Saturday, April 28, 2012

Q&A w/ The Ish....in game blog....

Once again coming to you from San Francisco, where the Padres and Giants are playing the middle game of the three game series tonight.  


Not doing the radio broadcast tonight, so I've got some time to think about a number of topics, that may or may not have anything to do with baseball.   Ok, let's start, I'll bring up a question, then give you the answer in my opinion, and maybe the opinion of media relations guy, Josh Ishoo....since we don't always agree on things.  Ha!


All of the following answers will NOT include Petco Park in San Diego.

Who has the best press box coffee in the majors?


Andy:  I think that New York (NL) and Boston have the best coffee in the league.  It's Dunkin Donuts after all.  Hands down they have the best in the world!


Josh:  I think it's Seattle, they have real Starbucks coffee.   They have 3 different blends too, not to mention it's the coffee capital of the world.  


- Wow, I thought it was Colombia, where they grow all of the coffee?  


What is the most convenient road park to get to and from the hotel?


Andy: I'm going to say, Pittsburgh.  You can walk to and from the park with ease.  It's an under rated town and it's actually pretty cool walking across the bridges to get to PNC Park. 


Josh:  I agree, Pittsburgh.  It's actually quite scenic to walk there (PNC), it's nice.  


Which park plays the best music?


Andy:  I'm going to say, Wrigley Field.  Why?  Because it's mostly organ music, the way music was meant to be played at a game.  Full disclosure, I do know the organist there (Gary Pressey) and he's a great guy too.  Park without organ music, Pittsburgh.  Like the selection. 


Josh: San Francisco, good stuff. 


Best unique food place on the road?


Andy: Stage Deli, NYC.  Pricy, but a great sandwich, and they are open late night. 


Josh:  Primanti Brothers, Pittsburgh.  This place puts it's cole slaw and fries on the sandwich itself.  


Best baseball game ever witnessed in person, working or not?


Andy:  Game 163 in Denver, 2007.  I know the Padres didn't win the game, but with all the emotional highs and lows in that game, to this day it was the best game I've seen.  Honorable mention:  Cubs beating Atlanta in Game 5 of the NLDS in 2003.  Cubs first playoff series win since 1908. 


Josh: Padres beat the Giants in May 2010 on a Mat Latos one hitter.  Honorable mention:  The NLCS from 2011, covered those games for MLB. 


Ok, there's just a bit of what we talk about in the press box during a game, while we watch Major League Baseball on a daily basis.  We will do this again at a later date! 


Andy

Friday, April 27, 2012

Sitting with the Ish....

Greetings from AT&T Park in San Francisco, as I get back to some blogging for the first time in a while.  Today I'm hanging the "Ish", Josh Ishoo, from the Padres media relations staff.  More on that a little later.  


As many of you know, I filled in for Dick Enberg on three Padres telecasts on Fox Sports San Diego, so time was a bit short for the blog.  I appreciate all the great feedback from all of you via twitter and my public Facebook page.  I can't tell you how much it means to me.  The experience was great.  Working with Mark Grant was fantastic, and I look forward to doing it again.  When?  Well on the next homestand, I'll have the weekend series against the Miami Marlins, so those that can (I know, I know) I'd ask that you tune in again, or for the first time!  


I've had some questions asked of me, about my schedule and what I do when I'm not on the radio or tv broadcast.  Well, I still come to the games, but instead of going to the broadcast booth, I sit in the main pressbox to watch the game.  I find myself seeing how everybody else does their jobs.  I watch Corey Brock of MLB.com prepare his stories for the web, I watch the XX 1090 guys get ready for post game and the PR guys, prepare game notes and post game notes for all of us.  It's interesting to watch and learn, but I'd obviously rather be broadcasting a game every night. 


Tonight, I'm sitting with the Ish, in the front row of the pressbox at AT&T Park.  That's our view as we are about an hour from first pitch. 


Ish, helps me set up my pre game interviews and is a hard working young guy.  I've been around a lot of media relations folks, and the Padres have a top notch staff.  Along those lines, I was sad to see Warren Miller, the former director of the department, leave his post, for a different one within the Padres Baseball Operations Department.  He's been a mentor for Ish, Bret Picciolo and Shana Wilson, and a great friend of mine.  Glad he's still with the team, but sad that he won't be traveling and interacting everyday.  Good move for him and for that I'm happy. 


Lineup tonight...


RF - Will Venable
LF - Jesus Guzman (batting 2nd for the first time this year)
3B - Chase Headley
 C - Nick Hundley
1B - Yonder Alonso
2B - Orlando Hudson
CF - Cameron Maybin
SS - Andy Parrino
SP - Cory Luebke


Luebke enters this start with a 2-1 record and a 2.52 ERA.  Pitched a gem the last time out, going a career high 8 innings, surrendering just 2 hits, 2 walks and striking out 5.  He earned the win as the Padres beat the Phillies and Roy Halladay 5-1.  


News/Notes:


Here's you're what seems like daily update on Carlos Quentin.  The Padres outfielder took batting practice again today, and will get some work in the outfield.  New today is that he'll run the bases during BP.  Manager Bud Black stated that Quentin is "rapidly approaching a rehab assignment".  


Tim Stauffer is still scheduled to pitch Sunday at Lake Elsinore.  


Alright, that's it for now...have a good night!


Andy

Friday, April 20, 2012

Phils Phrustrate Padres at Petco...


