Friday vs. Dodgers: 3-2 Win (12 innings)
Saturday vs. Dodgers: 2-1 Win (10 innings)
Sunday vs. Dodgers: 1-7 Loss
Los Angeles Series Recap
Taking two of three from the Dodgers is no small accomplishment and it highlighted just how much potential this roster has. Los Angeles has the best rotation in baseball, yet the Padres matched them pitch-for-pitch for the majority of this series and proved that they have the ability to compete with anybody.
Andrew Cashner regained his early season form (six innings of one-run ball with eight strikeouts and no walks) and Ian Kennedy was near flawless (he allowed just four hits and one earned run in seven sharp innings), finally giving San Diego the dynamic duo atop their rotation that fans have been dreaming about since opening day. The Dodgers don't boast a patient offense, but they have plenty of talent, thus making the starting rotation's series ERA (Eric Stults also spun a quality outing) of 1.89 the big take away from this three-game set. As a team, the Padres may not be ready to compete in October, but the young starters have the ability to pitch at that level, and that's the first step in becoming a contender.
The downside to the Padres lack of offensive firepower is that every member of the pitching staff must be on his A-game in order to produce a victory. The 'pen was dominant for the most part on Friday, yet one single pitch in six innings of work nearly cost them a victory. As a unit, they combined to pitch six strong innings, but the game went into extra innings because Dale Thayer made one bad pitch to Hanley Ramirez and allowed him to tie the game in the eighth inning. That being said, the relievers rebounded nicely and combined with Cashner for an impressive 5:1 strikeout to walk ratio in an extra innings victory. The very next night was more of the same, but this time without the one mistake. They scattered four base runners over three innings, but never gave up a hard hit ball and seemed in control throughout.
Things took a turn for the worse on Sunday, but over the course of a 162 game schedule, that is going to happen from time to time. The fact that three pitchers couldn't retire batters with any sort of consistency (three innings, seven hits, five earned runs, and three walks) doesn't concern me long term, although it did waste a nice effort from Stults and eliminated any chance of a sweep.
San Diego was able to avoid Clayton Kershaw this time around, but the bats were still very quiet against the Dodgers 2-3-4 starters (1.29 ERA and 0.76 WHIP). It wasn't a pretty offensive effort, as the Padres failed to record an extra base hit on Friday, relied on their pitcher to produce a run on Saturday, and managed just four knocks on Sunday. But two wins are two wins. Yasmnai Grandal (seven pitch at-bat with two outs) and Alexi Amarista (capitalizing on Will Venable's eighth stolen base of the season) delivered the walk-off hits, again proving that if the Padres can learn to manufacture runs instead of play for the three-run homer, they may have a chance at a winning record in 2015.
For better or for worse, San Diego appears content to play at the level of their opposition, not a trend of a consistently successful team, but against the Dodgers, not a bad thing.
Monday vs Diamondbacks: 3-1 Win
Tuesday vs Diamondbacks: 2-1 Win
Wednesday vs Diamondbacks: 1-6 Loss
Arizona Series Recap
This type of series is exactly why I think the Padres can make the playoffs sooner rather than later. Sure, it was against the Diamondbacks, but the starting pitching is that good and is right on par, if not ahead, of many playoff bound teams. A truly competitive team has a well-rounded roster, and while San Diego doesn't have that, their ability to keep games close is something that many losing teams lack the ability to do.
The offense hit .120 with runners in scoring position in this three-game set, yet the Padres were a defensive melt down in the fifth inning from having a good shot at a sweep. Their two victories came on the back of Cory Spangenberg, a 23-year-old middle infielder who made his professional debut on Monday. He delivered a big two run single in his first game and then connected with a walk-off home run for his encore performance on Tuesday, quite the start to a big league career. But that's my point ... that's all it takes for this team to win games. San Diego isn't loaded with offensive talent, but they don't need a Miguel Cabrera to hit .330 with 40 bombs, they just need occasional timely hitting, as the pitching staff is going to keep them within shouting distance more often than not.
The top of the order did their part against the D-Backs, but the bottom half struggled. On Monday, four of the top five hitters reached base multiple times and on Wednesday, all five San Diego hits came from the 1-3 hitters, yet the Padres totaled a measly six runs in these 27 innings. I'm not asking for much, give me a league average .252 batting average (currently hitting .226) and I think this is a playoff team, no?
As mentioned, and at this point assumed, the starters were nothing short of phenomenal. All-Star Tyson Ross, Odrisamer Despaigne, and Andrew Cashner tied the Arizona hitters in knots, holding them to just four earned runs and 15 hits in 20 innings. They displayed remarkable control, striking out 17 while walking just three, with the only real offensive "success" coming when the Padres defense was throwing the ball all over the infield on Wednesday night. In the victories, the 'pen was even better than the starters. Relievers totaled five shutout innings in the first two games, allowing just one hit, striking out six, and earning a victory. I know the Diamondbacks are an 81 loss team, but there is no denying that at least part of the long term puzzle in San Diego is in place.
Weekly Grade: B
Winning four of six games, and allowing two or fewer runs in all four, is a nice accomplishment for a team that has "nothing to play for." If you told me that I had to build a winner from scratch, I'd start with high upside young pitching, and that is exactly what this team has. They aren't going to ever load the All-Star team with players or put up gaudy Fantasy numbers, but with a little more maturity and experience, this team is going to compete. In a long 162 game season, the ability to minimize losing streaks is key, and I truly believe that this pitching staff can do that at an elite level. No advanced metric indicates that this season has been a fluke from a pitching standpoint, giving me optimism moving forward. Hey, the Mariners are making a playoff push, why can't we next season?
The Padres wrap-up a 10-game home stand with the series finale against the D-Backs Thursday night and then head to Coors Field for a three-game weekend series. Then they travel to Los Angeles to face the elite pitching of the Dodgers for the final time in 2014.
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