Colorado Rockies-San Diego Padres Tid Bits, Sept. 3-5

Colorado Rockies at San Diego Padres

Sept. 3-5, 2010 at Coors Field

Starters Stumbles

Padres rotation ranks second in the NL in ERA at 3.64. St. Louis leads the NL at 3.42. The Rockies, however, don’t seem impressed. The Padres five starters are a combined 1-6 with a 6.68 ERA against the Rockies. Padres rotation is 56-36 with a 3.38 ERA vs. the rest of baseball.

Adjustment

Rookie left-hander Cory Luebke makes his big-league debut in the start tonight. It’s only the third out of 133 games in which the five primary starters did not start. Chris Young made one start before going on the disabled list the opening week of the season, and Tim Stauffer made an emergency start.

Ostensibly, Luebke, the 63^rd player selected overall in the 2007 draft, is starting to give the Big Five a blow. Tonight’s game, combined with the off day on Thursday, gives each of the starters some extra rest. But there also is speculation that Luebke could move into the rotation in place of either Wade LeBlanc or Kevin Corriea. The two are a combined 1-5 with a 12.96 ERA in their last three starts each. LeBlanc has allowed 16 runs and 20 hits, six home runs, in 13 innings, and Corriea has allowed 20 runs and 22 hits in 12 innings.

Asked about the September rotation, manager Buddy Black said, “over the weekend we will decide where everyone fits in.’’

Luebke, an Ohio State product, was 10-1 with a 2.68 ERA in 19 games, 17 starts, between Double A San Antonio and Triple A Portland this year. He had 88 strikeouts and 29 walks in 114 innings in the minors.

Life at the top

Padres have been in first place more days this season than the last three combined.

This Season            132 Days

2007-09 Combined       64 Days

Call Ups

Padres called up four players on September 1: LHP Cory Luebke, C Chris Stewart and RHP Ryan Webb from AAA, and INF Oscar Salazar from the disabled list.

Together, again

Rockies are meeting the Padres for the fifth time this season. The Rockies have taken two of three from San Diego in each of the previous series, including a three-game series the weekend leading up to the All-Star Break when Rockies were within two innings of a sweep that would have moved them into a tie for first place in the NL West at the Break. Matt Belisle, however, threw away a potential double play ball, and the Padres rallied to salvage the final game of that series 9-7.

This is Rockies third and final visit to San Diego. Padres still have a trip to Colorado. Padres did provide the opposition for the Rockies home opener on April 9. Jorge De La Rosa beat them 7-0 in that game.

Heath Bell is 1-0 with two saves and a 1.93 ERA in four games against the Rockies. Scott Hairston has 10 RBI. Aaron Cunningham is hitting .450, Yorvit Torrealba .381, and Chase Headley .314. Adrian Gonzalez has hit only .233 against the Rockies.

Clint Barmes has hit .368 with 13 RBI against San Diego. Seth Smith is hitting .350. Carlos Gonzalez has four home runs and 12 RBI.

PADRES OF LATE

Padres have lost seven in a row, longest losing streak of the season. They have been outscored 41-17. After losing a series finale against Arizona in San Diego they were swept in a three-game series by Philadelphia in San Diego and then, earlier this week, were swept in a three-game series at Arizona.

David Eckstein, hitting leadoff, is 5-for-24 with one walk and one run scored in the seventh-game losing streak.

Closer Heath Bell has 37 saves, converting his last 24 opportunities, but has made only one appearance since Aug. 19 at the Chicago Cubs, and that was not a save situation.

Padres did go 16-13 in August, giving them seven consecutive winning months, longest streak in the NL. Yankees have matched that in the AL.

Their 76 wins surpass last year’s season total by one.

They are 28-25 vs. NL West, second best record in division to Dodgers (30-18). Rockies are next at 27-24 followed by San Francisco (23-27) and Arizona (20-34).

Padres are second to Mets in stolen bases. Padres have 109. Will Venable has 17.

Chris Denorfia, playing center field in place of injured Tony Gwynn, Jr., hit .303 in August.

OF Ryan Ludwick, a July 31 addition from St. Louis, has hit .231 in 30 games with San Diego.

SIDELINED

Padres on the disabled list are RHP Chris Young (right shoulder strain), 2B Matt Antonelli (fractured left hamate), OF Kyle Blanks (strained right elbow), OF Tony Gwynn, Jr., (fractured right hamate) and UTIL Jerry Hairston.

C Yorvit Torrealba missed the last two games with a sore back, but said he will play Friday “if I have to do it from a wheelchair.’’

Padre Past

Rockies lead all-time series with Padres. 145-133, but are 69-71 in San Diego.

Rockies have won the season series from the Padres three of the last four years, seven of the last nine, and nine times overall. They also have split the season series to the Padres twice.

