Kouz Pumps Up Pads

Kevin Kouzmanoff cashed in a very strong Greg Maddux outing in the bottom of the eighth inning, with a go ahead sacrifice fly to plate Brian Giles. Trevor Hoffman would strike out three in the ninth to save the 2-1 win, ending the Cubbies 9 game winning streak (the longest in MLB for 2008). Maddux allowed just 3 hits over 7 innings, with Heath Bell tacking on a scoreless eighth inning to notch the win. Scotty Hairston flexed his muscle to lead off the game for the Friars, knocking home run number 8 on the season. The Frairs would squander men in scoring position with zero or one out in the sixth and seventh before Giles led off the eighth frame with an opposite field double. Giles then took third on a relatively shallow fly to left center, taking advantage of Alfonso Soriano's weak arm. This heady base running would prove to be the difference in the game, as Kouzmanoff launched a fly ball to deep center, allowing Giles to easily beat former Friar Jim Edmonds' throw to the plate.

Edmonds To Cubies?

It appears that the career of Jim Edmonds will not end in a Padres uniform as the Chicago Cubs are considering signing Edmonds to split time in center field. If the Cubs should sign Edmonds it would be at the expense of Felix Pie's roster spot. This would mark a huge drop in the value of Pie, as he has been a highly touted prospect for Chicago. FF has no ill will towards Edmonds, however we are surprised that a contending team is willing to give his heavy legs and slowing bat a roster spot.

The Padres have been long rumored to have an interest in Pie, as he brings speed to both the base paths and defense in their roomy center field.

Edmonds Jettisoned

Jim Edmonds has been jettisoned from the Friars, marking the first of will likely be many moved intended to right a listing ship. The Padres front office had hoped that Edmonds would be a stop gap in center field for the 2008 season, so much so they agreed to take on his $6M salary, which they must now eat. In 103 plate appearances, Edmonds managed an on base percentage of just .265, lower than several teammate's batting average. His shoddy play in center proved a major liability for a team relying on its pitching to keep games close. In particular, his tendency to drift after catchable balls rather than rely on sound fundamental outfielding led to several catchable balls falling in for extra bases.

Replacing Edmonds will be Jody Gerut, who broke the season with the big club before being sent down to make room for Edmonds, who was coming off the disabled list. At eight years younger than Edmonds, Gerut offers a fresh set of legs (even though he is rebounding from knee surgery himself). He has posted a .952 OPS at AAA Portland with 4 stolen bases in 5 attempts, while mostly manning right field, with a few games in center under his belt. It is unclear how Bud Black intends to leverage Gerut, but one would have to assume that center or left field will become his position to lose.

Peavy Paces Padre Victory

Jake Peavy was the stopper for San Diego, despite allowing a two run homer in the first to put the Padres down by 1. In recent weeks, this would have been enough to sink the Friars, but Peavy buckled down and the offensive showed signs of life on the way to defeating the Fish Saturday evening at Dolphin Stadium 7-2. The 2, 3, 4 and 5 hitters, Tadihito Iguchi, Adrian Gonzalez, Kevin Kouzmanoff and Jim Edmonds, respectively, all managed at least two hits to lead the barrage. To cap off the scoring, Gonzalez notched his third hit with an opposite field bomb (putting him on pace for 35 on the season). Every position player had a hit on the evening; this includes Callix Crabbe, who came in for Khalil Greene in the 7th to play shortstop. Greene's injury has is reported by Padres.com to be an irritated left eye, with no word on when he is likely to return to the lineup.

Peavy went 5 2/3 innings with 8 punchouts, but should have completed 6 if not for a missed strike three call by the home plate umpire on a back door slider. Cla Meredith and Heath Bell were brought and performed inline with traditional bullpen expectations. Bud Black finally found an comfortable inning for Joe Thatcher to work out the kinks in the ninth. After appearing a bit erratic, the now cut-fastball avoiding sidewinding southpaw, induced a double play and slick play from Kouz to end the game.

