Through 100 games of the amazing, improbable San Diego Padres 2010 season, the hometown nine is 60-40, alone atop the NL West. The Padres’ magic has been in place all season, finding unlikely ways to scratch out victories, and game #100 was no different. Oscar Salazar’s pinch-hit RBI single in the bottom of the 9th gave San Diego a 3-2 walkoff win over the LA Dodgers.
Now, for the final 62 remaining contests (and, they hope, the playoffs), the Padres will look for some “Miggy Magic” to mix with their own unique blend.
Just before Thursday’s series finale with LA, Padres’ general manager Jed Hoyer announced the acquisition of veteran infielder Miguel Tejada from the Baltimore Orioles. San Diego gives up minor league right-hander Wynn Pelzer in exchange for the 36-year-old veteran infielder.
The news was met with excitement by the Padres players, who have been waiting for the front office to make a move to bolster the pennant drive.
“He’s about winning, I know that firsthand,” said Padres infielder Jerry Hairston Jr., a former teammate of Tejada’s in Baltimore back in 2004, “Whatever he can do to help a ballclub, he’s all about that.”
Adrian Gonzalez says Tejada will fit in with a lineup committed to “throwing professional at-bats out there, one after another.”
Video: Adrian Gonzalez postgame interview
While a veteran player with an entrenched reputation such as Tejada–the 2002 AL MVP–is sure to excite players and casual fans, the real question is how Tejada helps the Padres become a better team.
Hear from Padres’ GM Jed Hoyer and read more after the jump:
Padres manager Bud Black says he expects Tejada to be an everyday player in San Diego, starting either at shortstop or third base. The Orioles believed Tejada to be a defensive liability at shortstop, and moved him to third base prior to the 2010 season. However, the defensive-oriented Padres are willing to gamble on Tejada’s glove at the game’s most important defensive position.
Audio: Jed Hoyer on how he sees Tejada being used:
While David Eckstein is on the disabled list, Tejada will likely get the vast majority of playing time at short, with Hairston Jr. remaining at second base. When Eckstein returns, Tejada may slide over to third base against left-handers, spelling Chase Headley.
Black also mentioned the possibility of Tejada (or Headley) getting some playing time in left field, a position Tejada has never played in the major leagues.
Tejada is hitting a Headley-esque .269 with 7 home runs and 39 RBI this season. His .362 slugging percentage is 102 points off his career average, and his .308 on-base percentage only reflects a 37 point improvement over Everth Cabrera. For his career, Tejada has reached base at a below-average .339 clip.
Black says Tejada will likely bat 2nd, 4th or 5th in the San Diego lineup, and will almost always be either directly ahead of or directly behind Gonzalez. 619 Sports will be at Petco Park for Tejada’s anticipated debut on Friday against the Florida Marlins.
Thursday afternoon’s game was a tense battle between two division rivals, played in front of a sellout crowd of over 42,000 at Petco Park. After taking an early 1-0 lead on Headley’s first inning RBI single, the Padres saw their young ace Mat Latos miss location on a fastball to James Loney. The Dodgers’ first baseman launched a 425-foot homer to tie the game in the 2nd inning.
San Diego regained the lead in the 4th on Yorvit Torrealba’s RBI double against LA starter Vicente Padilla, but the Dodgers answered back in the 5th, when pinch hitter Garret Anderson’s sinking liner skipped away from a sliding Scott Hairston in left field for a single and error, plating Jamey Carroll.
Latos, who complained of cramps after five innings and left the game, turned the ball over to the “Pen-itentiary”, which locked down the Dodgers’ bats for the second straight game. The San Diego bullpen allowed just one hit to LA over seven innings of work covering Wednesday and Thursday.
Heath Bell pitched a perfect ninth for the win (5-0). Dodgers’ lefty George Sherrill (1-2) allowed Scott Hairston’s lead single in the bottom of the ninth. Hairston was bunted to second base by Tony Gwynn before Salazar delivered the Padres’ 9th walkoff win with a clean ground single up the middle.
What was a four-team race for the first 3 1/2 months of the season has quickly opened up since the All-Star break, with the Padres now owning a 3 1/2 game lead over San Francisco. The Dodgers have been pushed to the fringe of contention, seven games off the pace, while the Rockies’ recent free fall has all but eliminated them from the division race, now trailing by nine full games.
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