The San Diego Padres organization will be celebrating highlights from years ago, then the team will focus on improving its playoff chances in the present.
Pitcher Jake Peavy (winner of the 2007 National League Cy Young Award) and former owner John Moores (under whom Petco Park was built as the jewel of downtown San Diego) will be inducted into the Padres’ Hall of Fame before the opening pitch of the three-game series against the Texas Rangers.
Watching the ceremonies from the opposing dugout will be Rangers manager Bruce Bochy, who was the Padres manager during Peavy’s first five seasons and when Moores and fellow Padres Hall of Famers Kevin Towers and Larry Lucchino helped stock the club with the talent that won four division titles plus the 1998 National League championship.
“I’ve always loved returning to San Diego,” Bochy said last spring when he learned the Rangers would be in San Diego when Peavy and Moores were inducted into the Padres’ Hall of Fame. “It’s been my home … a lot of great memories.”
Bochy was a member of the Padres’ family for 24 straight seasons from 1983 through the end of the 2006 season as a player, a minor-league manager, a coach and for the final 12 years as Padres manager (1995-2006). Bochy is still the longest tenured and winningest manager in club history, although he is better known for winning three World Series titles with the San Francisco Giants.
Now, “Boch” returns to San Diego as the manager of the Rangers, who are under the control of former Padres pitcher Chris Young, Texas’ general manager.
Even last March, Bochy said he viewed this return as “a business trip.”
The business for the Rangers is protecting their American League West lead. The business — or prayer — for the Padres is to get back into the National League wild-card race.
The Rangers arrive in San Diego having gone 2-4 against the Dodgers and Astros after winning six straight to open the second half. The Rangers maintain a two-game lead over the Astros in the AL West.
Meanwhile, the Padres dropped the rubber match of a three-game series at home against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday afternoon to finish their season series against the Pirates with a 1-5 record.
“Disappointing,” said San Diego manager Bob Melvin. “But we’ve seen this game before. I still think we have that run in us to get us back in this thing.”
Friday’s series opener is a match of right-handers — the Rangers’ Dane Dunning (8-3, 3.18 ERA) against the Padres’ Joe Musgrove (9-3, 3.25).
Dunning will be facing the Padres for the first time in his career. The 6-foot-4 Dunning will be making his 15th straight start after opening the season with eight straight relief appearances. The 28-year-old has seen his ERA climb every month of the season. He is 1-2 in four July starts thus far with a 4.98 ERA. He was 3-0 in five June starts with a 3.62 ERA. On the season, opponents are batting .243 against him.
Musgrove had an eight-decision win streak snapped last Sunday in Detroit when he gave up three runs on seven hits and a walk with six strikeouts in six innings. Still, the 6-foot-5 Padres ace is 7-1 over his last 10 starts with a 2.07 ERA — giving up 15 runs (14 earned) on 51 hits and 10 walks with 61 strikeouts in 61 innings – 6.1-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
The San Diego County native is 5-1 in eight starts at Petco Park this season with a 3.40 ERA and a .230 opponents’ batting average. He is 2-3 lifetime against Texas in eight appearances (six starts) with a 3.62 ERA and a .213 opponents’ batting average.
–Field Level Media
