Kuzul

When a town’s citizen receives the call to the Bigs, his hometown usually goes crazy.

He gets a parade, streets are named after him, the whole deal.

But what happens when the local neighborhood kid is playing for the local favorite team? Everyone goes crazy.

The standard for a hometown hero was set long ago, when Lou Gehrig, a young man from the Yorkville neighborhood of New York City, began his career with the New York Yankees.

“The Iron Horse” would end up setting the record for consecutive games played (since broken by Cal Ripken, another star playing in his hometown) and career hits as a Yankee (since broken by Derek Jeter, who was born in Northern New Jersey).

Since then, greats such as Pete Rose and Tony Gwynn have played in their hometown.

The general consensus around baseball is that Joe Mauer is the one of the greatest players in baseball. But which hometown hero is having the best 2010?

Here are the top ten.

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Who has been the most valuable player in the National League so far this season? Ask that question to 10 different people, you’ll probably get four or five different answers.

By this point last season, Albert Pujols had already pulled away from the pack. He was hitting .328 with 26 home runs, and an OPS of 1.159. On June 23, 2009, it was fairly clear who the National League MVP had been over the first few months of the season.

But this year? No National League batter has hit 20 or more home runs. None have an OPS over 1.000. Albert Pujols is hitting “just” .302 with “only” 15 home runs. Hanley Ramirez is having a down year. So is Chase Utley. And so is Prince Fielder.

Andre Ethier looked like the clear-cut favorite early in the season, but his offense has tailed off and his defense has been beyond terrible.

Jason Heyward had a case entering the month, with an OPS near 1.000 on a first place team, but he too has been in quite a slump.

Albert Pujols was near the league lead in several offensive categories a few weeks ago, but he’s hit just three home runs in the month of June.

Who does that leave in contention?

Let’s start with the first place Braves, and current NL batting average leader Martin Prado. Prado is the only National Leaguer among the top-10 in the league in batting average, hitting .340 to date. But Prado rarely walks and has little power. Prado is a good hitter and a solid defensive third baseman, but his overall offensive package just isn’t enough.

What about Andre Ethier? He’s dropped off just a bit, but he’s still hitting .320. He hasn’t walked quite all that much, but his SLG% of .583 leads the National League, and his .965 OPS is second. The problem with Ethier, as it has always been, is defense. He’s one of the worst right fielders in baseball.

So far this season, he’s cost his team nearly 14 runs in the field, according to UZR. Over his career, he’s lost his team more than 30 runs in right field, so this is nothing new. As great a hitter as he’s been, his poor defense has to be taken into consideration.

Marlon Byrd is hitting .323 on the season with a .521 slugging and a UZR over seven. But his lack of walks (his OBP is just .366) make him a less valuable player than his average and slugging would indicate.

Another National League Central outfielder might have a better case—Matt Holliday. Holliday has had an incredible June. He’s hitting .308, but hasn’t walked as frequently as in previous seasons, and has only 11 home runs. He’s a solid candidate, and the way he’s playing, he could put himself into contention sooner rather than latter. But right now, Holliday probably doesn’t deserve to win the award.

Joey Votto is certainly a reasonable candidate. The Reds are in first place, due in large part to Votto’s contributions with the bat. Votto is hitting .310 with a .405 OBP and 15 home runs. He has an impressive .962 OPS, and might be the favorite to win the award if it were not for another first baseman on a first place team. That man is Adrian Gonzalez.

Gonzalez is, in my mind, the most underrated player in baseball. He’s probably the second best first baseman in the league, but is often over looked, partly because he plays in San Diego, and partly…well, because he plays his home games in San Diego. Last season, his OPS was nearly 200 points higher on the road. At home, he hit just .24, and 28 of his 40 home runs came on the road.

So with that in mind, consider the fact that Gonzalez now leads the league in OPS. So far this season, Gonzalez is hitting .313 with a .411 OBP and a .559 SLG, to go along with 15 home runs and 47 RBI. His home/road splits are astounding. On the road, Gonzalez is a .353 hitter with a .664 SLG. Again, his OPS is nearly 200 points higher outside of Petco.

