Friar Watch

Despite that final blowout in Philly we can’t be too upset about a 4-2 road trip against two of the top offenses in the NL. It’s become obvious that releasing Wells wasn’t the answer to the 5th starter problem, but to be fair I don’t think anyone thought it would get better. Getting rid of Wells allows the Padres a little more flexibility through shuffling guys back and forth to Portland.

The Phillies series is a perfect example of why I’ll gladly take Petco over a hitter friendly park. High offense parks really tax a pitching staff and you end up with a lot of games where pitchers are left out there to take one for the team. Sure, Petco can be frustrating but it’s very rare for a game to get out of hand like that.

Remember when we were all worried about how Milton Bradley’s volatility? Who would have thought that his personality and competitive attitude would light a fire under the Padres and get them to compete with some intensity? If we can just get into the playoffs I’m a lot more optimistic about our chances than the last two years. With Peavy, Young (fingers crossed) and Maddux we have a very solid front three and Bradley is the kind of guy I can see taking over a series.