Crabbe Slick at Short
Crabbe did his best Khalil impression in the ninth with a nifty turn to complete a double play on the a feed from Iguchi. Earlier, Edmonds was easily tossed a second base on an apparent missed run and hit with Crabbe at the plate.

Marlins Announcing Crew
These guys don't call the best game in the league, but FF gives them credit for being one of the few opposing duos that call it fair enough that we don't have to break out the mute button.

Crasnick Pegs Pads Perfectly

Jerry Crasnick's column today on the Padres hits the nail on the head; the Padres can't hit - regardless of venue. He quotes Bud Black as saying,

"In any given lineup, when things are going well and you're scoring runs and the offense is clicking, you might have five, six or seven guys really swinging the bat well... When things are going along as normal -- win a couple of games, lose a couple -- you have three or four guys in the lineup swinging well. What we have going now, on a given night, is maybe one or two guys swinging well.

I think we're going to get out of it, and we'll reach the level of what our guys have done in their careers. Over the course of six months, it's never smooth sailing. But this storm has hit early and it's hit hard."

Of course the real question here is how much career norms will help. FF (unfortunately) sees it as something like this:

1. Brian Giles - Good for 30 doubles, .400 OBP, and 60 pop outs short of third base
2. Tad Iguchi - A solid hitter likely to match his career average of about .274
3. Adrian Gonzalez - Solid #3 hitter on most clubs
4. Kevin Kouzmanoff - Should quietly hit about .300 with 35 doubles, but not a classic 4 hitter
5. Jim Edmonds - This season's Vinny Castilla - great clubhouse guy, but it's likely the end of the road
6. Khalil Green - Will hit .250 with about 25 bombs, but it on fire or not
7. Josh Bard - Seems gassed already, but should fight back to about .280
8. Scott Hairston - The reason he hasn't been a regular has become apparent

Not exactly a fear inducing lineup. We honestly like Jake Peavy's at bats more than many of the team's fielders. We'd love to be wrong about this and hope the Friars catch on fire, but two thirds of the outfield doesn't seem likely to play at an average pace as the season continues, putting the club at a severe disadvantage.

Friars Claim MLB Basement

The Padres lost yet again, staking the claim to Major League Baseball's worst record at 11-19. Such a statement isn't exactly the way I had hoped to welcome my son to world and world of Friar fan-hood. Then again, this is perhaps the proper introduction to San Diego sports, as we have all had to learn how expect the worst to stay sane. But I digress - back to more of the same for this season of discontent. Justin Germano continued his streak of poor outings, allowing 5 earned runs in 5 2/3 innings of work. Most of the damage came by way of the long ball. The Marlins managed 3 bombs, accounting for 5 of the 6 overall runs the plated. Kevin Cameron (3.72 ERA in 8 outings) and Wil Ledezma (1.08 ERA in 16+ innings) both posted perfect relief outings and should be considered by Bud Black for promotions in the bullpen's world order. Offensively, the Padres collected just 7 hits across 4 batters; Kevin Kouzmanoff did his best T. Gwynn impression with a 4-4 nights, including one double. Khalil Greene finally belted his first home run to give the Friars half of their runs in the 6-4 loss at Dolphin Stadium on Friday night. Colt Morton spelled Josh Bard, but has yet to claim his first knock of the season.

Mendoza Line Watch
The following players are currently at or approaching the infamous Mendoza Line, with nearly 1/5 of the season gone:

• Paul McAnulty - .222


• Khalil Greene - .217


• Josh Bard - .209


• Tony Clark - .208


• Justin Huber - .200


• Scott Hairston - .198


• Callix Crabbe - .160


• Jim Edmonds - .160


• Colt Morton - .000

Germano Shelled

Justin Germano entered the evening as one of the top five pitchers in National League ERA. After allowing 4 runs on 9 pitches, and 10 in 3.1 innings, he took a big loss Monday night at Minute Maid Park with former President George Herbert Walker Bush and his wife Bar in attendance. Wil Ledezma pitched an out shy of 4 scoreless innings in relief before giving way to Kevin Cameron, who tossed a perfect 8th. Padre hitting was good - for the Padres. 6 of 8 knocks went for extra bases while both Jim Edmonds and Adrian Gonzalez reached the Minute Maid porch for bases empty, opposite field bombs. Unfortunately, the Friars seem to be making a habit of losing big or wining tight. The combination of Minute Maid's friendly conditions and Jake Peavy's pitching will hopefully bring positive results Tuesday night.

