Crooked Pitch

I got a chance recently to catch up with Geoff Young via e-mail, something that  neglected to do for far too long. There aren’t too many baseball bloggers out there with as much pull as Geoff has. He blogs about the San Diego Padres at Ducksnorts, and also writes over at Baseball Digest Daily. Geoff also writes a book every year offering “unparalleled coverage of the San Diego Padres”, it’s called Ducksnorts Baseball Annual.

Please check out Geoff’s awesome Padres coverage at any of the places listed above or follow him on twitter at @ducksnorts.

1. Who helped themselves the most with their Fall & Winter League play? Was it Eliezer Alfonso in the Venezuelan League?

Alfonso’s performance probably helped get him signed. Outfielder Mike Baxter put up terrific numbers in the AFL and could eventually surface as a reserve outfielder, although perhaps not this year.

2. With Khalil Greene out at shortstop what do the Padres plan to do at that position?

If the season started today, Luis Rodriguez, who filled in for Greene after his injury last year, would see a lot of time there. Internally, Sean Kazmar is another option, although he doesn’t have much of a bat. I’ve also heard that the Pads are interested in David Eckstein and Omar Vizquel. Whatever they end up doing, it won’t be real exciting.

3. What’s going on with Jake Peavy?

Right now — and the situation remains fluid — it looks like he’ll be the Padres Opening Day starter. A sale of the team to Jeff Moorad, assuming it goes through, should help stabilize things and hopefully keep Peavy here for a while.

4. What’s Chase Headley have in store for the Padres and fantasy owners in 2009?

I would expect modest improvements from him this year. Maybe .260-.270 with 20-25 homers.

5. Who’s taking over at closer for the Padres? Will they be there as long as Hoffman was?

I’d guess that Heath Bell gets first crack. He was dominant in 2007, but slipped last year, particularly in the second half. Bell won’t be there as long as Hoffman was because no closer holds that role for one team as long as he did. Well, except Mariano Rivera, but he and Hoffman are unique in that regard.