Luddence Von Ludwick III

Ryan Ludwick hit due bombs last night (I mean due here as in the Italian word for "two," pronounced doo-ay, but I also like the connotation of the English word "due," as in "Ludwick was due to hit some frickin' bombs"), including a walk-off shot in the bottom of the 13th, to lead the Padres to a 5-3 victory over the Braves. Chris Denorfia made an astounding clutch diving grab in the top of the 13th to preserve the tie and set up Ludwick's walk off.

Let's talk Ludwick for a moment. He now has four HRs on the season and ten overall as a Padre. Most notably, in addition to last night's walk off, he had a go-ahead bomb in the top of the 9th in a big game against the Cardinals last September, and a huge bomb off Matt Cain in the second inning of the first game of the final three-game series last October in San Francisco. The Padres ultimately came up short in that series, but Luddy's bomb in the Friday night game started the momentum that would keep the season alive two extra days. (And I know of what I speak since, you know, I was there and all.)

Much is made of Ludwick's underachieving hitting since becoming a Padre, but I prefer to focus on some of the clutch bombs he's hit, and trust that there will be many more as the season unfolds.

Incidentally, Ludwick rakes on Derek Lowe. Ludwick's first homer last night was the fourth he's hit in his career off Lowe, the most he's hit off any pitcher (current teammate Aaraon Harang is second with three).

Two Nights In Houston

Kudos to Ryan Ludwick for his big 2-run single on Friday night And to Chris Denorfia for hitting a home-run and a double. Those hits, and solid performances by Aaron Harang and the bullpen, led to a 4-2 victory over the Stros.

Last night things didn't break so well for the Padres. Mat Latos only gave up 4 hits over 6.1 innings but one of those hits was a two-run bomb to Chris Johnson. Another was a reaching swing by Hunter Pence that fell for a double scoring Michael Bourn who had reached on an infield single. Trouble also arose when Bud Black sent Latos back out in the 6th and, after striking out Brett Wallace, he walked back-to-back batters that would both later score. Another in a line of winnable losses by the 2011 Padres.

And, as we look ahead to this afternoon's games, I'll leave you with this list of Padres and their current batting averages:

Brad Hawpe - .143
Jason Bartlett - .132
Ryan Ludwick - .116
Will Venable - .146
Jorge Cantu - .167

"Looking Good, Padres." "Feeling Good, Ryan."

That was the hypothetical conversation I had last night with the Padres. It's based on the famous last line of dialogue from Trading Places ("Looking good, Billy Ray!" "Feeling good, Clarence."). I thought those words were apropos considering the Padres solid start to the season.

Indeed, after the first four games of the 2011 season, the Padres sit at 3-1, highlighted by yesterday's win in the home opener against the San Francisco Giants (with honorable mention to Chase's 4 ribeye game Saturday in St. Louis - pictured above). Aaron Harang overcame some early wildness to shut down the Gints over six innings, paving the way for worry-free relief work from Luke, Mike, and Heath.

The only downside was that I couldn't be there in person to watch Trevor throw out the first pitch. What a moment.

In The Belly Of The Beast: Padres Lose Game Three In San Franciso, Miss Playoffs

This was the only photo I could bring myself to take during yesterday's season finale in San Francisco. I don't know who this Padres fan was roaming AT&T Park, but he was definitely a beast. You can't see it, but he's dominating a hot dog in this photo. The Giants fans are top notch rooters, and heckled me quite a bit as I walked around the park the last few days. When I showed my wife the photo of this Padres fan, all she said was, "I bet he doesn't get heckled."

She's probably right.

I don't have much to say about the game because the more I think about it, the more I want to weep. A few things stand out in my mind: Adrian's line-out with two outs in the first, Ludwick striking out with two on in the third, Denorfia diving and missing Aubrey Huff's two-out double in the bottom half of the third, Torrealba's 5-4 double play after the Padres had the first two runners on in the top of the 6th, Tejada striking out on a full count with two on in the seventh, Durango working the count full to lead off the 9th before grounding out to short. Geoff Young has a much more thorough summary at Hardball Times.

I'll quote my wife again, as she was the one person I interviewed after the game: "They just got in a rut early, and the game just kept going forward, and they never pulled out of it."

My thought? The Padres didn't lose the season yesterday. They lost it during the three-game losing streak last Sunday to Tuesday, and then with the 1-0 loss to the Cubs on Thursday. Those losses just left too much ground to cover, even for a game Padres team.

Hairston - Denorfia - Salazar

Scotty "Bombs" Hairston, Chris "Choate Rosemary" Denorfia, and Oscar "Pepe" Salazar, comprise the Padres starting outfield in today's game against Johan Santana and the Metsies.

What a pack of beasts.