August 3, 2002
Padres relief pitchers have come and gone this year much like patrons at a doughnut shop: Take a number ... next.
Two dozen pitchers have toiled out of the bullpen. That total includes infielder D'Angelo Jimenez and top starter Brian Lawrence, who worked two-thirds of an inning in relief in the last game before the All-Star break.
There have been 15 right-handers, nine left-handers.
Of the six pitchers who opened the season in the bullpen, only two ? Trevor Hoffman and Jeremy Fikac ? remain. And Fikac made a side trip to Class AA Mobile.
Early on, the bullpen was outstanding. Fikac, Steve Reed, Hoffman and Alan Embree had a combined ERA of under 2.00 for the first month of the season.
Although Hoffman has remained the constant, Fikac has fallen on hard times (6.69 ERA since May 1) and both Embree (0.94 ERA when he was sent to Boston on June 23) and Reed (1.98 when dealt to the Mets on Wednesday) were traded for prospects.
Those trades and Fikac's struggles have left the Padres without a bona fide setup man in front of Hoffman. The bullpen's ERA has climbed steadily to 4.25.
Anyone who believes the bullpen hasn't been a problem for the Padres this season wasn't watching Thursday's game in Chicago. Yes, Hoffman took the loss after suffering his second blown save of the year. But Hoffman shouldn't have been needed. The relievers ahead of the closer allowed four runs in two innings ? capped by Mark Bellhorn's three-run homer off Fikac.
Manager Bruce Bochy yesterday said the job of being the setup man will fall to a committee that won't currently include Fikac. The committee will include Brandon Villafuerte, Mike Holtz and Tom Davey.
The former two members of the committee were pitching at Class AAA Portland until last month. The third member has a 6.75 ERA.
"We'll go with the hot hand," Bochy said. "The key to the last two months of the season will be having our bullpen come through for us."
Bochy said he and general manager Kevin Towers discussed the state of the bullpen before the trades of Embree and Reed were completed.
"We knew those trades would be putting the young guys in a different situation," said Bochy. "But we have to see what we've got and what they can do."
"These are guys we like," said pitching coach Greg Booker. "But it's up to them to step it up. Right now, we've got guys that we have more confidence in than they have in themselves."
One of those pitchers would be Fikac, who has surrendered six earned runs on four hits ? two of them homers ? in his last 51/3 innings.
The Padres touted Fikac, 27, as a setup man coming into the season off a 23-game cameo late last year that produced a 1.37 ERA. Bochy yesterday professed continued confidence in Fikac.
"We all think a lot of Jeremy," said Bochy. "I do have confidence in him. But when you are young, slumps are tough. When he gets through this, he'll be a better pitcher. But right now, we're not going to put him in that situation."
Another pitcher who won't soon see the setup situation is left-hander Kevin Walker, who today will make his first rehab outing at Portland after seven scoreless innings (three hits, 10 K's) at Class A Lake Elsinore. Walker, who is recuperating from elbow reconstruction surgery, will make at least four appearances with Portland before joining the Padres in mid-August.
"Walker will definitely help out," said Bochy. "But we're going to look out after him and not use him too much."
Said Booker: "We're not going to throw Walker into the fire. We're going to sneak him back into a role. Maybe two weeks after he gets back we'll look harder. But when he's ready to come here, I'm going to personally pick him up at the airport."
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even though not a great amount of pitches, hoffman has warmed up now and pitched 4 days in a row.
8/2/2002 Cincinnati W 5-2 Relief - S 1.0 0 0 0 1 0 0 5 1:1 0
8/1/2002 @Chi. Cubs L 7-8 Relief - L 0.2 3 2 2 0 0 0 19 1:1 0
7/31/2002 @Chi. Cubs W 8-6 Relief - S 1.0 0 0 0 1 0 0 11 1:1 0
7/30/2002 @Chi. Cubs W 6-5 Relief - S 1.0 1 0 0 0 0 0 10 0:3 1
Padres relief pitchers have come and gone this year much like patrons at a doughnut shop: Take a number ... next.