Rockies have swept a series from San Diego eight times, including four times in Denver, but only twice at Coors Field: May 21-23, 2003 (three games) and April 18-20, 2003 (three games). They also swept them twice at Mile High Stadium: May 1-3, 1995 (three games) and July 11-14, 1996 (four games).

Padres have swept a series from the Rockies seven times, including twice in Denver: April 6-8, 2001 (three games) and July 19-20, 2004 (two games).

Rockies four-game sweep of Padres in 1996 combined with three game sweep of Giants gave Rockies 7-0 home stand, the best in franchise history.

Long and Short of It

Rockies set a franchise record with a 2-1, 22-inning win at San Diego on April 17, 2008. It was a record for innings played and also time of game, which was 6 hours, 16 minutes.

In that game, Todd Helton and Troy Tulowitzki set franchise record with 10 plate appearances. Helton set a club record with 25 putouts. Yorvitt Torrealba set the club record for putouts by a catcher with 18 and Willy Taveras set the record for putouts by an outfielder with 10.

Rockies took 3 hours, 55 minutes for a 15-11 win against San Diego at Coors Field on Sept. 24, 2001, the eighth longest nine-inning game in franchise history.

At the other end of the spectrum, the Rockies lost a 2-0 game at San Diego on June 24, 1995 in 1 hour, 55 minutes, second quickest nine-inning game in franchise history.

Rockies beat the Padres 4-0 in 1 hour, 58 minutes on July 1, 2008, quickest nine-inning game in Coors field history.

FYI

–20 runs scored by Rockies against San Diego on Sept. 20, 2005 equaled franchise record. The Rockies also scored 20 against Arizona on Sept. 23, 2003, and against San Francisco on Sept. 18, 2006. They were all three played at Coors Field.

–5 runs scored by Walt Weiss Sept. 20, 1995 at San Diego, and Larry Walker Sept. 24, 2001 vs. San Diego, tied for club record It has been done four times.

–10 pitchers used by Rockies Sept. 7, 2007 against San Diego set a National League record and tied major league record.

–Matt Holliday tied club record with 8 RBI vs. San Diego Sept. 20, 2005. Record was set by Andres Galarraga against Dodgers June 27, 1996, and equaled by Larry Walker at St. Louis April 28, 1999, and by Ronnie Belliard against Arizona Sept. 23, 2003.

–Darryl Kile worked club record 10 innings Sept. 20, 1998 at San Diego in a 1-0, 11-inning victory. Dave Veres earned the save.

–Ben Petrick set a club record for RBI without a hit with four against SD Sept.20, 2000.

–2 times a Rockies leadoff hitter opened a game with a home run against the Padres:

–2 of Rockies 12 inside-the-park home runs have come against San Diego:  Mike Lansing, Sept. 6, 1998, sixth inning off Scott Sanders at Coors Field, and    Clint Barmes, Sept. 22, 2009, seventh inning off Luis Perdomo at Coors Field.

EX-PATRIOTS

Padres C Yorvit Torrealba, signed as a free-agent in the off-season, played with the Rockies 2-006-09.

Disabled Padres SS Evereth Cabrera was selected from the Rockies farm system at the Dec. 2008 Rule V Draft.

Padres Special Assignment Scout Bill Gayton was a scout with the Rockies for five years.

Padres director of player development Randy Smith was the Rockies original assistant general manager (1991-93).

Rockies 1B Todd Helton was 2^nd round draft choice of San Diego in 1992, but opted to attend Tennessee.

Colorado Connection

Padres 3B Chase Headley attended Fountain-Fort Carson High School, where he was class valedictorian and all-conference in basketball.

Padres bullpen coach Darrell Akerfelds attended Columbine High School. Originally was a linebacker at Arkansas, but then transferred to Mesa State in Grand Junction to focus on baseball, and was a No. 1 pick of Seattle in 1984.

Mental skills coach and short-season Eugene manager Greg Riddoch, former big-league manager of the Padres (200-194, 1990-92), was inducted into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame in 1999. Native of Greeley now resides in Longmont.

Memories

Clint Barmes hit the second inside-the-park homer of his career on Sept. 22, 2009 vs. San Diego (last:

5/8/05 at Florida), the 12th in Rockies franchise history; he joins Ellis Burks as the two only players to record two inside-the-park home runs in a Rockies uniform (Burks: 5/15/94 vs. MON and 6/14/96 vs. PHI).

Dexter Fowler tied modern day (since 1900) rookie record with 5 stolen bases vs. San Diego on April 27, 2009.

Ubaldo Jimenez struck out career-best 11 batters in 6 2/3 innings at San Diego on May 10, 2008.

Seth Smith first major-league hit off Doug Brocail at San Diego on Sept. 21, 2007.

Ryan Spilborghs first career home run May 29, 2006 at San Diego off Jim Brower.

Troy Tulowitzki first career home run Sept. 4, 2006, fourth inning, at San Diego off Woody Williams.