A seven game losing streak has seen the Padres’ lead in the NL West cut in half.  San Diego’s vaunted pitching and defense are springing leaks, and the offense has slowed down as well.  Fans and pundits who have been predicting collapse all year are likely salivating at the thought of a week’s worth of losing turning into a final-month fade.

So is it time to panic?  Craig and Chris both see legitimate concerns for the Padres as September begins, but panic?  No.  San Diego has built up enough of a cushion to still be able to knock down the division over the course of the next ten days.  Still, there’s plenty to talk about:

• Mat Latos’ usage, will they turn him loose?
• Is it wise to trust a rookie (Cory Luebke) with a big September starting job?
• Have the Padres crippled themselves on defense and in the running game?

These topics and more are discussed in our Don’t Panic! (yet) Padres podcast on 619Sports.Net:

Download audio file (090210-padres-panic.mp3)

NEW PODCAST: The baseball world was rocked yesterday by the news of Stephen Strasburg’s need for Tommy John surgery on his right elbow.  MLB’s top phenom will be under the knife soon, and likely will miss all of the 2011 season.  The former Aztec great will have to wait until 2012 to resume his assault on opposing hitters.

Craig and Chris followed Strasburg all the way through college and saw first-hand how the Aztecs ace was protected from overuse.  In the minors and with the Nationals, Strasburg’s pitch count and workload have been tightly monitored.  What else could have been done to protect Stephen from injury?  Probably nothing.

In their latest podcast for 619Sports.Net, the guys react to Strasburg’s injury, discuss his future, the Nationals complicity (if any) in his getting hurt, and how Strasburg’s story should (or should not) affect the Padres’ handling of Mat Latos:

Download audio file (082710-strasburg-hurt.mp3)

An important day has arrived in the 2010 baseball schedule: August 27th.  On this day, the schedule which has favored the San Diego Padres for weeks flips in favor of the San Francisco Giants.  We have been saying for weeks now that the Padres needed to hold a five-game lead in the NL West on August 27th to feel secure about winning the division.

Well, the magic day has arrived, and there stand the Padres, six games ahead of the field.  Things are looking good for San Diego.  Are there any warning signs to indicate trouble ahead?

In their latest podcast for 619Sports.Net, Chris Ello and Craig Elsten discuss the Padres’ situation and look ahead to September:

Download audio file (082710-padres-turn.mp3)

At the All-Star break, the Padres led a crowded pack in a four-team NL West race.  Less than a month later, two of the teams favored to capture the crown have fallen out of contention.

In their latest podcast for 619Sports.Net, Craig and Chris say so long to the Dodgers and Rockies, and thank them for their participation in the pennant race.  Among the topics discussed:

• How the Padres eliminated the Dodgers over the last 10 days
• If the next three weeks hold the key to the Padres winning the NL West
• Are the Dodgers entering a long period of non-contention?

Listen to our “Two Team Race” podcast exclusively on 619Sports.Net!  The podcast is after the jump:

Download audio file (080610-padres-race.mp3)

Our long summer’s wait is over.  The lightning bolt is back on the field!

With Chargers training camp opening today with rookies practicing, and the full squad (minus holdouts) gathering by Friday, 619Sports.Net’s Craig Elsten and Chris Ello preview the key storylines to follow in the next month:

• Will there be any resolution to the holdouts of McNeill, Merriman and Jackson?
• How quickly can the Chargers get Ryan Matthews in camp?
• Which young Bolts need to step forward and take a bigger role this year?
• Who’s going to take the reins in the defensive secondary?

Craig and Chris each give you the three things they’d like to see the Chargers accomplish over the course of the preseason in this entertaining Chargers podcast!  You can listen, download on the site or via ITunes, share and enjoy!

Listen to our Chargers Training Camp Preview Podcast after the jump:

Download audio file (072610-training-camp.mp3)

How much credit do you give Padres owner Jeff Moorad for the team’s first half success?  How much of his credibility is on the line at the upcoming trade deadline?

These are two of the tricky questions Chris and Craig wrestle with in their latest Padres podcast for 619Sports.Net.  Should Moorad be given credit for putting the Padres in the position they are in now, or was this the creation of Kevin Towers and the previous regime?  And will Moorad’s pick at GM, Jed Hoyer, be given the promised payroll flexibility to make an impact move at the deadline?

More discussion topics from the podcast:

• Has the dynamic changed for the 2010 San Diego Padres?  Would a missed opportunity or lack of move be perceived now as a failure?
• Can the Padres afford to trade from their farm system or 25-man roster?
• Has the trade market changed to the point where a team willing to take on payroll can add a player without losing top prospects?

Click through and listen, download from the site or from ITunes, and enjoy!

Moorad's got a jersey but how much cash is he holding?

