After taking the National League West title last year, the Padres no doubt looked to further solidify their hold on the division this year. A shaky April, however, saw the Padres off to a much different start, which left them at 9-15, and included getting swept at home by Colorado and Arizona, both division rivals. Only a five-run ninth inning and infielder Mark Belhorn’s 10th inning RBI prevented a sweep at the hands of the Dodgers on the final day of April.
“It’s frustrating for all of us,” Padres Manager Bruce Bochy said following a 3-0 loss to the Dodgers on April 28, in the middle of a five-game losing streak. “Overall, we’re not playing bad baseball. Don’t get me wrong, we know we’re not getting it done.”
The arrival of several players in the offseason brought renewed expectations for the club, but the chemistry has been slow to take hold. With the acquisitions of Vinny Castilla, Adrian Gonzalez, Mark Bellhorn, Doug Mirabelli and Mike Piazza, it is in fact third-year shortstop Khalil Greene who leads the team in both home runs and RBIs, with 4 and 13, respectively.
Piazza, acquired from the Mets, however, reached a milestone on April 26 as he hit the 400th home run of his career and 379th as a catcher, still the most at the position and his third of the season.
Piazza described his first month in San Diego, after hitting his 400th, as “bittersweet. Obviously, I wish we were playing better baseball. I’m looking forward to better months ahead, and not just for myself, but for the team. But all in all, there’s a lot of positives here, it’s just been frustrating, the last couple days for us here,” he said.
The hope comes in the fact that “it’s a long season,” Piazza said, “we just have to try to get ourselves out of this rut that we’re in.”
Outfielder Mike Cameron, another offseaon acquisition, only returned from the disabled list on April 23, having recovered from a strained oblique.
On the pitching side, former Rangers starter Chris Young leads San Diego with 26 strikeouts in five starts and two wins and a 3.41 ERA. Meanwhile, closer Trevor Hoffman has three saves to his name so far this season.
Looking ahead, the Padres have a seven-game homestand against the Cubs and Brewers starting Friday, May 5, followed by a nine-game road swing through Chicago, Arizona and Seattle, then finish the month hosting the Braves, Cardinals and Rockies from May 22 through May 31. So far, the Padres started off May right with a 10-4 win away to San Francisco, with Jake Peavy earning his second win of the season while also driving in a run.
