Friars Fall To Dodgers In Finale, Now Prepare For Beantown Invasion: Pads vs. Red Sox Series Preview

By Friar Wire

By Bob Scanlan

The Padres fell to the Dodgers yesterday 7–4, and in doing so dropped their second series in a row putting an end to their nine-game road trip. Making his MLB debut Jose De Leon allowed for runs over six innings of work, while striking out nine, while Yasmani Grandal haunted his former club with the long ball for the second night in a row with a 2-run shot in the 7th to go with the go-ahead run he drove in with a single in the 5th. Yangervis Solarte was the bright spot for the Padres hitting his 15th HR of the season, a 2-run blast in the 3rd to give the Friars a short lived lead, and added another run with a sac-fly in the 5th, but it wasn’t enough.

The Padres will try to turn the page quickly as another playoff contender rolls into town in the Boston Red Sox. Some things to know about both clubs heading into this three-game set include….

TEAM TRENDS:

• Red Sox — The Beantowners arrive in San Diego with a 76–60 record sitting in second place of the N.L. East only 1 game behind the Blue Jays. After a tepid 12–14 start to the second half they’ve taken 15 of their last 23, and lost only 1 of their last 8 series. The offense has been the backbone of their club all year scoring more runs than any other team in baseball this season. Their team ERA has been middle of the road, but their weakness, if there is one, is the bullpen. The Sox have had trouble developing effective relievers from within their own system. The consequence has been the need for manager John Farrell to rely on aging veterans and anyone who shows a propensity

• to be effective quickly gets overused. Defensively the Sox are solid committing the 4th fewest errors in the A.L. and work well as a unit through all the modern day shifts.
• Padres — As noted above the Friars are coming off their second consecutive series loss and are finally coming home after a 9-day road trip. They currently reside in last place of the N.L. West with a 56–80 record, and have lost 15 of their last 21 contests. The challenges have been multi dimensional starting with the offense which since the All-Star break has the lowest batting average and on base percentage in all of baseball. Part of it stems of course from the dismantling of the middle of the lineup at the trade deadline, putting more pressure on Wil Myers and leaving less reasons for opposing pitchers to challenge him. There is also the fatigue factor for a group of young players unaccustomed to playing this long a season, as well as the scouting reports improving as more at bats of theirs are seen and dissected. The pitching has been inconsistent at best with only two of their past six starting pitchers getting through the 5th inning. The bullpen is trying to hold back the flood but it’s getting tougher and tougher not to implode with all the appearances and innings they are being asked to absorb. The defense continues to be a crapshoot as well with obvious plays not being executed and other more subtle plays not being handled smoothly either. It’s a young team learning how to play the game in the unchartered territory of September with little or no veteran eldership to help guide or take the pressure off when needed. Andy Green is doing all he can to get this club across the finish line with growth to the young players.

WHO’S HOT:

• Red Sox — Considering the BoSox have scored 59 runs in their lat 8 games, it’s safe to say that just

• about everyone is swinging the hot shillelagh right now. Enjoying particular scorching hotness would include 1B Hanley Ramirez who’s hit safely in seven of his last nine games batting .343 over that stretch with 4 HRs and 11 RBIs. Dustin Pedroia has been on fire since the start of August and has hit .416 over the past 5 weeks. He’s had almost no power over that stretch with 0 HRs, and only 7 doubles, but has scored 21 runs. Five of the other Red Sox regulars are also hitting .316 or higher over the past week. On the mound former Padre Drew Pomeranz gets the opener and has allowed three runs or less in his last six straight outings, as has Game #3 starter David Price.

• Padres — Yangervis Solarte has been trying to lead the way for the Friars recently, hitting safely in his last six games straight, belting two home runs, a double and even a triple while driving in five runs.

WHO’S NOT:

• Red Sox — Honestly none of the Sox regulars are struggling. Sure, some are less hot than the others, but the “stragglers” are only getting one hit per game right now instead of multiple. No need to feel sorry for anyone on their side.
• Padres — The offense. Other than Solarte, no other Padres regular is hitting above .227 over the past seven games. On the mound none of the three starters that will appear for the Friars this series made it through the fifth inning in their last start, and two didn’t get past the third. There have been unnecessary defensive lapses as well. Hopefully better times in every area of the game lies ahead for the Fathers in this series.

X-FACTORS:

• It’s always interesting when the Yankees or Red Sox come into town because their fans swarm the city days before and virtually take over the stadium. This will be another good opportunity for the young Friars to compete against a playoff contender and continue to lean how to handle both the competition their up against on the field as well as their own internal adrenalin and mind set.
• Drew Pomeranz will be facing the Padres for the first time since they traded him to Boston after his All-Star appearance. No hard feelings there for either side, but it’s still interesting to watch players try to stick it to their old club after a trade that’s still fairly fresh.

• David Ortiz will be making is final stop to Petco in his long and illustrious career. He was able to give his All-Star farewell on the Petco turf back in July, and the Padres have a Big Papi pregame ceremony planned to honor him. Awkward for players to honor an opponent on their turf? Maybe. We’ll see if he ends up being a factor off the bench for Boston with no DH in this series.
• Clay Buchholz will get the start for Game #2 in place of injured Steven Wright. After getting off to a bad start to the season he was demoted to the bullpen, and has had a handful of spot starts, the most recent on August 23rd. He threw well in his last few starting opportunities but the transition back and forth always leads to the questions of both consistency and durability.
• Koji Uehara returns the the Sox bullpen after missing more than a month with a strained pectoral muscle to help with the depth of the Red Sox ‘pen.