ST Wrap-Up: Padres Own the Vedder Cup (on this day)

The Padres played what MLB would like to be their natural interleague rivals in a “home game”, in the venue that they both call home. Since Eddie Vedder spent his formative years in San Diego then rose to success in Seattle, the San Diegans and Seattlites have chosen to name this informal rivalry the “Vedder Cup,” completely ignoring the fact that Eddie Vedder is actually a huge Cubs fan. Facts and contrived rivalries aside, the Padres showed up in a big way today and that’s what’s really important. TO THE LINEUP CARD!

No surprises on the lineup card until your eyes scan to the bottom. Magill? Who’s he? Wasn’t that the name of the blind old man that always cheered for Rutgers any time a hullaballoo broke out on the street? Close, but not exactly. Today’s starter for the Padres was Matt Magill, yet another former prospect who was signed to a minor league contract this offseason. Magill spent his formative baseball career in the Dodgers organization, making six starts for the MLB club in 2013. He was traded to the Reds in 2014, missed most of 2015 to Tommy John surgery, but came back to make five MLB appearances in relief last season. Now he’s with the Padres, and this was his third appearance on the big league side this spring. His minor league numbers don’t look like much, but today’s 3.2 scoreless innings combined with another 3.2 scoreless innings adds up to a nice little spring for an overlooked 27-year-old looking for a fresh chance. He was pretty sharp today. Just take a look at this nice curveball to rack up a K and get out of a jam. He’s not on the 40-man roster, so he’ll probably head to El Paso or San Antonio, but he might be a guy to keep an eye on for mid-season work.

Magill combined with Brad Hand and Brad Wieck for six shutout innings. Carter Capps gave up a run in a messy appearance, and was followed by Rafael de Paula and Ryan Buchter to complete today’s pitching efforts.

Capps’ appearance is notable as it was his first live action in a for-reals spring training game. He only managed one out against while walking in a run. He gabe up two hits and two walks total, making 23 total pitches. It was ugly, it was brief, but he was back on the mound and might not be too far away from seeing actual MLB game action early this season.

The pitching was nice in today’s game, but the offense is the story. Oh, the offense. Any time the Padres put up double digits, it’s worth taking notice. I won’t bog you down with the details, so I’ll just present a bulleted list of the notable things that happened:

• Wil Myers hit his third home run of the season, a two-run bomb to right in the first. His swing looks so good when he goes the other way.
• Ryan Schimpf had to cover Myers’ home run with a two-run dinger of his own, so the skin carries over. (Golfers will get that reference.) Schimpf went 2-for-3.
• Schimpf plated Yangervis Solarte with his shot, and Solarte went 3-for-3.
• Jabari Blash hit his SEVENTH HOME RUN OF THE SPRING, also a two-run tater. I love when he goes oppo boppo, in my feeble little mind that tells me that he’s just taking what he’s getting rather than trying to blasht everything.
• Luis Sardiñas decided to make a point about this “hey I wanna be the starting shortstop too” argument with his first home run of the spring in a 2-for-3 performance.
• Rule 5 guys Luis Torrens and Allen Cordoba both got extra base hits in this game. Unfortunately, Torrens also made two errors.
• Dusty Coleman went 2-for-3 with a triple.
• Jamie Romak went 2-for-2 with a double and is now hitting .323 for the spring.
• If Mark Grant and Don Orsillo aren’t already the most entertaining duo in the business, they will be soon.

Final score, Padres 12, Mariners 2. The Vedder Cup is ours, regardless of which team Mr. Vedder actually cheers for. Check back in tomorrow, when Luis Perdomo squares off against a Dodgers split squad led by Luis Urias. It sure would be nice to see the Padres square off against the same foe they will face in real games that count next week!