Another frustrating night for the Padres against the Phillies last night at Petco Park, dropping a 2-0 decision.  It's the 12th straight win for Philadelphia at the home of the Padres, and it's now a 23-4 (.852) overall record for the Phils at Petco.  An amazing number.  

Joe Wieland pitched extremely well but his one walk, to the leadoff hitter, came back to haunt him in the loss.  

Today, San Diego native, Cole Hamels will face the hometown team.  He's had success against the Padres, going 6-2, with a 2.28 ERA in 11 career starts.  Over his last three starts against the Padres, he's been dealing, 3-0, 0.38 ERA allowing just 11 hits in 24 innings, and striking out 24 hitters.  

Edinson Volquez will make his fourth start of the season, and is still looking for his first win as a Padre.  He's 0-1, with a 4.24 ERA comes in off a no decision against the Dodgers his last time out.  

Lineup (XX1090, Leitner/Scanlan, 7pm)

RF - Chris Denorfia
CF - Cameron Maybin
3B - Chase Headley
LF - Jesus Guzman
 C - Nick Hundley
1B - Yonder Alonso
SS - Andy Parrino
2B - Orlando Hudson
SP - Edinson Volquez

Maybin has had the best success against Hamels, going 6 for 19 (.316) and 5 BB's.  

News/Notes:

- Logan Forsythe rejoined the team in San Diego today to get checked out by the team's medical staff.  He's six weeks out from surgery to remove the sesamoid bone in his left foot.  They will get him started on some baseball activities before he heads to Peoria for extended spring training.  He hit in the cage, took grounders and did some light running today.

- Tim Stauffer will throw a bullpen session tomorrow.  It will be the second one he's thrown since being on the DL.  If all goes well he'll throw 50-60 pitches in a simulated game here in San Diego Tuesday.  After that probably a minor league rehab assignment.  

- Carlos Quentin continues to progress from knee surgery.  He took BP on the field today and is picking up the intensity every day.  Still no official timetable on his return date.  

- Before the game tonight, Bud Black gathered the pitchers on the field and conducted pitcher fielding practice (aka PFP).  They were covering first, fielding bunts and throwing to bases as part of the drills.  These are things, regardless how a team is going, that managers will do every once in a while, just to keep things polished.  It's fun to watch and it's fun to see the guys bond over the experience.  

Me, myself and I

I'll be handling the play by play on radio the next two games, Saturday at 5:35 and Sunday at 1:05 against the Phillies.   Following the off day, I'll step in for Dick Enberg and do the television play by play with Mud Grant on Fox Sports San Diego, for the series against the Nationals.   I'm very excited to get this opportunity.  Please be gentle as I make my tv debut!  

Take care!

Andy

Thursday, April 19, 2012

Return to Petco...

After a late night flight from Denver, the Padres are back home and ready to open up the second homestand of the 2012 season.  Even after a 1-5 road trip, there were some positives to focus on...


- Chase Headley is turning it on offensively.  He's already homered as many times this year (4) as he did all of last season.  Headley is hitting .371 (13x35) with 4 homers and 11 rbi's over his last 10 games.


- Nick Hundley is hitting.  After an 0 for 21 start to the season, Hundley has 7 hits in his last 15 at bats (.467) including his first homer of the season in Denver. 


- The Padres bullpen ranks third in the majors and 1st in the NL with a 2.17 ERA. 


Obviously a 3-10 start to the season would indicate some negatives as well, such as leading the league in strikeouts, as Padres hitters have gone down on strikes 100 times. 


Tonight, the Philadelphia Phillies come in for their only visit this season.  Philadelphia has owned the Padres here at Petco winning 22 of the 26 meetings between the teams.  The Padres have lost 11 in a row to the Phillies here, their last win against the Phils, came on August 16, 2008.  The Padres have been swept in each of the last three seasons.


Lineup tonight (XX 1090, Leitner and Scanlan)
v. Vance Worley (first ever appearance v. SD)


LF - Will Venable
CF - Cameron Maybin
3B - Chase Headley
RF - Jeremy Hermida
1B - Yonder Alonso
 C - John Baker
SS - Jason Bartlett
2B - Orlando Hudson
SP - Joe Wieland


Wieland is making his second major league start.  He went 5 innings against the Dodgers, giving up 6 runs, on 3 homers.  He did settle in after the tough beginning, setting down 9 of the final 11 batters he faced, including the last 7 in a row.  


Notes and Bolts:


- You'll notice above that Cameron Maybin is not in the leadoff spot for the first time this season. Maybin has gotten off to a slow start, going 2 for 19 on the last road trip.  Bud Black put Maybin in the #2 slot tonight, to "give him a different look, a different perspective on the game and maybe free him up a bit".  


- Carlos Quentin took batting practice on the field today as scheduled.  He also did some outfield drills with Dave Roberts, and shagged during batting practice.  According to Black, Quentin is on schedule as far as the medical team is concerned.  The initial prognosis was 4-6 weeks and we are about a month out from surgery. 


- I talked to Dustin Moseley today in the video room.  He's been away from the ball club for a few days, still "trying to make sense of it all", concerning his shoulder injury.  Moseley still hasn't made a decision officially on whether or not to have surgery on the shoulder.  


Affordable fun:


According to the 2012 Fan Cost Index, the Padres have the most inexpensive average ticket ($15.67) in baseball. MLB average is $26.98.  The Padres are the 2nd most affordable team to see in baseball, a family of four averages spending around $150 when factoring in food, parking and tickets.  


