes make poor contact though. probably above average overall
s/c/z: swings a lot especially for someone who doesn't see many strikes. however, he is pretty good at distinguishing balls from strikes despite the consensus on him. he makes terrible contact overall though. my system sees him at .310.
r/l: 1.064 vs .786 ops: say it with me "that means he's good against righties, not bad against lefties!" in fact, he's the best hitter against righties in baseball right now probably. his k/bb vs lhp is 3.7 vs 1.6 vs rhp. he has a lot of power against lefties however, but a lower babip. i don't have split data on pull% vs lhp/rhp but observationally i'm pretty sure that's the difference in his babip: .338 vs .309.
h/a: much higher babip on road. very similar hr numbers. 2.0 vs 3.2 k/bb.
p/o: pull hitter, especially on groundballs-- hits more homeruns the opposite way though
other: struggles mightily against power pitchers and groundball pitchers, dominate flyball pitchers (since he almost never pops out, and has 10.3% hr rate) and smashes finesse pitchers (11.8% hr rate); he also does much better on babip with runners on base as defenders can't shift against him-- especially with runners in scoring position

5) RF Jayson Werth (R): .253/.342/.460

proj: .270/.360/.460
bb: 12.5%
k: 29%
gb: 38%
iff: 8%
ifh: 8%
babip: high on groundballs due to high infield hit rate, high on line drives due to power, and hits pretty deep flyballs too; has been historically probably higher than it should be since he's faced more lhp than normal rhb do; overall still seems to be very above average. my system has him at .329.
s/c/z: very selective and pretty good eye; somewhat low contact rate
r/l: .762 vs .919 ops; 2.4 vs 2.0 k/bb; hr rate of 6.7% vs 2.9%
h/a: not much of a split at all
p/o: spreads ball around well for power hitter, but still a pull hitter
other: stole 20 bases in 21 attempts last year

6) LF Raul Ibanez (L): .332/.394/.684

proj: .285/.350/.480
bb: 9%
k: 17%
gb: 42%
iff: 11%
ifh: 5%
babip: above average, probably because he spreads the ball around pretty well for a power hitter; much better babip with men on-- probably hooks ball in hole well or maybe he was shifted against more so beforehand. my system sees him right at .300.
s/c/z: definitely a good eye though it's getting worse, slightly above average contact
r/l: .850 vs .733; 1.5 vs 2.8 k/bb
h/a: better k/bb (1.6 vs 1.9) but worse power probably park factors, and probably likely to be better at home
p/o: slight pull hitter but not much for a power hitter
other: none

7) 3B Pedro Feliz (R): .302/.365/.432

proj: .250/.300/.420
bb: 6%
k: 15.5%
gb: 44%
iff: 15%
ifh: 5%
babip: very low-- pops up a lot, hits groundballs predictably to left side and is slow so they can play shaded over and deep; not all that much power so not terrific on line drives either, makes a lot of weak contact as he isn't good at making contact so he chops a lot of balls. my system sees him at .271.
s/c/z: high swing rate and not terribly good at distinguishing balls from strikes. swung significantly less in 2008, but it was as much of a decrease in balls as strikes, makes average contact
r/l: 3.3 vs 2.3 k/bb; .708 vs .755 ops, more babip and a little more power agaisnt lefties
h/a: much higher k rate on road, similar bb rate; more power on road, higher babip at home. likely not much difference (.725 vs .716 overall ops)
p/o: definite pull hitter
other: defensive numbers dipped last year, had offseason surgery for back, perhaps these are related

8) Carlos Ruiz (R): .304/.427/.506

proj: .255/.335/.390
bb: 10%
k: 14%
gb: 50% (but rose in 2008 to 54% from 46%)
iff: 9.5%
ifh: 4%
babip: was extraordinarily low in 2008, but that seems to be rather flukey. his high groundball rate and solid contact rate and pitch selection indicate he should be a good babip guy, but he does very poorly on groundball as he chops the ball a lot. my system sees him at .288.
s/c/z: very good eye and excellent contact skill, extremely patient
r/l: bizarre reverse split despite 0.5 k/bb vs lhp and 1.2 vs rhp; impossibly low .204 babip against lhp, probably flukey and probably much better vs lhp in reality
h/a: similar k/bb, worse babip but higher power at home (park factors)
p/o: slight pull hitter
other: better against power pitchers