Gonzalez is also one of the best defensive first baseman in the league, and has won the last two National League Gold Glove Awards at first base. The Padres are in first place mostly due to outstanding pitching and defense, but Gonzalez’s offensive contribution has been extremely valuable for a team that plays half their games in offensive hell.

If the season were to end today, I have no idea who would win the National League MVP award. But I have a pretty good idea who would be deserving of that honor. That would be baseball’s most underrated player, Adrian Gonzalez.

This article is also featured on Fantasy Bullpen.

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With just over a month to go before Major League Baseball’s trade deadline, the San Diego Padres and general manager Jed Hoyer know that there is work still to be done.

He knows that the team must make a trade for an outfielder, or just a productive bat, for this team to stay ahead in the NL West and make some noise in the playoffs. What he’s not going to do is show his cards, regardless of how many time fans want to know what he’s planning on doing.

If you live in the San Diego area, you might have heard Darren Smith on 1090 AM in San Diego interview Hoyer on several occasions. What remains humorous to me is how many times fans want to know who he’s going after.

Just so we’re clear on this Padres fans, Hoyer is not going to come out and tell you who he’s going after because you know as well as I do that other teams will find that quote and make sure he doesn’t get the players he’s after.

So that being said, let’s get to the speculation about who Hoyer could or could not be looking at, including players that may be on their way out of San Diego.

Adrian Gonzalez

I’m not going keep this short and sweet. With the Padres currently leading the division over both the Giants and the Dodgers, you can pretty much guarantee that Adrian Gonzalez is going to be with the team through the rest of this season.

What happens after the 2010 season concludes is another question that won’t be answered until possibly late November or early December. But as of right now, Adrian isn’t going anywhere.

Heath Bell

Heath Bell only has a month left in a Padre uniform. Yes, Padre fans, you heard me right. Bell will be the first one on the move because if you want to get that bat you covet so much, you need to give something to get something. The only player that will land you the bat you need is the current Padres’ closer.

Don’t get all excited on me and start to freak out about who’s going to be the team’s new closer if Bell is shipped elsewhere. Mike Adams and the rest of the Padres’ bullpen cast, have done a phenomenal job out of the bullpen and can handle the closing duties just fine.

While Adams seems to be the odds on favorite to take over the role, the Padres could do a closer by committee until they find the right guy for the job and still be just fine.

Austin Kearns

This is one name that’s been thrown around in the rumors as of late. Though he’s having quite a year in Cleveland, hitting .283 with seven home runs and driving in 32, he’s only hitting .217 (10/46) against National League clubs this season.

You have to wonder, with those kind of numbers can he be a productive hitter in Petco Park, a by now infamous pitcher’s park?

David DeJesus

David DeJesus is another outfielder that is getting a lot of run in the rumor sheets over the past few weeks. Although the Padres might have interest in him, so do the Giants, Angels, and Dodgers so the Padres are definitely not alone in their possible chase.

But, one snag in landing the Royals outfielder is Kansas City is in no way obligated to trade him for one reason. His $6 million price tag for next season isn’t exactly “expensive” for the team to handle.

Josh Hamilton

Ok, I will admit that this is probably a complete long shot but I’ll take a stab at it anyway.

The Rangers are currently going through bankruptcy hearings and after a judge’s ruling yesterday, it seems unlikely at this point that the team can continue their chase of either Houston’s Roy Oswalt or Seattle’s Cliff Lee.

That being said, the Padres and Rangers are no strangers to each other when it comes to being trade partners. Let’s not forget, it was the Rangers that gave the Padres a nicely wrapped Christmas gift in the form of Gonzalez and Chris Young.

So what’s stopping the Padres from possibly dangling Bell and a mid-level prospect or two in front of Rangers general manager Jon Daniels and asking what it would take to pry Josh Hamilton away from them?

Again, I understand that this a slim to none possibility, but it’s worth a phone call from Hoyer, don’t you agree?