Two dozen pitchers have toiled out of the bullpen. That total includes infielder D'Angelo Jimenez and top starter Brian Lawrence, who worked two-thirds of an inning in relief in the last game before the All-Star break.
There have been 15 right-handers, nine left-handers.
Of the six pitchers who opened the season in the bullpen, only two ? Trevor Hoffman and Jeremy Fikac ? remain. And Fikac made a side trip to Class AA Mobile.
Early on, the bullpen was outstanding. Fikac, Steve Reed, Hoffman and Alan Embree had a combined ERA of under 2.00 for the first month of the season.
Although Hoffman has remained the constant, Fikac has fallen on hard times (6.69 ERA since May 1) and both Embree (0.94 ERA when he was sent to Boston on June 23) and Reed (1.98 when dealt to the Mets on Wednesday) were traded for prospects.
Those trades and Fikac's struggles have left the Padres without a bona fide setup man in front of Hoffman. The bullpen's ERA has climbed steadily to 4.25.
Anyone who believes the bullpen hasn't been a problem for the Padres this season wasn't watching Thursday's game in Chicago. Yes, Hoffman took the loss after suffering his second blown save of the year. But Hoffman shouldn't have been needed. The relievers ahead of the closer allowed four runs in two innings ? capped by Mark Bellhorn's three-run homer off Fikac.
Manager Bruce Bochy yesterday said the job of being the setup man will fall to a committee that won't currently include Fikac. The committee will include Brandon Villafuerte, Mike Holtz and Tom Davey.
The former two members of the committee were pitching at Class AAA Portland until last month. The third member has a 6.75 ERA.
"We'll go with the hot hand," Bochy said. "The key to the last two months of the season will be having our bullpen come through for us."
Bochy said he and general manager Kevin Towers discussed the state of the bullpen before the trades of Embree and Reed were completed.
"We knew those trades would be putting the young guys in a different situation," said Bochy. "But we have to see what we've got and what they can do."
"These are guys we like," said pitching coach Greg Booker. "But it's up to them to step it up. Right now, we've got guys that we have more confidence in than they have in themselves."
One of those pitchers would be Fikac, who has surrendered six earned runs on four hits ? two of them homers ? in his last 51/3 innings.
The Padres touted Fikac, 27, as a setup man coming into the season off a 23-game cameo late last year that produced a 1.37 ERA. Bochy yesterday professed continued confidence in Fikac.
"We all think a lot of Jeremy," said Bochy. "I do have confidence in him. But when you are young, slumps are tough. When he gets through this, he'll be a better pitcher. But right now, we're not going to put him in that situation."
Another pitcher who won't soon see the setup situation is left-hander Kevin Walker, who today will make his first rehab outing at Portland after seven scoreless innings (three hits, 10 K's) at Class A Lake Elsinore. Walker, who is recuperating from elbow reconstruction surgery, will make at least four appearances with Portland before joining the Padres in mid-August.
"Walker will definitely help out," said Bochy. "But we're going to look out after him and not use him too much."
Said Booker: "We're not going to throw Walker into the fire. We're going to sneak him back into a role. Maybe two weeks after he gets back we'll look harder. But when he's ready to come here, I'm going to personally pick him up at the airport."
====
even though not a great amount of pitches, hoffman has warmed up now and pitched 4 days in a row.
8/2/2002 Cincinnati W 5-2 Relief - S 1.0 0 0 0 1 0 0 5 1:1 0
8/1/2002 @Chi. Cubs L 7-8 Relief - L 0.2 3 2 2 0 0 0 19 1:1 0
7/31/2002 @Chi. Cubs W 8-6 Relief - S 1.0 0 0 0 1 0 0 11 1:1 0
7/30/2002 @Chi. Cubs W 6-5 Relief - S 1.0 1 0 0 0 0 0 10 0:3 1