BENCH

C Chris Coste (R): .254/.356/.460

proj: .265/.315/.405
bb: 5.5%
k: 17.5%
gb: 40%
iff: 10%
ifh: 6%
babip: slightly below average, seemingly due to poor eye and swinging and hitting bad pitches. my system sees him at .294.
s/c/z: high swing rate, pretty poor eye, average contact
r/l: .747 vs .855; same k/bb rate, much better babip against lhp, similar power but slightly more vs lhp
h/a: .886 vs .679; 5.4% vs 1.5% hr rate
p/o: pull hitter
other: struggles with power pitchers somewhat

IF/OF Eric Bruntlett (R): .118/.179/.235

proj: .240/.325/.335
bb: 10%
k: 18%
gb: 41%
iff: 14%
ifh: 5%
babip: high popup rate leads to low babip, but not that low; also doesn't do all that well on line drives due to lack of power
s/c/z: somewhat above average eye and doesn't swing much; makes very good contact, sees a lot of strikes
r/l: .592 vs .764 ops; 2.5 vs 1.2 k/bb; 5.7% vs 8.8% xbh/ab-- he's actually average if not above average against lhp; he just is terrible against rhb. he should be used as a counterswitch to loogy use against lefty pinch hitters
h/a: more power at home and more walks at home; similar strikeout rate and babip
p/o: opposite field hitter
other: none

IF Greg Dobbs (L): .132/.250/.211

proj: .285/.335/.445
bb: 7%
k: 17%
gb: 36%
iff: 13.5%
ifh: 3%
babip: has been high but probably should not be projected as high-- success derives from impossibly high line drive babip which doesn't typically happen for non-extreme power hitters. given his popup rate, he probably isn't a .320 babip guy and there isn't a .285 hitter
s/c/z: poor eye but very high swing rate; average contact rate
r/l: .761 vs .579 ops despite impossible .481 babip against lhp. in reality, he strikes out in 48% of at-bats against lhp. he should never see them. absolutely no power against lefties also.
h/a: virtually no split at all
p/o: pull hitter
other: much better against finesse pitchers

OF Matt Stairs (L): .281/.465/.594

proj: .255/.340/.440
bb: 11%
k: 22%
gb: 42%
iff: 11.5%
ifh: 5%
babip: average all around. my system sees him at .295.
s/c/z: very good eye and slightly below average contact
r/l: .862 vs .748; much more power against rhp; 1.4 vs 2.1 k/bb
h/a: not much of a split at all
p/o: slight pull hitter but not much for a power hitter
other: use stairs in case of emergency

OF John Mayberry Jr. (R): .222/.222/.667

proj: .235/.290/.415
bb: 6.5%
k: 27%
iff: around 15-20% in minors
ifh: ?
babip: hits ball hard but pops up a lot; probably a bit average but tough to know; projected below average
s/c/z: not enough info
r/l: batter against lefties, particularly at making contact, in minors
h/a: not enough info
p/o: not enough info
other: none

ROTATION

MONDAY STARTER: Joe Blanton (R): 6.14 ERA, 3.3 BB/9, 8.4 K/9, 1.6 HR/9, 4.80 FIP, 40% GB

proj avg: 4.25 ERA, 2.5 BB/9, 5.8 K/9, 0.9 HR/9
gb: 45%
pitches: 56% fb, 16% ch, 15% sl, 12% cb
r/l: 2.3 vs 1.8 k/bb; .750 vs .719 ops
h/a: 2.2 vs 2.0 k/bb; .698 vs .776 ops; much worse babip away (.313 vs .282), more power surrendered on road
other: extraordinarily good against leadoff hitters, especially the first hitter of games

Blanton vs Padres:

