How About Them Padres? Dodgers Get Look Again At What A First-Place Club Looks Like
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Frank McCourt is drooling. He’ll be looking to steal some of the state’s secrets in San Diego this weekend, when the Dodgers open a 3-game set at Petco Park tonight. The Padres in first place? Oh my, Frank is thinking, they pay much less than him and they’re playing some of the best ball in baseball. What’s up with that?
Thirty-four games into the season and who would have guessed the Padres would have the National League’s best record? The Padres’ mark matches the one of the defending champion Yankees (Twins too if you’re scoring at home) and only the Rays, baseball’s best at 24-10, are better.
San Diego’s early success hasn’t been one of smoke and mirrors. The Padres, who host the Dodgers for a 3-game series beginning tonight, have some young talent, pitcher Mat Latos, who was an infield single away from a perfect game in a victory over the Giants yesterday, is among them. Chase Headley is hitting .309 and has 9 stolen bases and though Kyle Blanks is struggling, the Padres expect big things out of him.
Of course it always helps to have one of the league’s top hitters, Adrian Gonzalez, in the lineup too. But many don’t believe Gonzalez, who has been trade bait for some time, will be around to finish what he’s started in San Diego.
Meanwhile, the Dodgers enter tonight’s contest with a 4-game winning streak and a shot at digging into that 5-game lead the Padres have on them. But it seems like a difficult task tonight with the Dodgers starting Ramon Ortiz (1-1, 5.16 ERA). San Diego counters with Jon Garland (4-2, 1.71 ERA), who probably won’t need much motivation since he was a member of the Dodgers’ rotation, but the club had no need for him.
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