Pedro Guerrero Was Good

The first year I was cognizant of baseball was the Summer of '82 and I remember watching a Game of the Week and seeing this beast named Pedro Guerrero manning the outfield for the Dadgers.

My first thought was, "Why aren't the Padres ever on the Game of the Week?"

My second thought was, "Who is this monster beast in the Dodgers outfield and why don't the Padres have anyone remotely as badass as this guy?"

The envy I had for the Dadgers with a player like Guerrero wasn't diminished at all when his final numbers for '82 came in: 32 bombs, 100 ribeyes and a .304 batting average.

Though they were a solid squad, the '82 Padres didn't have any guys that reached even one of those benchmarks. Terry Kennedy led the team in all three major categories with a .295 21 97 line. Not at all shabby - especially for a catcher - but not quite the magical line of a .300 average, 30 bombs and 100 RBIs.

It shouldn't surprise you that with a beast like Guerrero the Dadgers had a better record than the Padres in '82 and finished the season only a game behind the first place Bravos.

At that point I never thought the Drinos would ever have any beasts like Guerrero.

But lo and behold just two seasons later the Padres fielded a roster with the likes of Tony Gwynn, Steve Garvey, Graig Nettles and Kevin McReynolds, all solid monsters who helped lead the team to the World Series.

Just goes to show you how quickly things can change. Last season the Dadgers were well ahead of the Drinos in terms of talent, wins and just about any other category one could think of. Now, less than a year later, it is the Padres who own first place in the NL West and - if they continue at their present pace - will taste the playoffs while the Dadgers sit out October and plan for Summer 2011.

The chance to stick a fork in the Dadgers begins tonight.

Let's get this dun.