Gonzalez: 2/8, 0 BB, 0 K
Burke: 0/3, 0 BB, 0 K
Eckstein: 3/3, 1 2B, 0 BB, 0 K
Blanco: 1/2, 0 BB, 0 K
Giles: 0/1, 1 BB, 1 K
Rodriguez: 0/1, 1 BB, 0 K

TUESDAY STARTER: Antonio Bastardo (L): has not played in majors 2009; but in AA: 1.82 ERA, 1.8 BB/9, 10.1 K/9, 0.3 HR/9 in 34.2 IP; in AAA: 2.08 ERA, 2.1 BB/9, 8.3 K/9, 0.7 HR/9 in 13 IP

proj avg: 5.60 ERA, 4.8 BB/9, 7.0 K/9, 1.9 HR/9
gb: 40% in minors
pitches: ?
r/l: 2.1 vs 4.1 k/bb in minor league career
h/a: much better control at home in minor league control

Bastardo: has not played Padres

WEDNESDAY STARTER: J.A. Happ (L): 3.00 ERA, 3.3 BB/9, 7.1 K/9, 0.8 HR/9, 4.13 FIP, 37% GB

proj avg: 4.40 ERA, 3.8 BB/9, 7.7 K/9, 1.2 HR/9
gb: 29% in majors thus far; 42% in AAA in 2008
pitches: 64% fb, 18% ch, 14% sl, 2% ct, 2% cb
r/l: 1.7 vs 3.0 k/bb in majors thus far; 2.7 vs 3.5 k/bb in AAA in 2008
h/a: not enough info

Happ vs Padres:

Hundley: 1/1, 1 BB, 0 K
Kouzmanoff: 2/2, 0 BB, 0 K
Gerut: 0/1, 0 BB, 1 K
Giles: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
A.Gonzalez: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
E.Gonzalez: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Headley: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Rodriguez: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K

NOT STARTING THIS SERIES: Cole Hamels (L): 5.21 ERA, 1.9 BB/9, 9.3 K/9, 1.9 HR/9, 4.47 FIP, 39% GB

proj avg: 3.45 ERA, 2.3 BB/9, 8.4 K/9, 1.1 HR/9
gb: 40%
pitches: 55% fb, 32% ch, 14% cb
r/l: .680 vs .748, but same 3.6 k/bb both ways; slightly more power vs lhb-- this is probably selection bias as managers withhold all but the best lefties against him (explaining 20% of hitters faced are lefties only)
h/a: 3.85 vs 3.4 k/bb; .676 vs .709 ops-- less of a difference due to higher HR rate at home
other: much higher k-rate at night: 25% vs 20%, which is statistically significant. ERA difference (4.71 vs 3.01 exaggerated by babip difference), as HR rate and XBH rate very similar. most likely he strikes out more at night.

Hamels vs Padres:

Giles: 3/17, 1 2B, 0 BB, 2 K
A.Gonzalez: 5/15, 1 HR, 1 BB, 4 K, 1 HBP
Burke: 4/15, 1 BB, 6 K
Kouzmanoff: 2/12, 0 BB, 2 K
Hairston: 4/10, 2 2B, 2 HR, 0 BB, 2 K
Eckstein: 3/6, 1 2B, 1 BB, 1 K, 1 Sac, 1 SF
Headley: 2/6, 0 BB, 1 K
Rodriguez: 1/6, 1 HR, 0 BB, 0 K
E.Gonzalez: 0/4, 0 BB, 0 K
Hundley: 1/2, 1 HR, 1 BB, 0 K
Gerut: 1/1, 0 BB, 0 K

NOT STARTING THIS SERIES: Jamie Moyer (L): 6.75 ERA, 2.7 BB/9, 5.1 K/9, 2.4 HR/9, 6.57 FIP, 38% GB

proj avg: 4.80 ERA, 2.8 BB/9, 5.5 K/9, 1.2 HR/9
gb: 39%
pitches: 41% fb, 30% ct, 24% ch, 6% cb
r/l: virtually no split but that seems to be selection as he sees 24% lefties only compared with 32% league average for lhp
h/a: 2.3 vs 1.9 k/bb; not much difference on contact; slightly better babip at home but not more so than the average starter gets

