Dick Williams tribute

The Padres are wearing their 1983 jerseys today. The jerseys have had patches added in memory of former manager Dick Williams, who passed away on July 7.

The Padres’ manager from 1982-85, Williams led the Friars to a 337-311 record and .520 winning percentage over four years, finishing at .500 or better each season. He was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY, in 2007 and to the Padres Hall of Fame in 2009.

Williams managed parts of 21 seasons in the Big Leagues, including stints with the Boston Red Sox (1967-69), Oakland Athletics (1971-73), California Angels (1974-76), Montreal Expos (1977-81), Padres (1982-85) and Seattle Mariners (1986-88). He posted a .520 career winning percentage (1,571-1,451), advancing to the postseason five times.

Primarily an outfielder, Williams played parts of 13 seasons at the Major League level with the Brooklyn Dodgers (1951-54, 1956), Baltimore Orioles (1956-57, 1958, 1961-62), Cleveland Indians (1957), Kansas City Athletics (1959-60) and Boston Red Sox (1963-64). He appeared in 1,023 games, hitting .260 (768-for-2,959) with 157 doubles, 12 triples, 70 home runs, 331 RBI and 358 runs scored.

Bell slides into All-Star game

Heath Bell retired the only batter he faced in last night’s All-Star game, getting Jhonny Peralta to pop out to second base in what we at the Padres feel was definitely the most important at-bat of the game.  Head to MLB.com for video and a recap of Bell’s performance, found here.

Midsummer Classic

Heath Bell is headed to the desert for his third straight All-Star game. The break comes at a good time for the Padres, who dropped each of the last five after winning four consecutive series headed into San Francisco. The Padres will match up against the Giants again right after the All-Star break, with a four-game series at PETCO Park. Here are the projected pitching matchups for that series:

Thursday, July 14 (PCL Tribute Posters): Harang vs. Bumgarner

Friday, July 15 (golf towels and fireworks): Moseley vs. Lincecum

Saturday, July 16 (rally pom-poms): Luebke vs. Zito

Sunday, July 17 (military appreciation day/t-shirts for kids): Latos vs. Cain

14 straight for Eugene

The Short-A Eugene Emeralds did it again last night, winning 9-3 over Vancouver and setting a new Northwest League record with their 14th consecutive victory. Two-time NW League Player of the Week (just 19 games into his professional career) Cory Spangenberg had another two-hit game, going 2-for-5 with two doubles, an RBI and a run scored. Shortstop Jace Peterson led the way at the top of the order with a 3-for-5 night that included a double, two RBI and two runs scored. Peterson was the Padres fifth selection in this years Draft, taken 58th overall.

Cory Spangenberg is hitting .388 with a .548 OBP through 19 games

Led by former ASU head coach Pat Murphy, in his first year managing at the professional level, the Emeralds are now 17-2 on the season. They are hitting .273 on the year while posting a 3.26 team ERA. Over the 14-game win streak, the club is outscoring their opponents 94-43. The Emeralds are averaging 6.7 runs/game over that stretch while allowing 3.1.

The Short-A Eugene roster consists of 30 players, 17 of which joined the Padres less than a month ago as selections in the 2011 First-Year Player draft.

Can’t stop, won’t stop

Cory Spangenberg, the Padres’ top selection at 10th overall in the 2011 Draft, has been playing for just 18 games with Single-A Eugene and was honored today with his second straight Northwest League Player of the Week award.

After being named Player of the Week for June 20-26, Spangenberg followed it up by hitting .407 (11-for-27) with a .556 OBP and .519 SLG from June 27-July 3. Catapulted by Spangenberg’s hot bat, the Emeralds (16-2 on the season) are currently riding a 13-game winning streak that is tied for the all-time Northwest League record. The Ems will attempt to break the league record and with their 14th straight in a 7:05 p.m. game tonight against Vancouver.