Category: Notes

Minor achievements

Lake Elsinore Storm infielder Jedd Gyorko has been named the California League’s Offensive Player of the Week for the week ending May 22. Over that stretch, he hit .413 (12-for-29) with a .469 OBP and .897 SLG. Gyorko had three doubles, one triple, three home runs, nine RBI, nine runs scored and four stolen bases in the week.

In other news from the Padres farm system, the club today called up outfielder Blake Tekotte from Double-A San Antonio. Tekotte was hitting .291 (43-for-148) with the Missions, posting a .410 OBP and .486 SLG. He was originally signed by the Padres as a third-round selection in the 2008 First-Year Player draft out of the University of Miami.

In the Cards

The Padres welcome the Cardinals to town today, beginning a three-game series. The two teams opened the 2011 campaign against each other in St. Louis, with the Padres taking two of three. With the current series being the last meeting between the two this season, the Padres can clinch at least a split of the season series for the first time since 2006 with a win tonight.

With the Cards in town, Ryan Ludwick will face his former team for the third time since being traded to the Padres at the 2010 trade deadline. In seven games vs. the Cardinals since joining the Padres, he has hit .292 with a .452 on-base percentage and .458 slugging percentage. Over his last 10 games this season, Luddy’s bat has come around, hitting .436 (17-for-39) with four home runs, 14 RBI, a .429 OBP and .744 SLG. During that stretch, he has raised his batting average 60 points.

Dustin Moseley takes the hill for the Padres tonight, looking for his second win of the season. He made his Padres debut against the Cardinals on 4/3, working 7.0 innings of one-run ball in the tough-luck loss.

Happy Saturday!

The Padres look to enact revenge and even the series tonight with Clayton Richard taking the hill against Michael Pineda.

Pineda, a rookie who made his Major League debut with the M’s this year, is making his first Interleague start.

Richard, who came up with the White Sox, is making his eighth Interleague start and 22nd overall against the American League. He is 2-1 with a 3.29 ERA all-time in Interleague matchups and 2-0 with a 1.35 ERA all-time against the Mariners (three starts). In two starts against the Mariners last year, Richard went 1-0 while allowing just three runs in 14.0 innings of work.

Here is some light reading for your Saturday afternoon, thanks to the Union-Tribune’s Bill Center:

Padres catchers Rob Johnson and Kyle Phillips each have a special reunion with the M’s in town.

See you at the park tonight. Eric Stonestreet from ABC’s Modern Family is throwing out tonight’s first pitch. He is a strong supporter of Stand Up To Cancer. Happy Saturday!

The rivalry continues, naturally

The Padres host the Mariners for a three-game set that begins tonight. The series against our “natural” rivals (grrrrrrrr) marks the start of this year’s Interleague schedule. In 2011 the Padres will also host the Kansas City Royals (June 27-29) and travel to face the Minnesota Twins (June 17-19), Boston Red Sox (June 20-22) and Mariners (July 1-3).

San Diego went 9-6 against the American League in 2010, posting the first winning record in Interleague Play since going 11-4 in 1999. The Padres are 97-127 all-time in Interleague Play and 35-39 against Seattle Mariners. San Diego took four of six from Seattle last season.

Here’s a preview of the weekend’s Interleague set.

Back with a bang

The Padres pulled off the 1-0 walk-off win tonight thanks to a sacrifice fly by Orlando Hudson in the bottom of the ninth. Hudson, who was reinstated from the disabled list earlier today, now has two game-ending RBI on the season (also 4/13 vs. CIN) and six in his career.

Tonight marked the fourth walk-off win by the Padres this season: also 4/13 vs. CIN, 4/25 vs. ATL and 5/6 vs. ARI.

In other news, Jason Bartlett had his hitting streak snapped at 10 games while Ryan Ludwick went 2-for-4 in extending his season-high streak to eight games. Ludwick is batting .452 (14-for-31) with four home runs and 13 RBI over that stretch.

Records bend but don’t break

Jason Bartlett’s streak of nine consecutive games with an RBI came to an end last night (although his hitting streak ran to 10 games and counting), meaning he tied the club record for consecutive games driving in a run.  Bartlett tied streaks by both Sixto Lezcano in 1982 (April 16-27) and Steve Finley in 1996 (June 22-July 1).

JB is the second Friar this season to tie (but not break) a previous club record, as Heath Bell ran his consecutive saves streak to 41 games earlier this year, tying Trevor Hoffman’s mark from the 1997-98 seasons. (Trevor’s streak also tied Rod Beck’s then-Major League record)

Also of note is the fact that Bartlett’s streak did not include one home run.  According to the Elias Sports Bureau, over the last 65 years only one other player had an RBI in nine consecutive games without hitting a home run: Kirby Puckett had a 10-game streak for the Twins in September 1988.

Still streaking

Jason Bartlett did it again last night, driving in Chris Denorfia with a sac fly in the first inning and extending his streak to nine consecutive games with an RBI. The streak has him tied with Sixto Lezcano (1982) and Steve Finley (1996) for the club record.

The last time a player in the Major Leagues had an RBI in nine-or-more consecutive games was current Padre Jorge Cantu who had an RBI in 14-straight games across two seasons with Florida (2009-10).

The hits keep comin’

With an 8-4 win over the Diamondbacks last night, the Padres have tied a club record by scoring seven or more runs in five consecutive games, previously done by the 1979 and 1996 clubs. Thanks to MLB.com’s Tom Singer for noting the accomplishment.

In addition, Jason Bartlett went 2-for-5 with two RBI last night and now has an RBI in eight consecutive games. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, he is one shy of tying the franchise record, set by Sixto Lezcano in 1982 and Steve Finley in 1996.  Lezcano recorded an RBI in nine straight games from April 16-27. Two Padres players have had at least one RBI in eight straight games: Carmelo Martinez (June 21-28) and Tony Gwynn (May 25-June 3), both during the 1984 season.