Moyer vs Padres:

Eckstein: 14/56, 2 2B, 1 HR, 1 BB, 3 K, 1 Sac
Giles: 4/17, 1 2B, 3 BB, 1 K
A.Gonzalez: 5/15, 3 HR, 0 BB, 0 K, 1 Sf
Kouzmanoff: 5/12, 1 2B, 1 HR, 0 BB, 2 K
Blanco: 5/11, 0 BB, 0 K
Gerut: 1/7, 0 BB, 0 K
Hariston: 0/5, 2 BB, 0 K
Burke: 0/3, 0 BB, 0 K
Headley: 0/3, 0 BB, 1 K
Hundley: 0/3, 0 BB, 0 K
Rodriguez: 0/2, 0 BB, 0 K

BULLPEN

CL Brad Lidge (R): 7.71 ERA, 5.0 BB/9, 10.0 K/9, 2.3 HR/9, 6.08 FIP, 38% GB

proj avg: 3.50 ERA, 4.1 BB?9, 11.0 K/9, 0.8 HR/9
gb: 41% (though this went up to 46% with increased slider use in 2008)
pitches: 56% sl, 43% fb, 0.4% ch in 2008 (historically 54% fb, 42% sl)
r/l: 3.6 vs 2.8 k/bb; .601 vs .686 ops (tough to tell if that tendency became more or less extreme in 2008 due to limited sample size)
h/a: 3.6 vs 2.9 k/bb; .666 vs .614 ops though due to higher babip away
other: HR/Flyball plummeted in 2008-- probably unsustainably low and his ERA should rise; still rumors of him tipping pitches explain the HR/Flyball spike in 2006 & 2007

Lidge vs Padres:

Eckstein: 2/8, 2 BB, 1 K, 1 HBP
Giles: 2/8, 1 3B, 2 BB, 0 K
A.Gonzalez: 2/6, 1 2B, 1 BB, 2 K
Kouzmanoff: 3/5, 2 HR, 0 BB, 0 K
Headley: 1/3, 1 BB, 2 K
Blanco: 1/2, 1 HR, 0 BB, 0 K
Burke: 0/1, 1 BB, 1 K
Gerut: 1/1, 1 2B, 0 BB, 0 K
E.Gonzalez: 0/1, 0 BB, 1 K
Hairston: 0/1, 0 BB, 1 K
Hundley: 0/1, 0 BB, 1 K
Rodriguez: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K

Ryan Madson (R): 2.49 ERA, 2.8 BB/9, 10.0 K/9, 0.0 HR/9, 1.90 FIP, 42% GB

proj avg: 3.80 ERA, 2.9 BB/9, 7.2 K/9, 0.8 HR/9
gb: 48%
pitches: 58% fb, 24% ch, 15% ct, 4% cb
r/l: 3.65 vs 1.8 k/bb; .714 vs .786 ops
h/a: no major split at all

Madson vs Padres:

A.Gonzalez: 4/9, 1 2B, 0 BB, 1 K
Giles: 3/8, 2 2B, 0 BB, 0 K
Burke: 2/5, 0 BB, 1 K
Hairston: 3/5, 1 2B, 1 HR, 0 BB, 1 K
Eckstein: 0/3, 1 BB, 0 K
Blanco: 1/3, 1 2B, 0 BB, 0 K
Gerut: 1/2, 0 BB, 0 K
Headley: 1/2, 0 BB, 0 K
Hundley: 1/2, 0 BB, 0 K
Rodriguez: 0/1, 1 BB, 1 K
E.Gonzalez: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K

Scott Eyre (L): 3.09 ERA, 6.2 BB/9, 5.4 K/9, 1.5 HR/9, 6.50 FIP, 36% GB

proj avg: 4.20 ERA, 4.1 BB/9, 8.8 K/9, 0.9 HR/9
gb: 41%
pitches: 59% fb, 35% sl, 6% ch, 0.2% cb
r/l: 1.5 vs 1.9 k/bb; .815 vs .720 ops
h/a: not much of a split