Take care!


Andy



Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Happy Flight?

I know that other's have used the phrase before, but I credit Padres coach Glenn Hoffman with using it after a getaway day victory.  Hoping to hear him use it tonight, as the Padres face the Rockies in the rubber game of the three game set here in Denver.  


Last night it was all about the ageless wonder, Jamie Moyer.  He'll be honored in a brief ceremony before the game tonight, for becoming the oldest pitcher in MLB history to win a game, at age 49 years and 150 days old.   Pretty amazing stuff when you think about it.  


Tonight, it's Clayton Richard, against Juan Nicasio at Coors Field.  Richard comes is 1-3 lifetime against the Rockies, with a 5.05 ERA in 9 starts.  Nicasio has made two previous starts against the Padres, and is 1-0 with a 2.08 ERA.  He's also battling back from a neck injury suffered last year while taking a line drive off his head.  


Here's the lineup:


CF - Will Venable
RF - Chris Denorfia (4 for 4 last night)
3B - Chase Headley
LF - Jesus Guzman
1B - Yonder Alonso
 C - Nick Hundley
SS - Jason Bartlett
2B - Orlando Hudson
SP - Clayton Richard


News/Notes:


- Tim Stauffer's bullpen session was today, as opposed to yesterday, back in San Diego.  He plans to throw a side session under the watchful eye of pitching coach Darren Balsley either Friday or Saturday at Petco Park.  Still no timetable on when Stauffer will be going out on rehab. 


- Carlos Quentin took live BP at Petco Park today, and also did some light jogging.  He plans to take batting practice again tomorrow when the team returns home.  According to Bud Black, "Carlos is getting closer, but still no timetable on his return".  


- Logan Forsythe is in Peoria now, going through extended Spring Training.  He'll be there for a little while, then probably go on some minor league rehab assignments and is about 3 weeks away from game action.  


Upcoming match ups:
Here are the probable pitchers for the series with the Phillies starting tomorrow night....


THU 4/19  7:05pm     Joe Wieland (0-1, 10.80) v. Vance Worely (0-1, 3.75)
FRI   4/20  7:05pm     Edinson Volquez (0-1, 4.24) v. Cole Hamels (1-1, 3.65)
SAT  4/21  5:35pm    Cory Luebke (1-1, 3.71) v. Roy Halladay (3-0, 1.17)
SUN 4/22  1:05pm     Anthony Bass (0-2, 3.38) v. Joe Blanton (1-2, 4.26)


So the Padres miss Cliff Lee, but that's still a group of formidable pitchers to face.  Looks like the Padres will miss Stephen Strasburg in the Nationals series as well.  


Ok, almost time for baseball, have a good night!


Andy

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Rockies and the Rocking Chair...

By this time in a baseball players' career they likely aren't playing long toss in the outfield getting ready to take the mound in a big league game.  Jamie Moyer is.   The Padres will try to prevent him from achieving a piece of history. With a win, Moyer will become the oldest pitcher to ever record a victory.  Moyer as of today is 49 years, and 150 days old.  He's already the second oldest to ever start a major league game, behind Satchel Paige, who was 59 years old in a start for KC, September 25, 1965.

Moyer is 35th on baseball's all time win list, with 267, one behind Hall of Famer Jim Palmer.  He is 37th on baseball's all time strikeout list, with 2,410 and is 39th on the all time innings pitched list at 4,031 innings pitched.  

There are six players on the Padres roster, that were not born the day Moyer made his first ML start, June 16, 1986 against Steve Carlton and the Phillies at Wrigley Field.  Anthony Bass, Yonder Alonso, Andrew Cashner, Cameron Maybin, Josh Spence and Joe Wieland were all born after his initial start. 

Lineup tonight:

Cameron Maybin - CF
Mark Kotsay - LF
Chase Headley - 3B
Jesus Guzman - 1B
Nick Hundley - C
Chris Denorfia - RF
Andy Parrino - 2B
Jason Bartlett - SS
Anthony Bass - SP 

Kotsay came into the game with a .576 average against Moyer.  He hadn't seen him since 2006, but singled in his first at bat tonight. 

Have a good one....

Andy

Friday, April 13, 2012

It Never Rains in Southern California.......right....

Well, there's nothing more frustrating for a fan, a media member and a player (add coaches and managers to the list) than rain.  It creates a degree of uncertainty.  Will we get the game in?  Should the team use a starter and risk losing him to a delay?  Should we go to the game?  All fair questions.   


As I write, at 5:24pm PT, the rain is still falling heavily at Dodger Stadium, but the skies are starting to lighten up a bit.  The infamous "they" tells us we'll get the game in, let's hope so.  


Tonight, Clayton Richard is scheduled to start against former Padre, and now Dodger, Aaron Harang.   The Padres salvaged the final game of the opening series against Los Angeles against Harang, Sunday at Petco Park.  He gave up a two run homer to Matt Kemp, and that was pretty much the only blemish against him.  Richard has a career 5-1 record against the Dodgers with a 2.18 ERA in 8 starts.  Richard is 2-1 with a 2.70 ERA in 3 starts at Dodger Stadium. 