Iguchi Occupies Eight Hole
Tad Iguchi has been mired in a deep slump and was dropped by manager Bud Black into the eighth spot in the order Monday. He responded with a single and a walk in 4 trips to the plate.

Flashing Some Leather
Both Brian Giles and Gonzalez made nifty catches in right field. Gonzalez went Willie Mays on ball down the line that was looking like an extra base bloop before he reached out to snag the out. Giles made a nice sliding catch of a Geoff Blum liner as well.

Bard is Back
Josh Bard threw out another runner, pushing his season rate for retiring would-be base thieves to 21%. This is significantly better the 8% mark he posted in 2007 and is especially impressive given the amount of work he's been receiving of late, which is bound to take its toll as the games add up.

Diamondbacks Crush Padres; They Only Needed 1 Inning To Do It

Perhaps suffering from a 22 inning hangover the Padres never had a chance in their Friday night contest in the Arizona desert, falling to the DBacks 9-0. Greg Maddux entered the game searching for his 350th victory and was greeted with a 34 pitch, 6 hit, 6 run inning. The sure fire HOFer seemed to miss on location through the rough first as every ball was scolded by the home team. In the inning, Jim Edmonds missed a cut off man and took questionable angles on 2 balls in the gap. FF has seen it through the early part of the season and Diamondback color man (SDSU Alum) Mark Grace stated very matter of factly that Edmonds makes those plays 5 years ago...this is not 5 years ago. The way the Friars are swinging thus far in 2008, 2 run leads seem insurmountable ~ a 6 run deficit seems like they should pack it in for the night.

In the bottom of the 6th inning Edmonds strikes again playing a ball hit to the track off his glove into a triple for Connor Jackson ~ Jackson who was just a double shy of the cycle bypassed the double for his second triple of the night. FF's patience with Edmonds bad routes and lack of speed is running very thin.

First:
Callix Crabbe and Colt Morton each made their first MLB starts on Friday.

Tip My Cap:
Although Maddux got shelled in the first inning, he tossed 7 innings of gutty baseball. Maddux knew that the Padres bullpen was paper thin, and his professionalism in a lost cause game was nothing short of admirable.

Getting Old, Really Old:
The Friars managed just 3 hits a night after scoring 1 run in 22 innings ~ exciting team to watch right now, thrilling really.

Randy Rocks Rox

San Diego southpaw starter, Randy Wolf, was brilliant in his 3rd start as a Friar. Wolf dominated a struggling Colorado lineup for 7 innings of one hit 9 strike out ball en route to his first Padres victory. The Friars bats were making double time in the 5th as Brian Giles, Kevin Kouzmanoff, and Jim Edmonds all delivered 2 run two baggers in the 6 run frame that accounted for all the games runs. Newly reinstated Kevin Cameron recorded the final six outs surrendering a harmless single in the 9th.

San Diego Short Hops:

The Padres 6-0 victory Tuesday night at Petco Park comes on the heals of a 1-0 shutout on Sunday, proving that its hard to lose when your pitching is ridiculously sharp.

Scott Hairston seems due a day off as his average is dropping while his poor at bats are accumulating, with back to back lefties to close out the Colorado series FF expects to see Justin Huber get at least 1 start in place of the Pads starting LF.

Josh Bard seemed to switch the bat he had been using (a light Ash to a darker stick) after he broke enough bats over the weekend in LA to raise a red flag in Boulder or Berkley

Through 14 games not a single starting infielder has received a day off, with Callix Crabbe the only reserve at second, short, and third FF expects to see Crabbe get a couple of spot starts for Tad Iguhci and Khalil Greene over the next 10 or so ballgames.