Eyre vs Padres:

Giles: 3/16, 1 2B, 2 BB, 3 K, 1 SF
Eckstein: 3/7, 0 BB, 0 K, 1 SF
Burke: 1/2, 1 2B, 2 BB, 1 K
A.Gonzalez: 0/4, 0 BB, 1 K
Gerut: 0/3, 0 BB, 1 K
Hairston: 1/3, 1 HR, 0 BB, 1 K
Blanco: 0/1, 0 BB, 1 K

Jack Taschner (L): 3.92 ERA, 6.5 BB/9, 4.8 K/9, 0.9 HR/9, 5.82 FIP, 34% GB

proj avg: 4.50 ERA, 4.1 BB/9, 8.0 K/9, 1.0 HR/9
gb: 35%
pitches: 57% fb, 30% sl, 13% ch
r/l: 1.45 vs 2.2 k/bb; .754 vs .747-- large selection bias where he faces only very good lefties and not very good righties
h/a: .698 vs .797 ops; 2.1 vs 1.5 k/bb

Taschner vs Padres:

Giles: 3/17, 1 3B, 2 BB, 4 K
A.Gonzalez: 5/12, 1 2B, 2 HR, 2 BB (1 IBB), 3 K, 1 HBP
Hairston: 2/4, 1 2B, 1 HR, 0 BB, 0 K
Kouzmanoff: 0/2, 0 BB, 0 K
Rodriguez: 0/2, 0 BB, 1 K
Eckstein: 1/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Gerut: 1/1, 0 BB, 0 K
E.Gonzalez: 0/1, 0 BB, 1 K

Chad Durbin (R): 4.50 ERA, 5.2 BB/9, 8.0 K/9, 1.0 HR/9, 5.08 FIP, 34% GB

proj avg: 4.10 ERA, 3.5 BB/9, 6.5 K/9, 1.0 HR/9
gb: 41%
pitches: 47% fb, 38% sl, 8% ch, 7% cb, 1% ct
r/l: virtually no split
h/a: somewhat of a reverse split but probably just noise

Durbin vs Padres:

Eckstein: 1/11, 0 BB, 0 K
Giles: 1/4, 0 BB, 1 K
Blanco: 0/3, 0 BB, 0 K
A.Gonzalez: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Hairston: 1/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Hundley: 0/1, 0 BB, 1 K
Kouzmanoff: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K

Clay Condrey (R): 2.20 ERA, 2.8 B/9, 6.3 K/9, 1.3 HR/9, 4.52 FIP, 53% GB

proj avg: 4.50 ERA, 2.8 BB/9, 4.9 K/9, 0.8 HR/9
gb: 50%
pitches: 59% fb, 17% ct, 15% sl, 9% ch
r/l: 2.1 vs 1.3 k/bb; .761 vs .842 ops
h/a: .703 vs .898 ops; 2.2 vs 1.3 k/bb

Condrey vs Padres:

Burke: 0/3, 0 BB, 1 K
Hairston: 1/3, 0 BB, 0 K
Eckstein: 2/2, 0 BB, 0 K
Gerut: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Giles: 1/1, 1 2B, 0 BB, 0 K
A.Gonzalez: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
E.Gonzalez: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Headley: 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Hundley: 0/1, 0 BB, 1 K
Kouzmanoff: 1/1, 0 BB, 0 K

Chan Ho Park (R): 6.57 ERA, 4.7 BB/9, 6.3 K/9, 1.2 HR/9, 5.25 FIP, 43% GB

proj avg: 4.50 ERA, 3.5 BB/9, 7.3 K/9, 1.2 HR/9
gb: 45%
pitches: 51% FB, 29% SL, 12% cb, 5% ch, 4% ct
r/l: .666 vs .820 ops; 2.6 vs 1.3 k/bb; .280 vs .301 babip; 2.6% vs 3.6% HR rate-- much better against righties
h/a: 2.0 vs 1.7 k/bb; .708 vs .780 ops

