Fossum went four and third innings of six hit, one-run ball at Triple-A Portland on Wednesday. Since he only pitched four and a third innings, I can easily see San Diego bringing him up to pitch for Chris Young on Sunday. Clay Hensley is scheduled to start Saturday, leaving Ledezma as the only other possibility to start on the current roster. Also in the mix could be Tim Stauffer at Triple-A.
Honestly, come September, it's really just about who's left standing on a given pitching staff. The Padres will be facing the Phillies this weekend, who without Cole Hamels, will need to find a fifth starter as well.
Padres left-hander David Wells is a baseball collector of sorts and one of his prize possessions just grew a lot more valuable.
Wells has an old, grainy, yellowing baseball that he purchased for $7,000 with a Babe Ruth signature scrawled across the sweet spot. Since the purchase, he had Hank Aaron sign the ball during a Padres trip to Atlanta, and on Sunday, he added the name of Barry Bonds in the left fielder's unmistakable script.
That may give Wells the only ball that has the signatures of the top three all-time Major League home run hitters on it.
Yeah, I'd venture to guess that Wells has the only ball with all three signatures on it. Lucky for him, he should be around to get A-Rod, Pujols, or whomever else joins that elite group. Maybe Wells knew what he was doing when he publicly supported Bonds earlier in the year. And like I said, Wells' ball could be the greatest sports collectible of all-time.
After Hensley and Bonds departed the game, the pitcher called the Giants clubhouse and asked Bonds if Bonds could send him a bat as a souvenir. Bonds responded almost immediately and inscribed a message on the bat that concluded "God Bless."
Memo to everyone who says Bonds is a jerk: surrender a home run to him, and he'll be happy to oblige in any way possible. On a related note, I'm not so sure I would be proud of yielding a milestone home run in baseball history. Hensley seems to be embracing the experience. Am I the only one who thinks there's something wrong with that?
While Bonds has been shadowed by suspicions of steroid use for several years, which some fans feel has tainted his chase for Hank Aaron's home run record, Hensley got caught when he was in the minor leagues.
In April 2005, Hensley was one of four Padres farmhands who were suspended for 15 games for using performance-enhancing substances, either steroids or steroid precursors.
When you think about it, it's actually quite fitting: baseball's most famous record falls and it has needle marks all over it. I don't think even the most cynical fan could have scripted it better.
Everyone is quick to use over-muscled sluggers as examples of baseball's steroid problem, but Hensley is proof that pitchers are also willing to break the rules when they think no one is looking.If you're one of those fans calling for an asterisk next to Barry Bonds' accomplishments, just realize that he blazed his path through the record book against pitchers who were just as juiced up as he was, and to his credit he still came out ahead. (hat-tip to Ballhype)
Status Check is FanHouse's conversation with fans from the rest of the blogosphere. Today, we talk with Geoff Young from Ducksnorts, Anthony Trifiletti from Friar Watch, and jbox from Gaslamp Ball. Q. How far can the Padres go this season?
A. Geoff Young from Ducksnorts: Barring any unforeseen circumstances, I think the Padres can go as far as they want this year. Of course, I thought that last year, so who knows. They have two studs at the front of the rotation in Jake Peavy and Chris Young, as well as veterans Greg Maddux and David Wells to pick up the back end. This mix gives opponents a lot of different looks, and even if they knock out the starters, they have to deal with -- statistically -- the best bullpen in baseball. It's popular to gripe about the Padres' offense, but Adrian Gonzalez is proving that last year was no fluke, while Mike Cameron, Khalil Greene, and Kevin Kouzmanoff all have been swinging the bat well of late. The addition of Michael Barrett, who destroys left-handed pitching, gives San Diego another weapon. The Padres really just need to stay healthy, keep executing well, and hold off at least one of Arizona or LA the rest of the way. Once the post-season starts, it's a crapshoot, but I think the Padres have put themselves in excellent position so far and should come out okay if they keep doing what they've been doing over the first 2 1/2 months of the season.
So says FOXSports.com writer Ken Rosenthal, as Gaslamp Ball points out. After mentioning that the Dodgers and Padres would both be interested in Jermaine Dye (who isn't interested in Dye these days?), Rosenthal says the Padres are eyeing a deal for Adam Dunn.
Acquiring Dunn would be a risk - he becomes a free agent at the end of the season if he is traded - but that doesn't bother the Padres.
The Reds' price tag, however, probably would.
Dunn is their biggest chip, and the Reds would be excoriated if they traded another offensive part for bullpen help after sending outfielder Austin Kearns and shortstop Felipe Lopez to the Nationals in such a deal last season.
The emergence of right-hander Justin Germano theoretically could make righty Clay Hensley available, but the Padres will need to be careful - they've got two 40-somethings in their rotation, righty Greg Maddux and lefty David Wells, plus oft-injured righty Jake Peavy.
Rosenthal makes a good point about the Padres having old guys in their rotation. And you can never have a surplus of good young pitching. But Dunn is an established power hitter, while Hensley is fresh off a rookie season, and currently in the minors. If the Padres are to attempt such a deal, they better make sure that they can sign Dunn after the year, and that they're certain Hensley won't become a star. I would hate to think that Clay Hensley could be the only thing keeping San Diego from acquiring Adam Dunn. One thing is for sure, if I'm Wayne Krivsky, I'm having buyers line up for Adam, offering the best pitchers they've got.
"It doesn't look good," manager Bud Black said ... "It looks as if it is going to be a disabled list injury . . . this could be longer (than 15 days). We'll know in a couple of days after an MRI is taken."
The problem, aside from the injury, is finding someone to replace Hensley in the rotation. The likely candidate is triple-A pitcher Justin Germano, who's spent time with the Padres previously, and was claimed off waivers from Philadelphia in spring training. The other three top candidates either are struggling in the minors (Mike Thompson and Tim Stauffer) or out for the season with injury (Cesar Carillo). Another logical fit is former Padre pitcher Brian Lawrence, who was cut by the Rockies recently, and could make his way to San Diego.
This might not seem like a hit to the Padres, but it is. Hensley won 11 games last year and sported a 3.71 ERA in 29 starts, and he had made back-to-back quality starts prior to injuring his groin Wednesday night. San Diego can only hope Hensley won't be out for long.
It's pretty incredible the way pitchers play musical chairs towards the end of a season. We saw the Padres acquire Wilfredo Ledezma and subsequently cut David Wells, who has since signed with the Dodgers. Now with Chris Young's back hurting, the Padres have signed Casey Fossum to a minor league deal. 
Barry Bonds
So 
The baseball gods sure do have a sense of humor: 
Status Check
So says FOXSports.com writer Ken Rosenthal, as 
If you thought his 12.21 ERA through his first three starts of the year were bad...you were right. But Hensley got even worse news after 