Speaking of Callix Crabbe, he joined teammates Scott Hairston and Tony Clark in wearing #42 in honor of Jackie Robinson breaking MLB's color barrier on this date in 1947.

Padres Pick Up Series By One

The Friars squeezed by the Dodgers 1-0 on a hot but smog-less Sunday afternoon game at Chavez Ravine to win the weekend series two games to one. Greg Maddux left the 95 degree heat after tossing 67 pitches over 5 innings of two hit ball, striking out a pair against a single walk. The heart of bullpen performed as you'd expect on paper, tossing four zeros on the board across Joe Thatcher, Cla Meredith, Heath Bell and Trevor Hoffman, respectively. The Padres lone run came on a moderately deep fly ball on a high change piece in the forth to Paul McAnulty, who again spelled Brian Giles. For the second consecutive game the Friars lone run was the result of a rare extra base hit. After Jim Edmonds walked to lead off the inning, shortstop Khalil Greene doubled Edmonds to third, where McAnulty would later convert him. This was the lone extra base knock for Bud Black's club.

Bell's Velocity Remains a Concern
As has been mentioned over the course of the season, Bell is regularly around 90 mph this in 2008 after typically hitting mid-to-high 90s in 2007. So far Bell is getting the job done with his less electric stuff, posting a 1.04 ERA over 8.2 innings, but he's notched just two strikeouts in the young season. FF is a big fan of Bell's, but we are concerned about how the decreased velocity bodes for his future health. We've many times noted the front office's love affair with relievers that post high strikeout to walk ratios. Last year, Bell put up nearly 10 K/BB while logging an out short of 94 innings over 81 outing, so it is unclear how the dichotomy between his reduced stuff and results will settle with the club in the long run.

Young Quality Start Streak Ends

Yesterday, FF blogged about how the Padres were struggling to hit anything but singles. Facing Padre nemesis Derek Lowe, we didn't have real high expectation that Saturday would be provide the breakthrough the team needed. But Scotty Hairston, batting lead off in place of a resting Brian Giles, started the game on in style with a triple down the right field line at Dodger Stadium. Adrian Gonzalez followed up with a double that he, Vin Scully, Andre Ethier, and FF thought was gone. At the bottom of the first, the Friars looked nstrong and had already accounted from more extra base hits than they had average per game for the season (2 versus 1.8). With Chris Young taking the hill, the euphoria of fast start quickly faded with Young command noticeably off. He was raked for just two runs in the first inning, but the hit hard along the way. From that poit on, Lowe settled into his normal role as Padre punisher and the Dodgers warmed up their bat to force Young out of the game in the top of the 4th with nobody out and 7 runs on his line in the box score (6 earned as Young booted a come backer). The Padre offense would scratch out just two more hits, both singles, on the way to an 11-1 drubbing. Wil Ledezma and Glendon Rusch were tagged with 3 and 1 runs in as many innings, respectively.

PMac in Right Field
After grumblings about his shotty fielding skills in left last spring, Paul McAnulty got the start in right field. Both he and center fielder Jim Edmonds were burned on balls over their heads. Giles will be out of action on Sunday, as he gets extra rest in front of Monday's day off.

Barrett At Least Two Weeks Away
Vin Scully announced that Michael Barrett is at least two weeks away from being back from the DL, giving Colt Morton extra time with the big club. Morton spelled Josh Bard after the game got away from the Friars.

Quality Start Streak Ends
Effectively spanning the first 11 games of the season, the Friars' quality start steak ended with the loss against the Dodgers. It was also marked the first time this season that a starter was hung with a loss.

Peavy Domination Tour Hits Stride - Completely

Jake Peavy did what Padres fans like best - totally, utterly and unapologetically beat LA to a pulp, 4-1. The 2007 Cy Young Award winner lead the Friars over the hated Dodgers with a complete game performance. He fanned eight against just two hits and a single walk. The free pass came in the 9th inning, but was quickly erased with a tailor made double play. The game was decided early when the Friars jumped on Dodger starter Brad Penny for 4 runs on 5 singles in the bottom of the first. The dominant story of the game is quite completely told by the following FanGraph:

Graph from FanGraphs.com

Jim Edmonds returned the to lineup and looked a little out of practice on a couple of plays to left center resulting in a triple and double, respectively. To make room on the roster, Jody Gerut was sent to Portland, as expected given that he is optionable and Paul McAnulty is not.