Park vs Padres:

Eckstein: 7/23, 2 2B, 4 BB, 0 K, 1 HBP
Giles: 7/19, 4 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 1 BB, 1 K
Blanco: 0/11, 2 BB (1 IBB), 4 K, 1 HBP
Gerut: 2/7, 0 BB, 1 K
Burke: 0/4, 0 BB, 2 K, 1 Sac
Kouzmanoff: 2/5, 0 BB, 2 K
A.Gonzalez: 2/4, 1 HR, 0 BB, 0 K
E.Gonzalez: 2/4, 1 HR, 0 BB, 0 K
Headley: 0/3, 0 BB, 0 K
Hundley: 1/3, 0 BB, 0 K
Hairston: 0/2, 0 BB, 0 K
Rodriguez: 0/2, 0 BB, 0 K

SUSPENDED UNTIL WEDNESDAY: J.C. Romero (L)

proj avg: 4.00 ERA, 5.5 BB?9, 7.5 K/9, 0.7 HR/9
gb: 55%
pitches: 58% fb, 25% sl, 17% ch, 0.1% cb
r/l: 1.2 vs 2.2 k/bb; .814 vs. 591 ops
h/a: 1.6 vs 1.3 k/bb; .697 vs .768 ops

Romero vs Padres:

Giles: 1/8, 1 HR, 2 BB, 3 K
Gerut: 0/7, 2 BB, 3 K
A.Gonzalez: 0/4, 0 BB, 1 K
Eckstein: 0/3 0/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Kouzmanoff: 0/1, 0 BB, 1 K, 1 HBP
Blanco: 1/1, 0 BB, 0 K
Hairston: 0/1, 0 BB, 1 K

Chris Iannetta, dreamy as ever, leads Rockies past Padres, 9-6

Russ Oates — Tue, 05 May 2009 05:26:37 -0000

More photos » by Denis Poroy - AP

Chris Iannetta is dreamy as he hits tonight's grand slam.

Browse more photos »

So I was writing a tag for this story. It was "dreamy". There are three tags that already use "dreamy." One of them is "zack greinke is dreamy." But no "chris iannetta is dreamy"? Well, I took care of that. Chris Iannetta is more dreamy than Zack Greinke.

Anyway, Chris Iannetta put the Rockies ahead 9-6 on his seventh-inning grand slam off of Cla Meredith (who entered once the bases were loaded). That completely turned the game in favor of the Rockies.

via www.fangraphs.com

Chris Iannetta was clutch. That AB for Dreamy had a leverage index of 4.69. He came through when it counted the most, adding .387 to his .400 WPA for the game. Dude was dreamy and the bringer of doom this game. Troy Tulowitzki had an RBI double and a sac fly, while Todd Helton reached bases four times (two hits, two walks).

The pitching also turned in some solid performances tonight. The Padres were held to four hits, three off of Jorge De La Rosa. After De La Rosa left, Glendon Rusch, Matt Daley, Alan Embree, and Huston Street held the Padres to one hit over the last four innings.

The Rockies are now 10-14.

Thanks to Silverblood, Tom (RFTN), oo_nrb, The Lodo Magic Man, rockhead, WolfMarauder, pierzynskirules, Hizilla, holly96, Jester76, Poseidon's Fist, PioneerSkies, free7694, GoRoxGo, befizzle, RockiesMagicNumber, MohrPlease, Rox Girl, Sandlotkid8, Redhawk, OrangeTorpedo, dds_dave, nodakroxfan, Chrysicat, frightenedinmate#2, Rockie4Ever, ejskater, jimmyski, TehChamp, moomacher, Charlie77, fantasyfencing, AtkinsandTulofan, coolopotamous, arpagamos, Foxhole Atheist, PinchHitLancePainter, SC Memphis Raines, WalkInRight, chem, TuLoRocks2008, and Purp McGirt for the hilarity.