======

Hacksaw’s Great Sports Weekend PODCAST
You Tube Channel-Lee Hacksaw Hamilton
Look-Listen-Share-Subscribe

=======
“A REAL PENNANT RACE”
=======

We have been waiting for this for the entire season.
This being the Padres playing up to the payroll they are paying out.
The Padres are in a pennant race now.

They have earned it, winning 14-of their last 17-games.
They have survived the loss of Fernando Tatis, Yu Darvish and Joe Musgrove.

They have taken a 9-game deficit and chopped it to 2-and-a half games heading into the weekend.

It is more that pitchers Dylan Cease and Michael King.
It is beyond just Manny Machado’s bat and glove.
It is in addition to the Rookie of the Year candidate Jackson Merrill’s heroics.
It is not just the arrival of the stardom of closer Robert Suarez.

Unsung in this storm trooper drive towards first place, is the arrival of so many role players.

Luis Arraez at the top of the batting order and his productivity.
David Peralta and his multi position offense.
Kyle Higashioka’s bat and glove, once a throw in via the Yankees trade
Donovan Solano’s super utility plus .300-batting average
Jurickson Profar’s career best year as an everyday player

Then there is the evolvement of a wide variety of pitchers.

Matt Waldron’s growth as a back of the rotation guy
Adrian Morejon finding a 1-inning role as a setup guy
Randy Vasquez giving more good innings than a bad inning
Steven Kolek-a Rule 5-gamble, pitching well enough stay
Jeremiah Estrada becoming a dominant setup bullpen guy
Yuki Matsui growing into a role-hist first year out of Japan.

It has been a great turnaround, for a team that grossly underachieved last year and finally learned how to win from midseason on.

It’s Mike Schildt’s leadership, Ruben Nieblo’s teaching of pitchers, and a confidence we have seen bond together this second half of the season.

The Padres and Diamondbacks are surging.  The Dodgers are staggering.  There are 7-weeks left in this season.  Still a bunch of games to be played.  But this is a very different Padres team, physically and now emotionally.

We have a real pennant race now.
Now time for the Padres to finish the deal.

========================

Please follow and like us: