Lots of Things To Discuss

I've not a lot of time and lots to talk about, so let's dive right in.

- Padres sign Jon Garland. I'm reserving reaction until I have a chance to look more closely at his statistics. Garland has bounced around since leaving the White Sox after the 2007 season. I remember he was on my AL-only rotisserie league team in 2007, threw a lot of innings, didn't strike out a lot of guys, and usually kept his team in the game - except for those starts (seemingly all after the All-Star break) when he didn't have it and he got HAMMERED.

He is a pitch to contact guy, so working in spacious Petco Park will no doubt help him.

- Gonzalez Sports Academy Opens. You may have heard about this on XX1090 over the last day or so. I took the family to see it. First, it's just off Otay Lakes in the same old warehouse that holds the Chula Vista YMCA Gymnastics equipment and classes. Lots of fake green grass, 4 batting cages, free weights, two blue lanes for sprint workouts I suppose, and 3 volleyball courts (the net height was set to the women's height when we were there today). I have no pictures because I forgot my camera, and wasn't smart enough to ask my wife to use her iPhone. Spending all your brain power keeping little kids entertained will do that do you.

I liked the look of the Academy. I especially liked the volleyball court set-up and the synthetic floor they laid down for those courts. I've played on that stuff before, and it's great - not hard on your knees, and not hard on your elbows if you need to dive for a ball.

Plus, I got to shake Edgar Gonzalez' hand and wish him well in Japan. Edgar is slightly shorter than I, and I'm physically a bigger man than him. So for him to use his gifts and make the majors, well, my respect for him went up today. Not to mention that in person he's a good-looking dude, better looking than one would expect from watching the Padres on Channel 4.

(wife: "OOH, he's CUTE!" Me: "Who?" (sees Edgar) "You know, I gotta give you that one.")

Adrian was there, too, and looked exactly like he does on TV, despite not wearing a Padres uniform. I didn't get a chance to say hello. Also in attendance: Adrian and Edgar's dad. He is a big man. He must have been a stud as a younger man.

- Podcast. The inaugural Padres Trail Podcast will be tomorrow night at 2200. We'll discuss the Garland and Stairs signings, plus various topics from around the diamond. Here's a link to the show, feel free to chat or dial in (347) 637-2949 to talk to me. The show should run about 30 minutes. I'll be running a Podcast every Thursday at 10pm local time, except next week when the show will be on Wednesday night.

- Ted Williams Chapter SABR Meeting. Saturday is SABR day in America, and all the SABR chapters are meeting to talk a little baseball. San Diego's chapter is named the Ted Williams Chapter, since Teddy Ballgame is from here, and will be meeting at 0930 in the 4th floor auditorium at Petco Park. You can see the complete agenda here, but highlighting the discussion will be Josh Stein, Padres Director for Baseball Operations.

- San Diego Padres Open House. I will be attending the Open House tomorrow night from 1800-2000 at Petco Park. Padres CEO Jeff Moorad, 'Padres Players' (not released yet who exactly they will be), President/COO Tom Garfinkel, and new Padres GM Jed Hoyer are scheduled to attend. We will discuss this event during the podcast tomorrow. I expect it to be packed, so I doubt I'll have a chance to tell Mr. Hoyer why I'm the best candidate for the 'Director of Coffee Supplies for the Baseball Operations Department' job, but it should be fun regardless.