Ludwick picking up where he left off in 2010

Sunday April 10, 2011

Well, Ludwick is who we thought he was at the end of last season - a terrible Padres hitter.

So far he is hitting just .120 as a Padre in 2011 with just 3 hits in 25 abs. Granted 1 of the 3 was a home run, but even if all 3 were home runs, 3 for 25 just will not cut it.

Worse yet, he is not even getting good wood on the ball. Most of his 9 FB were pop ups, 2 in the infield and 3 foul. All of his ground balls were for outs. The ONLY ball he has struck well was his home run today.

Don't get me wrong, Ludwick is not the only Padre starter we were counting on to hit the ball well that is sucking wind. Will Venable is hitting just .120 as well and looks completely lost at the plate. Bartlett is hitting under .150. Hawpe is hitting just .174 with 9 SO against just 1 BB in 23 AB.

Now the Good news in terms of Padres hitting:
Nick Hundley has come of age. After today he is hitting .445 with 2 home runs and 5 XBH in his 11 hits.
Orlando Hudson is his consistent self, hitting .286 after 8 games.
Chase Headley was hitting .280 going into today's game.
Cameron Maybin is hitting .276 and showing some power with 4 XBH in his 8 hits.

The REAL good news? Its only 8 games. So while I am bitchin' about Ludwick, Venable, Hawpe and Bartlett's production so far, I realize we have 154 games, 95% of the season, to go.

Amazing how much one trade & one DL trip effects roster

Monday March 28, 2011

Its amazing how much one trade and one trip to the DL can effect the opening day roster. And all in the space of 18 hours.

As widely anticipated, or at least bandied about, the Padres traded for utility man Alberto Gonzalez today. When Gonzalez joins the team, Everth Cabrera was optioned to AAA Tucson where he can play every day.. I was told at the game today that the Padres still consider Cabrera a front runner to be the SS of the future and they preferred that he have an opportunity to play every day at one position instead of backing up SS and 2B.


The Padres also placed Mat Latos on the DL retroactive to 3/22, meaning he is eligible to come off the DL on 4/6.

This caused a flurry of moves. Wade Leblanc was optioned to AAA camp so he could make a start with the AAA squad in camp and a simulated start in preparation for his 4/12 start against the Cincinnati Reds.

Because they cannot count on the innings Latos would have eaten and because there are 3 days off in first 8 days of the season, the Padres made a decision to go with 4 starters and 8 relievers. Moseley will make a start or possibly more in the absence of Latos in the rotation. Corey Luebke was added to 25 roster as the LH specialist and long reliever.Ernesto Frieri was kept on the active roster and Luis Perdomo will be added to the bullpen to start the season.

Did I miss anything?

I'm sure one of you will be glad to tell me if I missed anything.

1 year and 341,700 Frequent Flyer Miles Later

March 27, 2011

It has been an interesting, fast paced and hectic year in the Web Soulsurfer household.

I have logged 341,700 frequent flyer miles and more than 200 days away from home since March 31st of 2010.

I have met many incredible people, worked with some great clients and charities and visited some wonderful places. I have seen baseball games in 7 countries (actually 6 since Puerto Rico is a territory of the US, but don't tell them that).

But, and its a big but, I am exhausted and I miss my wife and home. Obviously I have not posted near as much on this blog and on the boards I have been so active on in the past.

I am nearing 50 (AARP is on my tail to sign up by my birthday in June) and I need to slow down and enjoy my life with my devoted and loving wife instead of jetting around the country and living in hotel rooms. Towards that end I have sold my interest in the sports/charity marketing business I have been involved with and will be relocating to new digs in a new city within the next month.

While I will be attending the Padres opening series of the season in St Louis, for the first time in 26 years I will likely not be able to make the Padres home opener as I take care of the last of my duties and transfer the company over to the new teams my (ex)business partner has hired to fill my duties.

Yes they are replacing me with two teams of 2 people each. Tells you how much work I have been doing when they have to bring in two teams to take my place.

There will still be a Websoulsurfer the blog and I may even post more often as I did in years past, but it will be from afar as I will be living in a AAA city of the West.

I do hope you will continue to read the blog and maybe even enjoy it more as it starts to be a more regular part of my life.

Just for shits and grins I may just publish the many (about 40) articles I have started (and never completed) writing in airports and hotel rooms over the past year even though they are dated and sometimes just plain wrong. But then being wrong never stopped me from posting before...

Best regards,

- Web