Coco Crisp

Back in December of last year, the Padres flirted with the idea of signing Coco Crisp to a one-year deal and even came close to an agreement. However, according to reports, Crisp backed out and instead signed a two-year deal with the Oakland A’s.

Well, seems karma has intervened and the A’s could be looking to either deal or trade Crisp at the deadline. Though his $5.75 million option for next season isn’t exactly expensive for the A’s to exercise, his lack of on the field time due to injury is motivation enough to find a trade partner.

While the Padres may have flirted with him about seven months ago, don’t expect those flirtations to pick back up again this time around.

Xavier Nady

Padres fans will know this name well as Xavier Nady has all ready had a stint with the Padres from 2003 to 2005 before being traded to the New York Mets for, yes you guessed it, Heath Bell.

Now, with the Cubs ready to deal certain pieces of their roster, Nady could be a player that the Padres could have for cheap. I’m not against it as I’ve been a fan of his while he was in San Diego. It was unfortunate that Nady never really got a shot to show what he could do, but maybe another shot shouldn’t really be out of the question.

He’s a cheap option and won’t cost the Padres more than a possible low to mid-level prospect. He’s currently hitting .262 with four home runs through 49 games with the Cubs.

Adam Dunn, Josh Willingham, Nyjer Morgan

Three players that could become available if the Washington Nationals slide any further away from the top of the NL East are Adam Dunn, Josh Willingham, and Nyjer Morgan.

However, the Nationals don’t seem quite ready to become sellers just yet, especially with their new ticket seller, Stephen Strasburg.

The team has been in talks with Dunn about a two-year extension since spring training but the two sides haven’t agreed on a deal as of yet. They’ve had ample opportunities to deal Willingham over the last year and change but seem unwilling to do just that, so where does that leave Morgan?

All three of these players, especially Willingham and Morgan, are going to get interest from teams looking for an outfielder but the way things look at this point, the Nationals seem just fine hanging on to them.

Cody Ross

According to Marlins’ beat writer Joe Frisaro, the Marlins are looking for relief help. Really? You don’t say?

With the Padres having a plethora of pitching out of the bullpen, and with their apparent willingness to deal Bell, why not look at guy like outfielder Cody Ross?

He’s currently hitting .287 with six home runs and 41 runs driven in. He could be the kind of player that the Padres would be looking for.

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It is always fun to speculate who will make the once-again expanded All-Star Game roster. Since each team has to have at least one All-Star, here are the 30 who are deserving.

This list includes many young stars of the game who should be showcased to the whole nation, as well as some veterans that you might not expect to see at an All-Star Game.

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Adrian Gonzalez homered and drove in three runs and Chase Headley put together a four-hit afternoon as San Diego beat the Philadelphia Phillies 6-5 on pinch-hitter Oscar Salazar’s two-out infield single in the 10th inning, part of a 16-hit outburst by the Padres.

Nick Hundley’s hot hitting continued, as he also homered for the Padres, who scored three times in the first inning against Joe Blanton.

Yet, as was the case in the first two games of the series, the Phillies answered right back and led 5-3 before the second inning was through, behind Ryan Howard’s 3 RBI to help chase starter Kevin Correia in the second inning.

The Padres clawed back in the fourth on Gonzalez’s two-out single and tied it at 5 on Hundley’s homer leading off the fifth.

Headley opened the 10th with a single off Danys Baez (2-2) and advanced to third on a sacrifice and a grounder to second. After an intentional walk to Tony Gwynn Jr., Salazar singled deep into the shortstop hole to put the Padres ahead 6-5.

Heath Bell got through a shaky 10th inning for his 15th save of the season. Bell issued a walk to Placido Polanco with one out, but was thrown out at third by Gwynn, in a potential game-saving play, trying to advance on a Chase Utley single. Howard also singled to put runners at the corners, but Jayson Werth struck out on a 97 mph fastball to end the game.

Whenever any game gets into the bullpen, the Padres have a distinct advantage, and they utilized that advantage on Sunday. Four Padres relievers delivered 8 1/3 scoreless innings.