Download audio file (072310-padres-moorad.mp3)

The two teams with the best records in the National League lock horns this week at Turner Field in Atlanta.  The Padres (54-37) and Braves (54-38) were not sexy picks to win their division at the start of the year, and most national pundits are predicting a San Diego collapse in the second half.  Atlanta, meanwhile, is a deep and talented team featuring All-Star hero Brian McCann and rookie sensation Jason Heyward (pictured).

Still, the Padres have broken out of the second-half gate like Big Brown, extending their NL West lead from 2 games up to 4  games over the field.  And in their latest Padres podcast on 619Sports.Net, Craig and Chris note that San Diego has a path to the division title which can be paved with wins against weak sisters like Arizona and Pittsburgh.

We look at the week ahead, including these key topics:

• How the Padres can win the West and still struggle against Colorado and L.A.
• Are teams better prepared for San Diego the second time around?
• What (if anything) are the Padres accomplishing by resting Mat Latos?

You can listen now, download from our site or our ITunes store, and share with your Padres friends, a 619Sports.Net preview podcast for the week that will be! Listen after the jump:

Download audio file (072010-padres-preview.mp3)

The second half is about to begin, and the Padres are in sole possession of first place in the NL West, two games clear of the field.

That’s the good news.  The bad news is, four teams are packed within four games of one another, meaning that while the first 88 games have been great for San Diego, the final 74 will tell the true story, and nothing’s locked up yet.

Sports Illustrated’s Joe Sheehan joins 619Sports.Net for his second baseball podcast this week.  Joe is already on record as saying the Padres will come up short in their bid for the NL West; in fact, Joe believes the franchise is suffering through a bizarre “worst-case scenario” with their surprise contention.

We discuss the reasons behind Joe’s thought process, and challenge some of his assumptions:

• Joe has advocated adding bats to the Padres lineup; would pitching help give San Diego a better chance of winning the division?
• What are the weaknesses of the other NL West contenders and what challenges will they face compared to the Padres?
• Does the extreme nature of Petco Park make it difficult to evaluate which trade piece would be the most beneficial to the club?

It’s a smart and wide-ranging baseball discussion, a good listen for Padres fans…even if you disagree with Joe’s conclusions!  Hey, don’t worry, he’s been wrong before…

Listen to our NL West 2nd Half Preview Podcast with Joe Sheehan after the jump:

Download audio file (071410-sheehan-padres.mp3)

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If “it counts”, why do they still play the MLB All-Star Game like it’s Sunday teeball?

Everybody gets in and we’ve got orange wedges and a pizza party later!  Yay!

Despite expanding to a record 34-man roster, both AL manager Joe Girardi and NL manager Charlie Manuel managed to burn through the talent at hand like Tony Phillips on an Anaheim crack bender.

In the 9th inning of a 3-1 game, Girardi was stuck with John Buck batting against Jonathan Broxton.  Call it a marquee mismatch.

Dumb and dumber

Manuel doesn’t get off the hook either.  Brian McCann’s lefty-on-lefty three-run double in the 7th pulled ol’ Cholly out of the soup after he had singed his roster to the point that Chris Young—designated Diamondback, the man representing the worst team in the NL—was allowed to hit in a 1-0 game with the bases loaded and one away.

Shocker, Young struck out.  Then McCann delivered off Matt Thornton, defying the odds and giving Cholly a breather.

In all, the NL used 28 players out of their 34-man allotment in 9 innings, and the AL used 30.

And the game still counts for home field advantage in the World Series?  The celebrity softball game had less turnover.

Sports Illustrated’s Joe Sheehan joined 619Sports.Net today to record a pair of baseball podcasts.  Tomorrow, Joe will tell us why he believes the Padres will come up short in the NL West.  Today, we talk about the Midsummer’s Classic and how too much tinkering has created a monster.

Listen to our All-Star Game podcast after the jump:

Download audio file (071410-sheehan-allstar.mp3)

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The Padres delivered their typical gutsy performance, rallying from 5-3 down to take an 8-5 lead over the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field.  But a five run seventh, triggered by Ian Stewart’s grand slam off Luke Gregerson, led to Colorado’s 10-8 win in the series opener.  The Padres lead is down to two games in the NL West over the Rockies and Dodgers.

619 Sports’ Chris Ello was at Friday night’s game, in the stands at Coors Field.  He joins Craig back in San Diego for a postgame podcast, and the guys have a lot to talk about:

• What should the Padres do with Luke Gregerson, who’s been scored on in his last four outings?
• Did Bud Black make a mistake by burning Joe Thatcher to start the 6th?
• Should Buddy have gotten himself ejected from the game after a horrible called third strike in the 9th?
• Has Aaron Cunningham earned himself a look as the regular right fielder?

We talk about it all in a Padres/Rockies postgame podcast from 619Sports.Net, listen after the jump:

Download audio file (070910-padres-postgame.mp3)