Padres Lineup: (Leitner/Scanlan XX1090, 7:05pm)




Among Padres hitters that have had some success against Harang, Jeremy Hermida leads the way, he's 7 for 15 with 2 homers and a double, which computes to a .467 batting average.  Cameron Maybin is 4 for 10 with a homer in his career against Harang.  


News/Notes:


Joe Wieland is with the club here in Los Angeles, ahead of his first big league start tomorrow.  Bud Black told us that it's one of his favorite things to do as a manager, to tell a kid he's coming up to the Majors for the first time.  Black told us yesterday how much the organization liked Wieland's make up and composure during spring.  Oh yeah, they liked his arm too.  He will start tomorrow's 6:10pm game. 


Mark Kotsay is here in Los Angeles as well.  We will know more about condition after the game. The Padres expect that he'll be ready when he is eligible to come off the DL on Monday.  


Weather:


As of about 20 minutes ago, this was the scene at Dodger Stadium...


The tarp is off the field, but the clouds have rolled in again and the skies are threatening again. Keep your fingers crossed. 


Andy

Thursday, April 12, 2012

A Chance to Take a Series...

With one swing of Chris Denorfia's bat, a 1-4 start, turned into a chance to take a series from a team many believe will repeat as division champs.  This is how quickly the fortunes of baseball can change.  Now please, don't misunderstand me, I'm not proclaiming this one game as the possible start of something huge, but you have to start somewhere right?  Confidence reigns supreme in this game built on failure (consider the best hitters fail 7 of every ten at bats).  Not that it's been lacking, but a positive result here and there against a good team and a quality pitcher can go a long way.  


Anthony Bass will make his first start of the season, and the 4th of his Major League career.  Last year in 3 starts, he was 1-0 with a 1.20 ERA.  All his starts lasted exactly 5 innings.  He'll take the spot previously occupied by Dustin Moseley.  



Ian Kennedy won 21 games a year ago for Arizona.  He finished fourth in the National League Cy Young Award voting last season and finished with a 2.88 ERA in 33 starts with 198 strikeouts in 222 innings. Kennedy has fared quite well against the Padres, he is 5-0, with a 2.01 ERA in his career against them, including 3-0 in 3 starts in 2011.  The Padres are hitting .117 (7-for-60) against Kennedy at Petco Park.


Lineup tonight: (Leitner and Scanlan, 7pm XX 1090)
                                                            (v. Kennedy)
CF - Cameron Maybin                        .333 (2x6)
RF - Will Venable                                .190 (4x21)
3B - Chase Headley                            .200 (2x10)
LF - Jesus Guzman                              .250 (1x4)
1B - Yonder Alonso         
 C - Nick Hundley                                 .308 (4x13)
2B - Orlando Hudson                           .143 (1x7, HR)
SS - Jason Bartlett                                .286 (4x14)
SP - Anthony Bass


Other news/notes:


* Bud Black made it official today, announcing that Joe Wieland will start for the Padres at Dodger Stadium Saturday.  It will be his major league debut.  Wieland impressed in the Spring despite an 0-2 record and a 5.83 ERA.  He made 3 starts and appeared in 5 games.  The organization loves his arm, and his delivery.  Wieland has four quality pitches and has command of them.  Black pointed out that he liked Wieland's composure on the mound and his ability to throw strikes. 


* Carlos Quentin is close to taking BP on the field.  He will not travel with the team to Los Angeles, instead will stay in San Diego and work some more.  He'll get treatment and take live hitting on the field while the team is gone. 


* Mark Kotsay had four at-bats with Lake Elsinore last night, and said he felt great.  The team will make a decision on whether or not he'll need more rehab or if he'll join the team.  Kotsay is eligible to come off the DL Monday.  


Rants:


Ok, I've had enough of the "inspirational quotes" on Twitter.  I don't know why, but they bug me. I get the intent, and thank you for trying to cheer me up, or make me work harder, or put more thought into things, it's sweet of you, but I'm good, ok?   So now I'm going to start giving you some of my "words to live by" from time to time...
"Remember, no matter where you go....there you are" 
I'll leave you with that....


Andy 

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Deno Delivers!

Sorry about the delay in posting today, something about working those day games and there's never enough time! 


Who was that bearded man?  It was Chris Denorfia! The man affectionately known as "Deno" certainly came through today with the biggest hit of the young season.  His two run homer in the bottom of the 8th made it a nice day for the home team in a 2-1 win over Arizona.  Denorfia will get the credit for the big blow and deservedly so, but me, I like to look past the obvious sometimes and here are my "helping hands" in today's win...


1. Cory Luebke.  Oh yes, he struggled in the first inning, throwing 43 pitches and walking in a run, but how about the rest of the day?  He shut down the Diamondbacks and saved the day by pitching into the 6th inning allowing Bud Black to use some match ups late.  


2. The bullpen.  Brad Brach, Joe Thatcher, Josh Spence, Ernesto Frieri and Huston Street combined to pitch 3.2 scoreless innings to keep the Padres in it.  Street went 1-2-3 in the 9th for his first Padres save. 


3. The Padded CF wall and Chris Young's glove.  When Denorfia's drive left his bat, I thought, uh oh, not sure he got it all, and as Young tracked the ball in the air, I thought, oh no, he's going to catch it.  None of that happened, as the perfect storm, the wall, the glove and the ball all arrived at the same time.  The wall stayed firm, the ball and glove wound up over it, and thus a victory! 


Hopefully Padres fans were able to exhale a little bit today after only 1 win in the previous 5 games.  