After Correia left, trailing 5-3, Sean Gallagher delivered 3 1/3 scoreless innings, tying his longest outing of the season. After the Padres came back to tie it, Ryan Webb delivered two scoreless innings yielding just one hit.  Mike Adams followed with two more scoreless innings, and finally the Padres broke through.

Padres relievers lead the National League in ERA, strikeouts and have held opposing hitters to a league-low .207 batting average. After the seventh inning this season, the Padres have outscored the opposition 25-13, they are a league-best 6-3 in extra inning games and 8-4 in games decided in the last at-bat.

The much needed victory allows the Padres to avoid their first three-game losing streak of the season with and sets up a chance for a series split tomorrow with the Phillies on ESPN’s Monday Night Baseball.

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With the draft on the horizon it is the perfect time to take a look back at some of baseball’s all time best #1 picks. Just because someone is drafted #1 overall doesn’t mean they are going to be the next best thing just look at Brien Taylor. Sometimes, however, teams who did their scouting wind up with future hall of famers.

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The Oakland A’s are in a familiar spot this season just like most of the decade. There’s a need for a big bat in the lineup.

So, far in the young season, the A’s have been hovering near or been in first place in the American League West. 

If the A’s are to win the division, there’s no question of what needs to be addressed for this team, and that is to bring in a big bat to anchor the lineup.

The A’s are currently on a four game losing streak. Over the span of those games the team has faced three left handed pitchers and one right handed pitcher.

So far in the losing the streak, the A’s have managed just five runs against Derek Holland, C.J. Wilson, Joe Saunders, and Ervin Santana. 

It’s the lineup that was brought out against those three left handed pitchers that make the A’s lineup look more like a Minor League team rather then a Major League team.

Here’s what the first game against Holland looked like. 

1. Cliff Pennington

2. Adam Rosales

3. Daric Barton

4. Kevin Kouzmanoff

5. Ryan Sweeney

6. Jake Fox

7. Landon Powell

8. Josh Donaldson

9. Rajai Davis

The game against Wilson saw a lineup of

1. Pennington

2. Rosales

3. Barton

4. Kouzmanoff

5. Fox

6. Powell

7. Donaldson

8. Gabe Gross

9. Davis

Third games lineup was

1. Pennington

2. Rosales

3. Barton

4. Kouzmanoff

5. Fox

6. Powell

7. Donaldson

8. Gross

9. Davis

None of these lineups would scare any Major League pitchers.

In the fourth game against Santana the A’s lineup was a lot better and here’s what that line up was: 

1. Pennington

2. Barton

3. Sweeney

4. Kouzmanoff

5. Eric Chavez

6. Jack Cust

7. Rosales

8. Eric Patterson

9. Powell 

Still, for the A’s the lineup isn’t that strong. As seen by the fact that Patterson is tied for the team lead in homeruns with just four. It also shows the problem with the A’s in games where they don’t score many runs. 

When the A’s score four or more runs, the A’s are 17-1, and when the team scores less than four runs, the team is 1-18.

That’s a big problem because as the season progresses the A’s are going to play in games where they will be scoring four or less runs. 

That means the A’s need to bring in a big bat to the lineup to put some fear into the opposing team’s pitching staff.

Right now the A’s two leading homerun hitters, who both have only hit four balls out of the park, are Patterson and Kurt Suzuki. Unfortunately, Suzuki is on the DL with an injury and has missed the last 20 games. 

Now more than ever is the time for the A’s to bring in a big hitter.

There are a couple of names the A’s should and could acquire in trade especially with their talented minor league prospects.

If it means giving up a big name prospect, then that’s the chance the A’s should take. It shows A’s fans that the team looking for a new ballpark is serious about winning.

One name to consider is Prince Fielder from the Milwaukee Brewers.

He’s a free agent at the end of the year and could sign anywhere. He would bring a huge bat into the middle of the A’s lineup and could offer the protection that has been lacking for Kouzmanoff, who has struggled with the bat this season for the A’s. 

Another possibility to consider would be trading away Tyson Ross, Daric Barton, who has been the best A’s hitter so far this season, Michael Taylor, and one of the young starters the A’s have such as Trevor Cahill, Vin Mazzaro, or Clayton Mortensen. 

