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SOME CREATIVITY FROM THE SKIPPER … FINALLY! by Jason Martinez sdpadrefan.com posted 5/11/08 It took 37 games, but Padres Manager Bud Black finally realized that something different needed to be done to jumpstart his pathetic offense. The ol' "We're a good hitting team; keep on doing what you're doing and things will turn around" speech had to be getting real old. I know it has for the fans. By batting Jody Gerut leadoff and moving Brian Giles to the #3 hole, it allowed the team to move Adrian Gonzalez and Kevin Kouzmanoff down one spot in the order. While Gonzo is good enough to handle the # 3 or 4 on any team, Kouz is not a #4 hitter at this point in his career. He could be someday but he just isn't producing enough right now. And while Giles is not close to the hitter he was when he was the #3 hitter for the Pirates back in 2003, he is the team's best option right now. Gerut is also not a prototypical leadoff hitter, but he might be the fastest guy in the lineup. The result: the team's two fastest players batting 1-2; the team's three best hitters batting 3-4-5. That sure does make more sense to me. Good move Bud. The results weren't there yet but I think the change is for the better. Hopefully, he'll stick with it. With four stolen bases in yesterday's game, the Padres raised their total to 12, no longer last place in the NL. I don't know this for sure, but I'm guessing something made the Padre base runners figure out that they were not anchored to first base. Maybe their previous attitude was, "Hey, we don't get on base very often, we can't afford to get thrown out trying to steal". That might be a good strategy if you have two or three guys that are hitting home runs on your team but the Padres have just one, Adrian Gonzalez. I'm not sure what motivated the players to become more aggressive on the base paths, but it was great to see some sense of urgency on this team. Making things happen hasn't exactly been the team's motto this season. If the first two changes weren't surprising enough, rookie catcher Luke Carlin got his first major league start, just one day after joining the club. Taking a page from former Manager Bruce Bochy, Black threw his new guy into the fire, almost upon arrival. Carlin struck out in all three at bats, not able to catch up to Ubaldo Jimenez' 97 mph fastball. So what? Backup catchers usually aren't great hitters. They should be really good at calling a game and solid defensively. Carlin definitely fits this mold. More importantly, starting catcher Josh Bard needs a break. He is not hitting the ball with any authority. After leading the team in batting in '07, Bard is hovering just over the Mendoza Line at .204. He's a much better hitter than that. Hopefully, with some added rest, he can start working his way back to being that hitter. The Padres sure can use it. Thanks for the changes Bud. In my opinion, they probably came a few weeks too late but it's better to be late than never, right? |