The series will wrap up tomorrow night at 7:05, as Anthony Bass will make his first start of the season, facing a 21 game winner last season, Ian Kennedy.    


Have a good night!


Andy

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Diamondbacks and off the Diamond...

Back to "work" after an off day and it started off a little busier than normal today.  First a conference call with John Moores, talking about his decision to sell the team for the second time in 3 years.  Second an update on pitcher Dustin Moseley who was placed on the disabled list before Sunday's series finale with the Dodgers. 


In the Moores situation, he's hired a couple of firms who specialize in locating potential buyers.  From all indications, baseball teams are a hot commodity these days and there have been several inquiries already.  Moores wouldn't comment on whether or not some of the current limited partners would be interested in purchasing the team, but he didn't rule it out.  Moores basically never imagined he'd be in his 18th season of ownership and feels that it's time to move on at this point.   This may be the best time to sell, on the heels of the Dodgers purchase of somewhere in the 2 billion dollar range, the market is obviously different than it was 3 years ago.  Nobody wanted to speculate at how much the team might be sold for, but it will be higher than the Moorad/Moores original agreement I'm sure.  


Bad news for a really good guy.  Dustin Moseley's MRI revealed "extensive damage" to his right shoulder and the pitcher will miss significant time.  Moseley was placed on the disabled list after his start Saturday night, feeling discomfort in the shoulder.  He new something was wrong when he threw a fastball to Matt Kemp, and the board registered the pitch as a "changeup" and only 84 mph.  


Now the Padres have 2 spots available in the rotation.  Anthony Bass will likely start the series finale against Arizona, but that's only if he's not needed out of the pen at some point before then.  Speculation will swirl about who may start at Los Angeles Saturday, but no names have been mentioned as "official" candidates.  Feel free to draw your own conclusions.  


Also of note, Mark Kotsay will head out on minor league rehab tomorrow.  He'll suit up for the Lake Elsinore Storm at the Diamond.  He may only need a few games to get ready to return to the Padres lineup. 


Lineup v. Arizona (XX 1090, Leitner/Scanlan, 7pm)


CF - Cameron Maybin
RF - Will Venable
3B - Chase Headley
LF - Jesus Guzman
1B - Yonder Alonso
 C - Nick Hundley
2B - Orlando Hudson
SS - Jason Bartlett
SP - Edinson Volquez


- Volquez will try to bounce back from an opening day loss to the Dodgers.  He went 5 innings, giving up only 3 hits, 3 runs, 2 earned runs, but he walked 4 and struck out 7.  Volquez was sailing along through the first three innings, then walked 4 hitters in the 4th inning, forcing in a run.  His defense let him down in the 5th, with two errors behind him and a run scored. 


- San Diego product, Trevor Cahill (Vista HS) will make the start for the Diamondbacks.  This will be his first career start against the Padres.  


Alright, that's it for today....


Andy



Sunday, April 8, 2012

No Brooms Please...

Happy Easter and Happy Passover to all.  Getting ready for a Sunday of baseball here in the Gaslamp, as the Padres try to avoid the season opening sweep at the hands of the Dodgers.  The Padres are 0-3 for the first time since 2003, and haven't been 0-4 to start a year since 1994.  The Dodgers on the other hand, start 3-0 for the first time since 1999, and haven't been 4-0 since 1981.  


Lineup today:                  v. Harang
CF - Cameron Maybin  (3x8, HR)
RF - Will Venable
3B - Chase Headley    (2x3)
LF - Jesus Guzman
1B - Yonder Alonso
 C - John Baker    (2x7)
SS - Jason Bartlett
2B - Andy Parrino
SP - Clayton Richard


- Richard makes his first start since July 4, 2011.  He had season ending surgery on his shoulder last July 29.  He is 4-1 with a 2.58 ERA v. LA in 7 career starts. 


News/Notes:


- The Padres placed Dustin Moseley on the 15-day disabled list today with a right shoulder strain. Josh Spence has been recalled from Triple-A Tucson.  Moseley felt a little twinge in the shoulder during a bullpen session last Wednesday, but didn't think much of it.  During the game last night, Moseley wasn't feeling right.  At one point he threw a pitch to Matt Kemp, it was a fastball, it felt strange, so he looked back at the board to see how fast it was.  The board read 84 - Change up.  Not good. He's thinking positively and will undergo an MRI tomorrow.  


It's frustrating for Moseley after working his way back into shape after last season's surgery.  


- Manager Bud Black, told us today that Anthony Bass is a candidate to fill one of the rotation spots in the meantime.  He will start either Thursday or Saturday.  Decisions will be made about who will fill the other soon.  


- Carlos Quentin took live hitting in the cage today, and is progressing nicely.  Tim Stauffer will play catch at some point mid week to see how his elbow is responding to rest and rehab.  Mark Kotsay ran on the field today, and if all goes well, he could be ready once his time on the DL is up.  


I'll have the game today with the Colonel, Jerry Coleman, on XX 1090 starting at 1pm.  Join us!


Andy

Saturday, April 7, 2012

Moseley v. Capuano

I was once told the beauty of baseball is the fact that there's always another game, and today the Padres will try to bounce back from a couple of losses to the Dodgers.  