Another name that has come up who more than likely will not sign with the San Diego Padres is Adrian Gonzalez.

If the Padres continue to win he maybe untouchable. 

If the A’s were to somehow pry away Gonzalez from the Padres they would have to give up players like Ross, Barton, Cahill/Mazarro, and Chris Carter who is the best prospect the A’s have in terms of power hitting ability. 

Manny Ramirez is another possibility, but his baggage may not be what the A’s want on this young team. But, his ability to hit would definitely add another dimension to the A’s lineup.

Ramirez also knows what it takes to win, something the A’s have had not had since the early part of this decade. 

However, there’s already a rumor that the Mariners may try to trade Cliff Lee for Ramirez because of the Mariners woeful offense.

For the A’s to get Ramirez, a trade for Ross and Mazzaro would be negotiated because it gives the Dodgers young pitching talent that the team has been desperately seeking.

Again, Ross is projected as a solid starter once he gets settled in at the Major League level and Mazzaro is very talented Triple A prospect. 

Lastly, another option for the A’s would be to bring in Jayson Werth from the Phillies.

He’ll also be a free agent at the end of the year and there is a rumor that Werth may cost too much money for the Phillies to retain. 

If that is the case, the Phillies will want to get something for him.

Maybe it means bringing back Michael Taylor, Adrian Cardenas, and Henry Rodriguez. Werth would give the A’s versatility in the outfield because he can play all three positions and he adds a big threat to the lineup. 

There’s one thing for sure and that is that the A’s need a bat in the lineup.

With an addition of the big bat in the lineup it would benefit the pitchers because now they would be able to make a mistake and not have to think about it for very long.

In the 19 losses this season the A’s have managed 38 runs! That’s an average of two per game. 

When the A’s win though, it’s a different story, the team averages 5.4 runs per game in the wins.

That’s a huge difference between the runs scored in losses and the runs scored in wins and with an addition of a big bat into the lineup it gives them a chance to win low scoring games as opposed to losing them. 

Just maybe with the addition of a big bat to the lineup it would excite A’s fans to come to the ballpark and watch this young team compete on a regular basis. 

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If the duration of the major league baseball season were a California road trip up the Interstate 5, the Padres would barely be in Oceanside.

Nonetheless, with one month in the rear view mirror, the Padres are in cruise control.

For the third time in four games on Sunday, the Padres shut out the Milwaukee Brewers, this time on a combined three hitter by John Garland and two relievers. The Brewers came into the series leading the NL in scoring. 

It was the first time the Padres have had three shutouts in a series of any length in their 42-year history.

The 8-0 victory marks the 13^th win in 16 games for San Diego.

The early success has left fans and followers of baseball asking the same question:

Who are these guys and what have they done with the Padres?

As evidenced in the recent shutouts, the Friars’ pitching staff, from the starting rotation to the bullpen, has been lights out.

Yet, the stingy pitching has set the tone for the Padres clubhouse and resulted in not only more offensive potency, but a unit playing with more intensity and resolve.

Adrian Gonzalez, the usually permissive Padres All-Star first baseman, was tossed in the bottom of the 8^th of Saturday’s 2-1 loss, after arguing balls and strikes in a rare show of emotion.

The ejection was the first of Gonzalez’s career, and has a ways to go to reach Bud Black’s mark of 10. Black not only joined the double digit ejection club as a manager, but he also joined Gonzalez in the clubhouse after backing his slugger.    

Home plate umpire Rob Drake’s strike zone was fluctuant at best for most of the evening. It was Adrian’s third strikeout of the night and while he and Black definitely got their moneys worth, it was good to see some fire from within.

It was peculiar seeing all-time saves leader Trevor Hoffman in another jersey at PETCO Park. Hoffman, who has struggled this year with four blown saves already, pitched a perfect ninth for his 595^th save Saturday.

The Friars look to stay in gear for their sixth consecutive series victory and their 10^th win in 11 games at home Monday, as they host division rival Colorado for a three game series. 

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