Major League Baseball has divided into two groups: the National League West and everybody else.
This division is to dominance what broccoli is to taste buds. A year after the San Diego Padres won the title with 82 wins, the West could actually be worse. As Dodgers broadcaster Charley Steiner said the other day, “It will not be won by the fleetest of foot, but by the least slow.”
With April close to becoming a memory, the pack was clustered near .500, led by the Rockies. They need not apologize for being the head of the class; they were predicted by most to finish last. But what about the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants, Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks?
Is it too much to ask for these teams to win, geez, back-to-back games? At this point, a savvy kid’s going to bring home a report card with straight C’s and tell his bewildered parents: “I could be the valedictorian of the NL West.” Never has mediocrity been so rewarding, save for perhaps the first three episodes of “American Idol” every season.
“I still feel like this division will be congested,” Arizona general manager Josh Byrnes said. “Each team has its problems, but each could win it.”
History says one of the teams will go on a run, or at least a jog. The fewest victories for back-to-back winners belongs to the NL East at 170, set by the 1973 New York Mets (82) and 1974 Pittsburgh Pirates (88). But it’s hard to make a case for any of the NL West teams going off.
They all have issues. The Padres were so disenchanted with last year’s team – the one that won it, remember? – that GM Kevin Towers reconstructed his roster. Nice idea, but at this point, they appear to have gotten older rather than better. They start as many as five 34-year-olds.
“I think our age is an advantage during a slow start because these guys aren’t going to panic,” Towers said. “They know their roles. And the chemistry has improved.”
The Dodgers are not combustible, just brittle. A popular pick for some – see this column mug – Los Angeles continues to max out its deductible on the company health plan. Eric Gagne is hurt and Odalis Perez symbolizes a rotation that appears stronger than it is.
The Giants have power problems, odd for a team that has Barry Bonds. And privately many on the team wonder how long Armando Benitez will last as closer. The Rockies have the division’s best bullpen, but it remains to be seen if they can score enough runs, particularly at home.
The Diamondbacks’ situation can be summed up in one sentence: They just sent their highest-paid pitcher, Russ Ortiz, to the bullpen for Juan Cruz.
So it is that April will die, but no team’s hopes in this division will. They all believe they have a chance. It begs the question: What happens when Goliath can’t make weight and David fights, um, David?
The brain game
While suspicion remains about his brawn, don’t discount Bonds’ brain in his pursuit of Hank Aaron’s home run record. Rockies catcher Yorvit Torrealba recalled a conversation with Bonds as the two sat on the bench during a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2003. Bonds predicted pitch-for-pitch how he would be attacked. A few moments later, Bonds was up to bat.
The sequence played out exactly as Bonds said it would, down to the backdoor slider he lifted to left field for a home run.
“He came back to the dugout and said, ‘See I told you,”‘ Torrealba said. “I couldn’t believe it. I have heard of a guy guessing right on one or two pitches. But five? It was amazing.”
Making miracles happen
Jason Jennings is Texas-tough, rarely showing a softer side when in uniform. But when his $7 million contract afforded him a chance to give more generously, he didn’t hesitate, donating $50,000 to help build a field to host the Mile High Miracle League for disabled children in Littleton. The field was dedicated during the last homestand.
“I don’t get emotional easy. It was about as close as I am going to get to it. This was like their World Series,” said Jennings of his meeting with the players. “To see their faces when they called out the lineups and sang the national anthem, it’s something I will never forget.”
Throwing a Mench into the plan
Kevin Mench should have a Mars Blackmon commercial in his future. It’s gotta be the shoes. At least that’s the prevailing theory on why the Rangers outfielder hit home runs in seven consecutive games after he changed from size 12 cleats to 12 1/2. A foot injury revealed Mench was wearing shoes that were too small. And you know what they say about guys with big feet – they have big skulls. Mench wears a size 8 cap, second to Padres manager Bruce Bochy’s 8 1/4.
Footnotes
Let there be light. You know how powerful Albert Pujols has become when he stuck around after a game last week, standing in the batter’s box while stadium workers adjusted the lights. Pujols said there was a glare. The Cardinals had 100 million reasons – see the star’s contract – to fix the problem. … Rickie Weeks’ defensive issues are bewildering. He might be the most athletic second baseman in baseball, yet appears stiff and uninterested defensively. Weeks committed seven errors in his first 19 games after making 21 last year. It’s time Weeks began to take his glove seriously – he’s not a good enough hitter to play the plus-minus game (give up two, drive in three as a shirt Dante Bichette used to wear read). … Jay Payton recorded his first RBI for Oakland last week, and he’s quietly pining for a trade as the odd man out in a crowded outfield. … Former Cherry Creek star Josh Bard is slumping badly as Tim Wakefield’s personal caddie. Catching a knuckleball has long been compared to catching a butterfly. Bard won’t argue. He has 10 passed balls in five games with Wakefield, leaving him on pace to shatter Geno Petralli’s record of 35 set in 1987 with the Rangers. … Injuries are never a laughing matter. Well, almost never. Royals Triple-A outfielder Kerry Robinson left a game last week with chest spasms from giggling at a youth baseball team’s antics.
Troy E. Renck can be reached at 303-820-5447 or trenck@denverpost.com.
