Hey Brewer

There I said it. I’m a die-hard Padres fan, having followed them as far back as I can remember, and I have no problem saying that Trevor Hoffman is done. Unfortunately, most Padres fans are so blinded by loyalty and past performance (which explains why we have $20 million invested in Jim Edmonds and Brian Giles), that they refuse to let Hoffman call it quits. Fans in major markets would be all over their star closer if he had submitted an end of season performance similar to Trevor’s. But in San Diego, he gets a standing ovation to start the season.

Now don’t get me wrong, I’m a nostalgic, and I appreciate the great seasons that Hoffman has had for the Pads. I appreciate his dedication to one team, 16 years of service and all but 28 of his career games have been with the Padres, and during his most dominant seasons he was a sight to behold. Last year though was not fun to watch.
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Yeah the title is a little harsh, but you know what, Jerry Coleman was really mean to me when I was 13 (1992). We used to own a radio station long ago that broadcast the Padres games in Spanish. Being a 13 year old neurotic baseball fan, this was basically the coolest thing in the entire world. I became good friends with our broadcaster and as a result ended up with a season long press pass. This pass gave me access to the press level at Jack Murphy Stadium. The first time I finally decided to use my pass, I ran into Jerry Coleman when I stepped off the elevator. I was ecstatic, I ran up and introduced myself, knowing better than to ask for an autograph. His response:

What the hell is a kid doing up here? I think you’re in the wrong place son, you should leave this section before security gets here.

Why do I bring up this repressed story of my childhood? Because I always bring up how insane Jerry has become and how ridiculous his announcing flubs have become. Remarkably, people outside of San Diego have no idea what I’m talking about.

So I’ve been wanting to put together a list celebrating some of his greatest calls. Rumors and Rants was kind enough to beat me to the punch.

Some of these gems include:

The first pitch to Tucker Ashford is grounded into left field. No, wait a minute. It’s ball one. Low and outside.

and

Hector Torrez, how can you communicate with Enzo Hernandez when he speaks Spanish and you speak Mexican?

These just scratch the surface, for more gems visit God Bless Jerry Coleman

I’m still recovering from yesterdays all day baseball-fest as Opening Day hit most of the stadiums across the States. I was on my couch for so long I started to develop hypostasis in my arse and legs. The highlights of the day include:

The Bucs avoiding a 2 out, shouldda been game ending fly ball as if it had been dipped in the plague, allowing the tying runs to score capping off a 5 run bottom of the 9th inning for the Braves. The Bucs did come back and win on the back of X-Man’s 2nd HR.

Johan absolutely dominated the hapless Marlins while Fukudome and Wood make their marks on the North Side and the Cubbies promptly lose.

Needless to say the Bucs, Royals, DRays, and Nats all winning did wonders for El Doctor’s bank account. Don’t worry though, I will end this on the plus side with the bookie…or lose my son. Despite this, here are my official predictions for the upcoming season. Should you find yourself in Las Vegas (or in front of a computer) feel free to heed my advice and win some hard earned money. Continue Reading »

My Padres are/were in China playing the Dodgers. Originally this post was going to be a rant on the fact that they played to a tie!! Then I navigated my way over to the Home Run Derby website and came across something much more interesting, namely pictures of Chinese cheerleaders.

More pics after the jump.

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A few links to look at while not doing work at your real job today:

An interesting story about 1/4 of the Cuban soccer team defecting so that they can tryout to play for MLS or USL teams. Political ideologies aside, you have to admire the guts it takes to walk away from your family, friends, and teammates to chase the dream of playing soccer (or baseball, whatever) professionally. Sadly, it appears they were horribly misinformed about the quality of soccer in the MLS.

Joe Girardi might miss the Yanks season opener due to a suspension from the ‘fight’ recently.

Baseball has been trying to expand to new markets, particularly in Asia. This continues again this year with exhibition games set to be played by the Dodgers and Padres in China this weekend and the regular season opening in Japan with Oakland taking on the Sawks. While baseball has taken off in Japan, Korea, and Taiwan, there has been much less success in China.

Apparently a lot of Men’s Hoops teams hopes died yesterday. It would be a lie for me to say I gave two deuces but I know many of you do.  Baseball can’t start quick enough for me.

How the national sports media didn’t trip over itself to report this surprising development I don’t know.  Jim Edmonds, the dynamic geriatric centerfielder for the San Diego Padres, is hurt. Thankfully, PETCO is one of the smaller parks in the league.  Should Grandpa Edmonds make it back, the chances of him hurting himself again are very small. No more than 97-98%…tops. The Padres are now concerned if he will be able to make opening day and are considering trading for OF’s. Perhaps one of his wartime buddies is available:

Now a little something about my hometown rounders team.

Check out this article about the $5-$8 million that the Pads have spent on a new facility in the Dominican Republic.
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CBS Sports line has put out their first power rankings list.

1. Mets
2. Red Sox
3. Tigers
4. Phillies
5. Indians

Read the rest here: CBS Sportsline

My beloved Padres are in the 15th spot. Behind the D’Backs, Rockies and Dodgers, picked to finish 4th in their division again. Do the writers and “experts” never learn?

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Rejoice Padres fans, our .250 hitting shortstop Khalil Greene has resigned for another 2 years.

I want to like Greene, I mean he gave us 25 HR/100 RBI last year along with 44 doubles, and some spectacular plays on the field, but that .250 average just kills me. His lack of discipline at the plate leads to a lot of strikeouts, very few walks and a disappointing .291 OBP last year.

Hopefully the $4.5MM he gets in ‘08 and the $6.5MM he gets in ‘09 will encourage to get on base just a little more.