For the second straight night, it was an atypical way of losing for a Bud Black managed team.  Two more errors, bringing the season total to 5 already and a rough outing for starter, have been recipes for disaster.  Lost in the shuffle, were a couple of nice relief outings, one on Thursday by Anthony Bass, and last night, Micah Owings delivered with 3.1 solid innings of work.  


Today Dustin Moseley will face the Dodgers, and he'll be opposed by former Met and Brewer, lefty Chris Capuano making his LA debut.  The story for Moseley may be told in how he handles a pair of Dodgers' hitters.  In game one Matt Kemp drove in 3 runs, and last night Andre Ethier drove in 4, both resulting in LA wins.  


Moseley had a good spring, and a decent year that was cut short by injury in 2011.  He only won three games but had an era in the mid 3's, but was the one Padres pitcher that received no runs of support. Moseley averaged 2.55 runs scored for him per/start, the worst among all qualifying big league pitchers.  


Lineup today:                  (v. Capuano Career)


CF - Cameron Maybin       (0 x 5)
RF - Chris Denorfia            (0 x 2)
3B - Chase Headley          (0 x 2)
LF - Jesus Guzman            (2 x 3, 2 - 2B's)
 C - Nick Hundley               (has not faced)
1B - Yonder Alonso           (1 x 2)
2B - Orlando Hudson        (2 x 7, 2B)
SS - Jason Bartlett             (2 x 5, 2 - 2B's)
SP - Dustin Moseley


Game on Fox Sports San Diego and XX 1090 (Leitner and Scanlan) starting at 7pm.  


News/Notes:


- Carlos Quentin is progressing nicely from his knee surgery.  Quentin spoke before the game today and told us he'd be hitting off a tee as early as tomorrow.  The medical staff is pleased that there hasn't been any significant swelling in the knee, as he's increased his activity level.  He smiled and knocked on wood while delivering that bit of good news.  Bud Black indicated yesterday that Quentin will need a minor league rehab assignment, to make up for lost at bats toward the end of spring training.  


- Bud Black indicated today that Edinson Volquez will make the start for the Padres Tuesday against Arizona.  It will keep Volquez on his normal day, and means the Padres won't need a fifth starter until April 13 at Los Angeles.  


- Black praised the outing of Micah Owings yesterday  Owings chewed up some innings and pitched effectively.  Black said "we needed that length of 50-60 pitches.".  Owings saved at least two guys pitching last night and may have saved the bullpen for today and maybe even tomorrow.   


Alright, that's it....


Andy




Friday, April 6, 2012

The Day After....

All is quiet at Petco Park, at least compared to yesterday and the frenzy that is Opening Day.  The red, white and blue bunting is still up, the "Opening Week" logo still shows up on the grass on each foul line, but the second day of the season is like a balloon with the air leaked out of it.  Noticeable is the lack of media here today (not that I'm complaining), no TV cameras, no commotion in the lunchroom, no over flow seating in the pressbox (again, no complaints) and a slightly smaller crowd tonight.  You can tell it's day 2.  


But as someone who invests 162 (playoffs?) games of time into a season, I can understand it. That's why I always talk about how special opening day is.  This is just another game in the marathon that is a Major League Baseball season.  But just because it's "another game" doesn't minimize it's importance, because in the grand scheme of things, this game could be the difference at the end, this could be the reason for a one game playoff, a tie, a close race or a title.  It's that finite.  Remember '07?  I do.  So keep that in mind. 


Alright, my lecture is over.

Lineups:



CF - Cameron Maybin
RF - Will Venable
3B - Chase Headley
LF - Jesus Guzman
1B - Yonder Alonso
 C - Nick Hundley
2B - Orlando Hudson
SS - Jason Bartlett
SP - Cory Luebke


I'll have the call with Bob Scanlan tonight on XX 1090, starting at 7pm.  Join us!


Andy

Thursday, April 5, 2012

It's Finally Opening Day!

As many of you have already heard me say, Opening Day in baseball should be a National Holiday.  I want to see government offices shut down, I want no mail delivered, no banks open, and certainly no school for kids.  How else are we going to grow this great AMERICAN game? Too many of today's youth (in my opinion) are gravitating to soccer, and that needs to change! 


Opening Day Memories...


It's really hard for me to nail down one specific memory on Opening Day...but I'll share a few...


My first childhood memories were of watching baseball on TV with my dad and grandpa.  That's when I learned (didn't know it at the time) about how this sport unites families, father and son, grandpa and grandchild, everybody.  Not an opener goes by without me thinking about my grandpa and how excited he always was for the beginning of the baseball season. 


I remember as a grade school kid, growing up in the suburbs of Chicago, teachers, rolling in TV's on media carts so we could all watch the Cubs home opener.  It was such a big day in the life of a kid that wanted to be a big league ballplayer.  


In 1993, I was living in Peoria, IL, and on Opening Day, I had jury duty.  Of all the things to have when your hometown team was getting set to face Greg Maddux and the Atlanta Braves in his first start after bolting the Cubs in free agency.  We managed to convince the jury bailiff to bring in a tv to the room and I was able to watch a little of it.  


The last opener I attended as a fan, was in 1998.  It was 31 degrees at first pitch.  Enough said. 


The first opener in San Diego was also very special.  The first time I was sitting in the booth with Ted and Jerry, realizing a life long dream of becoming a major league play by play announcer, was almost overwhelming.  


Ok, off my soap box now.  