ChAAAse HeAAAdley

It would appear that Padres top prospect, Chase Headley, will start the season in AAA Portland. The move will allow Headley to continue to learn his new position by logging as many innings as possible in left field. The switch hitter has proved himself to be MLB ready but finds himself in a log jam in the Padres outfield picture.

As FF has previously noted, Jody Gerut has not only played himself onto the opening day roster, but he is penciled in as the starter in left. Scott Hairston is expected to fill the shoes of Jim Edmonds in CF until the balky calf of Edmonds properly heals. With the extra spot for an outfielder (assuming Edmonds begins the season on the DL) the Padres are expected to break camp with Paul McAnulty for the 2nd consecutive year. PMac is out of options and can flat out swing the bat. Brian Giles continues to improve from his offseason micro fracture surgery and will start his final season in a Padres uniform in right (KT holds an option for 2009). Bud Black is expected to give the veteran more days off during the long 162 game schedule, and this year it appears that he will have the bodies to fill the spot (no Sledge types on this roster). The Padres will shock FF if they leave Arizona without Callix Crabbe, the speedy and versatile Rule V draftee who has had a great spring and can play both infield and outfield positions.

As the the sand begins to settle on another March in the desert, it appears the Friars roster is coming together and at this point it will not include their stud prospect Headley. The Padres will see him at some point this season roaming the Petco Park outfield, and his tenure as a full time starter is, at most, a season away (with the likely departure of the second Giles in 2 years). The larger question at this point circles around the health of Jim Edmonds, and what to do with the pure hitting Paul McAnulty when Edmonds is healthy.

FF wouldn't be surprised to see the Padres deal McAnulty to an American League team, simply because they do not have a position for him. With the Pads and Peoria Sports Complex roommate, Seattle Mariners, discussing a possible deal for CF Jeremy Reed, it is possible to see PMac in Peoria again next season; this time in the Mariners clubhouse.

Gerut a Go?

FoxSports.com's Ken Rosenthal is reporting that Jody Gerut is likely to get the starting nod in left field in the likely event that Jim Edmonds not be available on Opening Day. Additionally, the article suggests that Gerut may be platooning with Scott Hairston should Edmonds be return to the lineup. Rosenthal goes on to link Seattle Mariner Jeremy Reed as a candidate to roam Petco's spacious center field, if needed.

This would mean that Chase Headley is headed to Portland to hone his defensive skills in left field, despite doing as much as anyone could possibly expect to push his bat into the lineup. The cautious road is probably the best bet for Chase. One has to wonder if Bud Black would be as tolerant of a Klesko-esque left fielder (could Headley even be that bad?) as he was of Kevin Koozmanoff's cold start at the plate in 2007. The Moneyball approach says yes, but Black may say no.

Trade Front And Center For Padres

The Padres couldn't or wouldn't come to an agreement to retain their free agent center fielder Mike Cameron this offseason and instead turned the position over to former All Star and Gold Glove winner Jim Edmonds, who was acquired in a trade with the Cards. Immediately following this trade, questions regarding the age and health of the Friars CF (Edmonds) and RF(Brian Giles) accompanied the questions about the lack of a starting left fielder. Through the first week of Cactus League play the Padres Edmonds and Giles have combined for 1 base hit, granted Brian Giles has yet to lace up his spikes due to his recovery from offseason knee surgery ~ but then again, that in itself is a problem. Edmonds is now on the shelf for 2-3 weeks due to a calf strain he suffered while in the batters box in a game this week.

The only left field clarification to date is that Jody Gerut , Chase Headley, and even Paul McAnulty have all proved that they can hit enough to compete for playing time with incumbent Scott Hairston, who himself has never been an everyday major league starter. So, lets toss in the huge hole in center created by Edmonds' calf muscle and the Padres have a tough situation with few in house fixes.

