2006 San Diego Padres: Making Moves

2006 San Diego Padres: Making Moves

Going out quietly from the 2005 postseason, the San Diego Padres made some moves in the offseason to improve the team. Some of these changes paid off and clearly manifested on the field of play. On November 15, 2005 the Padres traded outfielder Xavier Nady to the New York Mets in exchange for center fielder Mike Cameron. On January 4, 2006 the Padres traded pitchers Adam Eaton, Akinori Otsuka and Billy Killian to the Texas Rangers in exchange for first baseman Adrian Gonzalez, starting pitcher Chris Young and outfielder Termel Sledge. On January 12 the Padres signed pitcher Alan Embree. On February 3 the Padres signed catcher Mike Piazza.

Along with the changes to the team, the Padres dealt with an improved National League West division that gave them a harder road to travel. In 2006 the Padres went 88-74, tying the Los Angeles Dodgers for 1^st in the National League West, but because of their 13-5 record against the Dodgers in head-to-head play, the Padres were awarded the division title. The Padres went 43-38 at their home ballpark called PETCO Park and went 45-36 on the road.

First baseman Adrian Gonzalez batted .304 with 24 home runs and 82 RBI’s off 173 hits and 38 doubles. Left fielder Dave Roberts batted .293 with 146 hits, 18 doubles, 13 triples and 49 stolen bases. Catcher Mike Piazza batted .283 with 22 home runs and 68 RBI’s off 113 hits and 19 doubles. Second baseman Josh Barfield batted .280 with 13 home runs, 151 hits, 32 doubles and 21 stolen bases.

Center fielder Mike Cameron had 22 home runs and 83 RBI’s off 148 hits, 34 doubles, 9 triples and 25 stolen bases. Right fielder Brian Giles had 14 home runs and 83 RBI’s off 159 hits, 37 doubles and 9 stolen bases. Shortstop Kahlil Greene had 15 home runs, 101 hits and 26 doubles. Third baseman Vinny Castilla had 59 hits and 10 doubles in 72 games. Infielder Geoff Blum had 70 hits and 17 doubles in 109 games. Catcher Josh Bard batted .338 with 9 home runs, 78 hits and 19 doubles.

Though he went 11-14, starting pitcher Jake Peavy had 215 strikeouts and 2 complete games. Clay Hensley had 122 strikeouts and a 3.71 despite going 11-12, recording 1 complete game and 1 shutout. Chris Young went 11-5 with 164 strikeouts and a 3.46 ERA. Woody Williams went 12-5 with a 3.65 ERA. Chan Ho Park went 7-7 with 96 strikeouts, recording 1 complete game and 1 shutout. Closer Trevor Hoffman won the 2006 National League Relief Man of the Year Award as he had 46 saves and a 2.14 ERA. Relief pitcher Scott Linebrink went 7-4 with 2 saves and a 3.57 ERA. Jon Adkins went 2-1 with a 3.98 ERA. Alan Embree went 4-3 with a 3.27 ERA. Cla Meredith went 5-1 with a 1.07 ERA.

Compared to 2005 the Padres fared better during the 2006 regular season as they played better on a month-to-month basis. They went 19-10 in May, 14-12 in June, 13-13 in July and 19-9 in September. On May 1 the Padres traded catcher Doug Mirabelli to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for Josh Bard and Cla Meredith, a trade that would certainly help San Diego down the road.

One great regular season performance for San Diego came on September 13 when they blanked the Cincinnati Reds 10-0 at the Great American Ballpark. Jake Peavy pitched 6 innings and gave up 3 hits and 1 walk while recording 2 strikeouts. In the top of the 1^st inning Adrian Gonzalez had an RBI double. In the top of the 2^nd Peavy had an RBI double, Brian Giles had a 2-run double, and Gonzalez followed with an RBI single. In the top of the 3^rd Geoff Blum smacked a 2-run home run, and in the top of the 6^th Mike Piazza clubbed a 3-run home run.

The 2006 National League Division Series was pretty much a repeat of the 2005 National League Division Series as the Padres would face the St. Louis Cardinals once again in postseason play. The end result only slightly changed as the Padres fell to the Cardinals 3 games to 1. The only game of the series the Padres won would be Game 3 on October 7 at Busch Stadium III, winning by the score of 3-1. Chris Young pitched 6.2 innings, giving up 4 hits and 2 walks while recording 9 strikeouts. In the top of the 4^th inning third baseman Russell Branyan had a 2-run double, and Geoff Blum followed with a sacrifice fly. In the bottom of the 8^th pinch hitting outfielder So Taguchi hit a solo home run, but that couldn’t spark a St. Louis rally.

Some Padres players found enough success on the field to get recognized. Mike Cameron won a Gold Glove for his great play in center field. Chris Young would be named National League Pitcher of the Month for the month of May, and Trevor Hoffman would make the 2006 All-Star Game as a reserve for the National League.