Move:


The Padres made a roster move made today.  Last year's opening day starter Tim Stauffer was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a right elbow strain, retroactive to April 4.  Brad Brach, who was one of the final roster cuts, is back with the big league team from Tucson.  


Notes:


Edinson Volquez makes the start today.  It will be his second straight opening day start, and he's hoping this one goes a little better than his start for the Reds last season.  Corey Brock has a story on that game up on Padres.com (click to read). 


6 players are making their first opening day rosters for the Padres.  They are, Anthony Bass, Brad Brach, Yonder Alonso, Jesus Guzman and Andy Parrino.  Technically also, Logan Forsythe (on the DL) is also considered on the roster at opening day for the first time in his career. 


If you're coming out to the ballpark, get here early today.  The festivities will start at 3:30.  Featured today is Jerry Coleman, the Colonel, will be throwing out the ceremonial first pitch.  The Padres will celebrate his 70th year in baseball and his 40th year with the Padres.  Nice move!


Alright, more later when we chat with Bud Black. 


Andy

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

From The Diamond in Lake Elsinore...

It's the final tuneup before the regular season, and the Padres travel up the 15 to Lake Elsinore to play the Royals at the Diamond.  


First of all, the Diamond is a "gem" of a ballpark.  The folks here do a great job in creating a big league atmosphere and they do it right.  So it's great to be here today and we'll get a chance to see some of the top prospects in the Padres organization here as well.  


Alright, here's the starters for today:


Maybin 8
Venable 9
Headley 5
Guzman DH
Alonso 3
Blanks 7
Hudson 4
Bartlett 6
Baker 2


Matt Palmer will pitch


Roster Set:


Following the game last night the Padres set their roster for the 2012 season.  Mark Kotsay and Carlos Quentin were each placed on the 15-day disabled list.  Kotsay with the calf strain and Quentin following knee surgery.  


Everth Cabrera and Brad Brach were both optioned to Triple-A Tucson, so Andy Parrino and Micah Owings are both on the 25 man roster.  Jeremy Hermida was also added as a non-roster player, in a corresponding move.  


So we're all set for baseball in 2012, with Edinson Volquez set to face the NL Cy Young award winner, Clayton Kershaw tomorrow at Petco Park.  First pitch is scheduled for 4:05pm, we'll come on the air at 4pm on XX 1090. 


Let's get this thing going!


Today's broadcast will be on ESPN Radio 1700, Bob Scanlan will join me starting at 2pm. 


Andy

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

One Day Closer To The Start...

Rip another page off the calendar (at least that's how we did it in the old days) and you'll find we are just 2 days away from Opening Day 2012.   I can already hear the chants of BEAT LA! BEAT LA! BEAT LA!  Music to my ears.  


Went to Petco Park yesterday for the team workout and the ballpark is in great shape.  Had a chat with the Director of landscape and field maintenance Luke Yoder, about some of the things he and his wonderful crew did to get the park in such great shape. He told me that the infield skin (aka the top layer of the dirt) was removed and the field was re-graded (or leveled) to make sure that the dirt and the infield grass are in what I like to call "harmony".  So in other words you won't see any of those crazy "Arizona bad hops" on this infield because it's maintained by one of, if not, the best in the business.  Yoder also explained that after fan fest and the Padres awards dinner, some of the sod in the outfield was replaced and blended into the remaining pieces for a nice smooth playing surface.  After the workout, Luke and the crew went to work on the "Opening Day Logos" that you'll see painted up the first and third base lines. 


Before the media chat with Bud Black, we noticed my partner, the Colonel Jerry Coleman, grab about 4 baseballs from the bin and head out to the pitcher's mound.  It then hit me that he was practicing for throwing out the first pitch on Opening Day.  Coleman grabbed one of third base coach Glenn Hoffman's young sons to catch for him.  After bouncing a few in, the Colonel threw a nice soft rainbow strike and pumped his fists.  Great to see that the team is giving him this honor, as he celebrates his 40th year of calling Padres games!  "OH DOCTOR" indeed. 


Now to the "nuts and bolts" as Bud likes to call the day to day information he gives us...


- Buddy said that they'd be keeping a close eye on the right calf of Mark Kotsay in the next day or two.  A decision on whether or not it is serious enough to cause a DL stint will have to be made by tomorrow afternoon at 2pm PT.  That's when rosters are due into the league office. 


- Tim Stauffer played catch during the workout and he could be on track to pitch one of the games in the second series of the year, when the Diamondbacks come in next Monday. 


- Not a fun time to be a player that really isn't sure if he's on the roster as of yet.  I watched as Brad Brach, Micah Owings, Jeremy Hermida, Everth Cabrera and Andy Parrino each sat by their lockers with a feeling of uneasiness.  None have been informed yet if they've made the team or not.  


- Tonight the Padres will play the first of the final two exhibition games, both will be against the Kansas City Royals.  Tonight the game is at 7:05pm at Petco Park.  It will be on radio and television, with XX 1090 carrying the action with Ted Leitner and Bob Scanlan, and Fox Sports San Diego has the game with Dick Enberg and Mark Grant.   Tomorrow's game will be on radio only, I'll call that game from Lake Elsinore along with Bob Scanlan, at 2pm on ESPN Radio 1700.  


- A special shout out to Lake Elsinore Storm president Dave Oster, who does such a great job up there.  Dave wanted to make sure everything for our broadcast tomorrow was all set and to tell me how excited the staff and fans were to have us come to The Diamond along with the team.  The Storm have continuously packed their ballpark and now with the Padres farm system getting such high marks, the quality of play will be that much better throughout the organization.  Keep up the great work Dave and we'll see you tomorrow! 