On Friday Kevin Towers reported that he had talked with the Boston Red Sox regarding Coco Crisp, it is suspected that the Sox would want top prospects Chase Headley or Matt Antonelli ~ and the Pads are not giving those 2 away for almost anyone at this point. So, may the Friars see yet another aging player passed their prime sporting the sand and navy in FA Kenny Lofton? Or would the Pads give up top talent to bring Tony Gywnn, Jr. back home from the Brewers? Something will have to happen, because the season is drawing ever closer and the Pads outfield is getting older each inning that passes.

Look for the Pads to also speak to the Angels, who have too many bodies in their outfield - some who are out of minor league options. FF believes (or wants to believe) that the Friars will find a way to get younger, healthier, and faster in the outfield prior to the March 31st opener.

Aged Outfield Doubts Spring Forward

Frair fans have feared that 2008 would require the bulk of the outfield to maintain a RICE diet. While news that CF Jim Edmonds has only suffered a calf strain (likely to sideline him for 2-3 weeks), an injury at this early date of season is a harbinger of things to come. The other senior member of the outfield, right fielder Brian Giles, has yet to participate in a game and is now slotted to get his first action as a designated hitter in March 15. The additive nature of these reports doesn't bode well for the opening day lineup. On the plus side, these injuries should provide an extra-long look at Chase Headley and Jody Gerut, among others. General Manager Kevin Towers will have plenty of information upon which to act or hold tight within a couple of weeks...

A calf strain is defined by Wikipedia as:

A torn calf muscle happens when the calf muscle is pulled apart from the Achilles tendon. Severe pain is felt by the victim – you may think you've just been hit in the leg and hear a "pop." Sudden pain is felt around the leg.

This injury happens during acceleration or changes in direction. The torn calf muscle may spasm, and contract forcefully. The toes will point down. Bruises can show up in the leg, foot and ankle due to pooling of blood from internal bleeding. It may take some time for the bruises to occur, from hours to days depending upon where the tear occurred. The circumference of the leg will most certainly increase.

This injury may take several months to heal. Its important not to continue the exercise if muscle is torn as internal bleeding is taking place. See a doctor immediately after muscle is torn to get you on a rehabilitation routine.

Edmonds Leaves Game With Leg Injury

That sound you hear is the San Diego Padres front office holding their collective breathes. Newly acquired, and well seasoned Jim Edmonds was taken out of the Padres 10-3 win over the reigning NL champion Colorado Rockies. The 37 year old center fielder is disappointed and stated that his calf felt very tight.

It would be nice if FF could say that this wasn't expected, I, for one had accepted my chilled glass of Kool Aid and was gulping it down when hearing of Edmonds' feverish off season workouts led by a SWAT officer. The ex-Cardinal center fielder was said to be in great shape and prime for a career renaissance. The scariest part is - the reason the Friars brought Edmonds in was because there were no in house solutions to the vast grounds at Petco. If, in fact, this injury is a sign of more to come from the experienced legs of Edmonds and right fielder, Brian Giles, then the Padres might be in for a very long season.

Jump The Gun

This calf injury will most likely prove to be nothing more than a strain, however, if it leads to a long absence of a CF where would the Friars turn? FF sees few (neither solid) options already in the Peoria clubhouse being Scott Hairston, and Callix Crabbe. Neither has logged many innings in center and let us not forget where the Pads play 81 of their games...Players available in the trade market or free agency are either old or expensive ~ a few examples would be the 40 year old Kenny Lofton (who is still looking for a job, and playing for the Padres would, unofficially, be his 75th team), or the Dodgers Juan Pierre who signed a ridiculous contract last year and is expendable with LA's signing of Andruw Jones, and young Andre Ethier fighting for more AB's.

Hold your breath Padres fans, our outfield is huge and the legs roaming it are close to expiration!

Friar Offseason a B?

