Pirates 4, Padres 2

Dang, Rogers finally blew one. He’s human. He’ll be back tomorrow, no doubt, ready to go. Closers were built to take abuse.

I’m pretty sure that we never would have needed Rogers to begin with if our guys knew how to hit a ball. Manny was rested, and we paid for it. 10 hits, seven walks, two runs to show for it, at home, against the Pirates. Kim was supposed to spell Machado at third base, instead he spelled LOB. He got two hits, but pissed himself with the bases loaded, multiple times. Tatis being out already is a real handicap for this team. Take Manny out, and the visiting team can recruit one of their peanut vendors as a starting pitcher, and our offense would still manage to pop out with the bases loaded and less than two out.

I hate to admit it, but not having Tatis is killing us. More than anything, I’m disappointed in Tatis, that he doesn’t seem to have the commitment to win us a WS. How many motorcycle accidents did he have? Do you think the fans care? Is there more to Tatis than hitting 40 dingers and seeing his chest pounding strut on ESPN? Tatis needs to mature (as in today) and understand this isn’t all about him. He needs to think about the fans here. They’re the ones being shortchanged here, while Tatis keeps every cent of his salary. C’mon, Tatis. Earn it. You are quite possibly the best talent we have ever had. Give the fans the commitment they deserve, and you’ll get it all. The trophy, more bling, a statue, and the Coronado Bridge named after you. The Tatis Bridge.

What started out as a rant about the offense finally got cooked down to its bare essentials, which is my frustration at Tatis being on the DL. We still have a very decent record—with our payroll, I’d expect nothing less. But the GM needs to up his game. Big trades and big free agent signings are part of the game, but where are the team building skills? Look at what the Rays do year in, year out. Look at the A’s, although not necessarily yet this year. If you have a good GM, then payroll becomes secondary. What, so he’s going to swing a trade for Juan Soto? Stop it already. Start developing the right people on the farm. No more stop gap solutions, not after eight years on the job. One more bad move, and the Padres fans will vote to trade the GM. And don’t think they wouldn’t.

We need a hero to step up. Manny probably won’t  hit .360 forever, Hos’s average is already dipping. Grish? Do you want to take over? That go-ahead RBI single was a start. Nola, perhaps? It doesn’t have to be everybody at once, only a hit at a time. No hit, try a sacrifice fly. No fly? Bunt it. Something.

C’mon, Padres. After that terrific road trip, you want to stink it up for the fans now? I have an idea, since we have already decided to give the fans more power, as in trading the GM. For each man left in scoring position, you get to pick the fan of your choice to bat for you the next time around. The results will be the same, but at least it will be far more more entertaining. If the fan should get a hit, he gets to keep Tatis’s salary for the month. Win-win for everybody.