Final Thought...


For those that don't know, Bud Black is one heck of a human being.  He is aware of a lot more than people give him credit.  He's great at protecting his players and making no bones about performance all at the same time.  Buddy was asked yesterday about some publications and prognosticators picking his team last in the NL West.  Some managers would say, "we don't look at those things, that's for you guys..." or something like that.  Instead Bud offered this statement: 
"We aren't in a bubble here, we know what's being said.  (But) that's why we play the games.  We hear it, does it bother us?  We all have pride, I'll say that."
Love the fact that he didn't side step the question and gave an honest answer.  Remember 2010?  I'm not saying that there's a great chance of repeating that, but I'm not saying there isn't.  How's that for double speak?  


That's all for now, I'll be heading to the game later...and I'll bring you any updates along the way!


Don't forget to follow me on Twitter (twitter.com/PadsCast) and "like" me at my new Facebook page (www.facebook.com/AndyMasurBroadcaster).


Andy
 
 
 

Monday, April 2, 2012

Back Home...

First let me say this, I give a ton of credit to those Padres fans that made the drive out to the Phoenix area to see the team during spring training.  If you did the drive a couple of times, even more credit comes your way.  Full disclosure:  in the past, I've driven my car out to Peoria, but then placed it (with the help of the pros) on a transport truck, and flown back to San Diego to avoid the drive.  Last night though, I manned up and fastened my seatbelt and drove back to SD.  I love to drive, but this one seems a little challenging to me.  Growing up in the Midwest, we don't have mountains.  We have hills, and valleys, but no mountains.  We had wind, but not mountain wind.  Yesterday's drive thru the wind was a wild and crazy ride.  I have steering wheel imprints on my palms from gripping so tightly!  Harrowing (at least to me) but I made it!

Ok, now to the news of the day...the Padres have a closed workout today starting at about 1 this afternoon at Petco Park.  I'll be making my way over and I'll update the blog if anything worth reporting comes up.  Not really anticipating an announcement of the final roster cuts today, since Bud Black hinted he may take it up to the 2pm PT deadline on Wednesday to report the roster to MLB.

The Padres will face the Royals in the first of two exhibition games tomorrow night at Petco Park, in a 7:05 start.  Clayton Richard will go for the Padres in his final tuneup before his start in the Sunday game against the Dodgers.   The game will be on XX 1090 and on Fox Sports San Diego.   The two teams then head to Lake Elsinore for a Wednesday afternoon game at the Diamond.  We'll have the game on ESPN Radio 1700 at 2pm.

I'll update you all later...need to unpack and do some laundry today...exciting life huh?

Andy

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Opening Day Starter Named...

Manager Bud Black joked with us a couple of weeks ago that he wanted to be the "21st manager in baseball to name my opening day starter".  Ok, well with no official count, he came pretty close to hitting his mark.  Today Black named Edinson Volquez as the team's opening day starter, April 5 against the Dodgers.

Black said the decision was based on "Volquez having a good spring.  He came into camp with a good focus."  Volquez was 2-0, with a 3.48 ERA this Spring in 20.2 innings of work.  Volquez was told along with the rest of the rotation in a morning meeting in Black's office.

Volquez, of course, was a key component in the trade this off season involving Mat Latos going to the Reds.

Buddy named the rotation through the Dodgers series, Volquez, followed by Cory Luebke, Dustin Moseley and Clayton Richard.  Black told us that Tim Stauffer is suffering from a slight right triceps "thing" that the team is keeping an eye on.  It doesn't appear to be a major concern at this point.  Black pointed out that Stauffer ran into a little fatigue and in the long run, some rest will do him good.  Stauffer will also work with Darren Balsley on some "mechanical" things in the meantime.

The Dodgers will throw, Clayton Kershaw, Chad Billingsley, Chris Capuano and Aaron Harang in the opening series.

In other news of the day, James Darnell was told that he has been optioned to Triple-A Tucson.  Black told Darnell that he was "in the mix right till the end." Darnell hit .261 this spring with no homers and 1 run batted in.  

Final Tuneup


In just a few short hours, it will be time to head home.  To tell you the truth, I can't wait.  Spring Training is a great time of year, but it does tend to drag towards the end for everybody involved, from the players, to the media to the staff.  We are all just anxious to get things started for real.  So at about 4pm or so today (hopefully much earlier) it will be time for the cry of "Gentlemen, start your engines!"

Lineup at Surprise: (XX 1090, Bob Scanlan and me, 1pm)


24   Cameron Maybin        CF
25   Will Venable (L)         RF
  7   Chase Headley (S)      3B
15   Jesus Guzman             LF
23   Yonder Alonso (L)      1B
88   Kyle Blanks                DH
  1   Orlando Hudson (S)    2B
  8   Jason Bartlett              SS
21   John Baker (L)             C

52    Cory Luebke               LHP


Luebke is expected to go 4 innings, he'll be followed by Casey Kelly and a scheduled 4 innings, with Ernesto Frieri getting an inning.   I'm expecting the regulars to get only a couple of at bats before they head home, then we'll see a bunch of minor leaguers getting a final chance this spring in a big league game.

That's it, off to Surprise and then to San Diego!!

Andy