Sports Illustrated's Jon Heyman has graded the Padres' offseason maneuvering at a B level (above average!). Really? Of Kevin Tower's moves, Heyman says,

11. Padres. No one makes more worthwhile low-budget pickups than San Diego(Mark Prior, Randy Wolf, Tony Clark this winter). Maybe it's the lure of San Diego, I'm not sure. Jim Edmonds may have a resurgence back home in Southern California, too. But I still can't help but feel Barry Bonds could turn it into a dynamo. B

IF KT's low monetary bets on Prior and Wolf pay off, then this offseason will be at best above average. While FF likes these moves, the reality is that the bar has been raised by the competition the already hyper-competitive National League West. These moves may not expose the Padres to much payroll risk, but they certainly expose them to a tremendous amount of performance risk. Should either pitcher falter, KT will have to start from scratch.

Tony Clark is a good pickup for the clubhouse and to spell Adrian Gonzalez, but this a bit of reach in the above average classification. AJ Smith could argue that keeping a backup in Michael Turner was a major offseason move, but he didn't have have to plug six spots in the starting lineup (LF, CF, 2B, C, SP4, SP5). Speaking of these positions, LF remains wide open. FF likes Scott Hairston and would love to see Chase Headley emerge, but when the team can't anoint a green player as the presumptive starter, it's hard to argue the void is filled. Mike Cameron for Jim Edmonds is a wash in center at best. Tadahito Iguchi is clearly an upgrade over the 2007 2B platoon. FF continues to be be disturbed by apparently satisfaction with the unchanged backstops.

A quick sidebar for the national media: Get off the Padres-Barry Bonds obsession. You think that people freaked when Burger King stopped selling the Whopper? San Diego would embrace Al Davis before Barry Bonds.

Some positive things did happen over the offseason: Jake Peavy was signed to a contract extension, Greg Maddux was brought back, the Terrmel Sledge experiment ended, not to mention some potential pitching and bench depth was added. Guess FF must have forgotten when treading water became an above average effort. Either Milton Bradley or Kosuke Fukudome could have made the grade a B+ or better; a pre- or in-season move could still push the Friars to the next level, but FF thinks KT will stay the course until he has a better feel for Hairston and Headley.

Cameron Close To Joining Brewers

Former Padres CF, Mike Cameron, is near a deal with the Milwaukee Brewers. Cameron's arrival in Wisconsin would mean 2 starters would be switching positions, including 2007 ROY Ryan Braun from 3rd to LF while Bill Hall would slide into left after roaming CF last season. Mike Cameron, who will begin the '08 season serving a 25 game suspension after testing positive for a banned substance (2nd offensive brings about suspension), is being replaced by Jim Edmonds.

A Padres dreamer might want to think that by Milwaukee adding a CF in Cameron, Tony Gwynn Jr would become available via trade...whether that would actually be a good situation is another story...

Aging Edmonds Joins Club for Prospect

The Padres acquired Jim Edmonds from the Cardinals to take over Petco's spacious centerfield in exchange for minor leaguer David Freese. Edmonds waived his no trade clause to allow the deal, which brings him back to Southern California, where he has roamed center for the Angels from 1993 to 1999. Once considered an elite fielder, Edmonds has been slowed by injuries in recent campaigns. He last won a Gold Glove in 2005 and has eight to his credit in all. The loss of Cameron will put added pressure on Friar corner outfielders as Edmonds does not have the pure speed that Cameron displayed. At the plate, lefty Edmonds has batted just .160 at Petco Park over the last three seasons over 25 at bats. In comparison with Cameron, we can expect a similar, but slightly lower number of punch outs from Edmonds to go with significantly more walks. Cameron was likely the best baserunner from the 2007 club while Edmonds received the same rating, a minus-nine, from the 2007 Bill James Handbook as Padre backstop Michael Barrett. The same publication ranks Edmonds' range as a centerfielder just a hair below that of Cameron. All in all, it isn't the most exciting move, but it will be effective if Edmonds can stay relatively healthy. In fact, if he reaches 137 games, that will be the maximum that Cameron could have possibly played due to his drug test-related suspension. So something in the 120 game range will likely be a break even point between the two.