by Jeff Creps on January 29, 2010
Padres brass gathers at a Petco Park town hall meeting (Photo by Steve Adler)
On a chilly Thursday night, the Padres opened up the gates of Petco Park to fans for an Open House and Town Hall style meeting. Although the number of guests was expected to be around 1,000, more than 3,00o fans showed up for free hot dogs, the opportunity to meet players and a chance to roam the grass in centerfield.
Much of the Padres brass was in attendance. Owner and CEO Jeff Moorad led the evening flanked by GM Jed Hoyer, COO Tom Garfinkel and manager Bud Black.
Their message for the night was consistent and confident: we are here to win.
“We know you are counting on us,” Moorad said from the first base line podium. “Let me reassure you, this ownership has a plan and a passion for winning.”
Even with the recent struggles of the Padres franchise the fans were clear that they expect a winner. When the forum was opened to fan questions the topics ranged from a potential All Star Game at Petco, to a possible trade involving Adrian Gonzalez.
Hoyer responded: “We will never do anything that doesn’t make the team better.” Continue Reading →
by Craig on January 16, 2010
Jed Hoyer’s first trade as Padres’ general manager is in the books, and Jeff Moorad should be pleased.
Kevin Kouzmanoff and Eric Sogard to the A’s for Scott Hairston and Aaron Cunningham is clean and simple. No gunslinging here. More like reorganizing the closet. A couple little changes, add a shelf, voila! A more balanced roster free of a growing salary concern.
Kouz was about to be valued more than he’s worth. Solid defense aside, Kouzmanoff managed just 88 RBI hitting behind Adrian Gonzalez. He’s one of those good-but-not-great players that can fit in on a winning team but can’t help rebuild a bad team.
His gaudy minor league OBP numbers never materialized in the big leagues, and as a .300 on-base occasional slugger, Kouz seemed better fit as a 7-9 hitter in an AL lineup than a 4-5 hitter in the NL. Now he’ll get that chance to find his niche.
Throw in arbitration, the natural desire for the Padres to return Chase Headley to his natural position, the growth of Kyle Blanks as an outfield prospect, and the need for a right-handed platoon partner for Tony Gwynn in center field…and then the chance comes to swap Kouzmanoff for Hairston. Perfect. Continue Reading →
KT: “A Gunslinger Shoots First, And He Wins The Battle”
October 4, 2009ShareKevin Towers was alternately emotional, thankful, and proud during his press conference today, after it was announced that he would be leaving the San Diego Padres. KT ends a 14-year tenure as GM, the longest of any current GM. Towers joked to start his prepared comments that after 47 years on Earth, he was fired [...]