2003 San Diego Padres

2003 San Diego Padres / Franchise: San Diego Padres / BR Team Page[edit]

Record: 64-98, Finished 5th in NL Western Division (2003 NL)

Coaches: Darrel Akerfelds, Darren Balsley, Greg Booker, Davey Lopes, Dave Magadan, Tony Muser and Rob Picciolo

History, Comments, Contributions[edit]

The 2003 San Diego Padres were a half-decade removed from their appearance in the 1998 World Series and were a couple seasons away from the team's next postseason appearance. They were the last in a string of five straight losing seasons, as the 2004 club won 87 games. Lacking power and speed, they finished 14th in the National League in home runs; Ryan Klesko paced the club with 21, while Rondell White contributed 18. Gary Matthews, Jr., with 12 stolen bases, and Ramon Vazquez, with 10, were the only players on the club with double digit steal totals; still, the team placed eighth in the 16-team league in that category. Mark Loretta's .314 average and 185 hits were an offensive highlight on a team lacking many. The pitching was worse than the offense, with only one hurler -- closer Rod Beck -- having a truly standout campaign, and he appeared in only 36 games. In 35 1/3 innings, he had a 1.78 ERA, a 224 ERA+ and 20 saves, while allowing just 25 hits. Trevor Hoffman, the main closer, missed most of the season due to shoulder woes. While the work of relievers like Scott Linebrink (43 G, 2.82 ERA) and Matt Herges (40 G, 2.86 ERA) provided breaths of fresh air, perhaps most indicative of the club's pitching troubles is that three pitchers tossed over 30 innings each, despite posting ERAs of 8.00 or worse: Jaret Wright (47 1/3 IP, 8.37 ERA), Mike Bynum (36 IP, 8.75 ERA) and Clay Condrey (34 IP, 8.47 ERA). For his part, Jesse Orosco had a 7.56 ERA in 42 games, though he tossed just 25 innings. The rotation did its best to hold its own, with only one of the five main starters, Kevin Jarvis, with more hits allowed than innings pitched. 22-year-old future Cy Young Award winner Jake Peavy had yet to come into his own, but still led the team with 12 victories. Brian Lawrence added 10 more, but lost 15 games. None of the five main starters posted triple digit ERA+s, with 100 indicating a season of "average" quality. Oliver Perez was the club's youngest player at 21, while 46-year-old Orosco was far-and-away its oldest.