CINCINNATI, OH - The San Diego Padres are moving on to the National League Championship Series after defeating the Cincinnati Reds, winning the best of seven series 4-1. True to their regular season record, the Padres split the first two games in San Diego, and then swept all three in Cincinnati.
In a series where all but one game were decided by one run, the Padres got some clutch performances up and down the lineup. Adam Jones was a hitting star, batting .524 in the 5 games. Orlando Hudson hit .364, while Mark Teixeira and Juan Uribe each hit .316. Joe Blanton and Chris Volstad each pitched complete games on the way to victory. The Padres will now face the Atlanta Braves in the NLCS, but this time will not have home-field advantage on their side.
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SAN DIEGO, CA - For the first time under the guidance of manager Tim Stoops, the San Diego Padres have won the National League West division crown. The Padres finished off the season with a 96-66 record, including the best road record (54-27) in all of PGL-MLB.
"I honestly wasn't expecting this, not this year," manager Stoops, runner-up to NL Manager of the Year, said in the team clubhouse. "Yet here we are celebrating this amazing year drinking Mountain Dew in the clubhouse." The Padres will face the Cincinnati Reds, winners of the NL Central division, in the National League Division Series. San Diego will have home-field advantage in the best-of-seven series. "The skipper and I both came to the Padres back in 1995," outfielder Garret Anderson reminisced. Anderson struggled in 2010, especially at home, finding himself relegated to the bench in the final weeks of the season. "It feels great to be around together for our first pennant." The Padres won the division by 8 games over the Los Angeles Dodgers. SAN DIEGO, CA - In order to reduce the roster to 29, the Padres today said goodbye to 12 players. They are: Eliezer Alfonzo, Brandon Backe, Chris Burke, Jolbert Cabrera, Chad Cordero, Chris Coste, Shawn Estes, Nick Evans, Warner Madrigal, Yusmeiro Petit, Duaner Sanchez and Doug Waechter. This means that oft-injured third baseman Eric Chavez has been protected though the club already knows he will not be available for the 2010 season, and possibly beyond.
Burke, an infielder, and Coste, a catcher, never suited up for the Padres. Coste could rejoin the team as the Padres would like to acquire a third-string catcher with one of their two waiver picks. Alfonzo and Cabrera now hold the distinction of being waived by the Padres on two separate occasions. Cabrera enjoyed a successful return to the Padres in 2009, hitting .299 while making appearances in the infield and outfield. Estes, Madrigal, Sanchez and Waechter have been cut after spending one season on the Padres pitching staff. "They were each valuable contributors to our '09 staff, but had to go to make room for the pitching we got in the rookie draft two months ago," manager Tim Stoops stated. Evans played one average season for the Padres, making spot starts in the outfield and at first base. Petit was a contributor to the starting rotation for two seasons after the Padres made him a 2008 Rookie Draft second-round selection. The team's acquisition of Luke French spelled the end of Petit's career as a Padre. The most difficult cut was Cordero. After two sparkling seasons as the Padres closer, Cordero had major arm injuries that cost him the entire 2009 season and the upcoming 2010 season. The team could not afford to keep him for another year. SAN DIEGO, CA - It certainly was an interesting week for relief pitcher Zach Miner. Acquired on Sunday from the Toronto Blue Jays with Chris Coste in exchange for Humberto Quintero, Miner finds himself packing again having been dealt to the Detroit Tigers for starting pitcher Luke French.
Coste, 37, will take the place of the departing Quintero. He'll be called upon as an emergency catcher behind Nick Hundley and John Buck and will see occasional pinch hitting duty. Quintero leaves San Diego after two seasons with the club. "He certainly was the best backup catcher whose last name starts with Q that we ever had," manager Tim Stoops said. French, from Salina, Kansas, joins the Padres as a 24-year old with great promise. He's expected to get a few spot starts in 2010, but the front office is more excited about the left-hander's potential in the years to come. SAN DIEGO, CA - With so much youth in the starting rotation, the Padres again dealt from their abundance of relief pitchers to acquire veteran Bartolo Colon from the Chicago Cubs. Greg Burke was sent to the Friendly Confines in return, having never worn a Padres uniform. Born in the Dominican Republic, Colon will be 37 in May and brings 12 years of PGL-MLB experience to the Padres pitching staff. He's expected to get some starts towards the back end of the rotation. SAN DIEGO, CA - The Padres struck up a deal today with familiar trade partner, the Baltimore Orioles, acquiring infielder Bobby Crosby for relief pitcher Luis Perdomo and outfielder Drew Macias. Crosby, a 29-year old shortstop primarily, brings great flexibility to the Padres infield. He expects to see time at third base, first base, and maybe some second base during the 2010 season. He was even spotted with an outfielder's glove upon his arrival at Petco Park. Perdomo and Macias, barely Padres for 24 hours, had been signed as undrafted players following the 2010 rookie draft. Both were victims of not being needed due to the Padres depth in the outfield and in the bullpen. SAN DIEGO, CA - Following yesterday's rookie draft, the Padres welcomed 5 undrafted players to the roster. Joining San Diego are pitchers Greg Burke and Luis Perdomo, catcher Eliezer Alfonzo, infielder Chris Burke, and outfielder Drew Macias.
SAN DIEGO, CA - Thinking they were done adding to the bullpen, the Padres found themselves unable to ignore right-handed relief pitcher Sean White when their fifth round rookie draft pick came around. White pitched in college for the University of Washington Huskies, twice earning All-Pac 10 honorable mentions. He's the fourth relief pitcher drafted by the Padres in this rookie draft, joining Daniel Bard, Luke Gregerson, and Joe Thatcher. SAN DIEGO, CA - The Padres have selected what they hope is the final piece towards reconstructing their bullpen for the 2010 season. Joe Thatcher, out of Indiana State University, will joing Craig Breslow as the second left in the pen. Born on October 4, 1981 in Kokomo, Indiana, Thatcher is nicknamed "The Prime Minister" and "The Throw'in Kokomoan." In high school, he played baseball and basketball. SAN DIEGO, CA - As their third-round pick approached, the San Diego Padres observed a bevy of relief pitchers being selected. In response, the Padres chose Luke Gregerson to help in the bullpen. Gregerson, a 25-year old workhorse from Park Ridge, Illinois, pitched in college at Saint Xavier University. The right-hander will join Daniel Bard as a new member of the Padres bullpen that lost many to injury after the 2009 season. |
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