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The brand spanking new 2013 baseball schedule is out. The road to the World Series is paved with the bad intentions of our opponents. I've only taken a brief glance, but let's discuss and see how that plays out....
APRIL
We open the season away in New York for a three game series spread out over four days and then a series in Colorado. Too obvious, wily schedule maker! You want to test the warm bloodedness of our boys by attempting to freeze them out in New York and Colorado before sending them home to open against the Magical Dodgers! We won't fall for your trap!
Also in April, the Brewers come to visit, which is awesome if you're interested in seeing a team that will still be super bummed about Prince Fielder. We end the month visiting the Cubby Bears.
MAY
May gets us a good number of home serieses with the Marlins, Nationals and Cardinals (who will still be a little irritated about the way this last week went for them). We also get a very awkward 7 day trip to the AL East to play three games against the Rays and two games against the Orioles. Two games.
Another bit of awkwardness will happen at the end of the month when the Padres play the Diamondbacks in Arizona and then travel up for a day game in Seattle with no break in between. They'll be in Seattle for another ridiculous two game series against our Hated Rivals and then travel down (without a travel day again) back home for a set against the Mariners again... For a two day set...
No home day off as Mariners Away/Home 4 game series will lead us into a set against the Blue Jays and onto June (when we should be approximately 2 games ahead in the NL West race).
JUNE
After the Blue Jays, the boys (again with no break), will take the bus ride up to LA for three games and then travel (AGAIN WITH NO BREAK) up to Colorado for four games and then TRAVEL AGAIN WITH NO F_CKING BREAK home for a three game set with the Braves.
Let's think about that....
3 Away at Arizona travel to Seattle for 2. Travel to San Diego for a 5 game homestand. Travel to LA for 3. Travel to Colorado for 4. Travel home for 3. And then a break.
Twenty game set without a break. Six different cities. And that (pardon my french) retarded four game set with Seattle where we go there and then come right back down to San Diego to play them again. Maybe it's just me, but this looks like a tough part of the schedule
JULY
July and the All-Star break wherein 6 Padres will be representing the team: Grandal, Alonso, Headley, Maybin, Quentin and Kelly as a symbolic representation of our entire pitching staff. The days off from the break will be needed as the boys head into another 10 game road trip at the end of the month with the Brewers, Cardinals and D-Backs.
AUGUST
August will be a good month as the team opens up with the first Petco visit by the New York Yankees, and then a day to bask in the glow of history and then a wonderful little tasty two game set with the Orioles of Baltimore. There's also a nice little 10 game homestand against the Mets, Pirates and Cubs, which will be the first opportunity for your friends in town from New York, Pittsburgh and Chicago to notice that the Padres are the best team in the National League. I'm thinking a lot of San Diegans who maintain the Padres are their "second favorite team after my team" will start buying Padres gear and hopping on the bandwagon about then.
SEPTEMBER
The Padres start the month off and get two days off before the 10th of the month and then move right into a set of 20 games in a row. Not as much travel as that crazy May/June set, but this will be where the team can finish strong and on top of the world. Seventeen games within the division and we'll finish the regular season out in Frisco, where Frisco Fan will wonder where it all went wrong. We'll also get a nice little postseason preview in the middle of the month against the Phillies and Braves and then we'll go visit the Pirates who will be in the middle of wasting away YASS (yet another strong start).
AND THEN ONTO THE WORLD SERIES.
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What do you guys think? That May/June set looks to be a bitch. I'm really not a fan of two game serieses, but they might be fun to make a game out of. Like what team is the king of the two game series? Maybe? Nah.
Also, this is the token "What San Diego Fan Says at the Start of Every Sports Season" thing to say, but I'll never understand why baseball season doesn't always start in Southern California. It's like begging for rainouts.
I can also see going to a few games in August to catch the Yankees (because that's the thing to do) and that nice little Mets/Pirates/Cubs set, which should be fun.
All-Star Game is at Citi Field next year. You guys going to watch that contingency of Padres? I heard the World Series is also going to see some games played in San Diego. I don't get why the schedule makers don't just put that up right now... Formality I guess.