The Padres have pushed their $70 million lemon through the car wash and come clean. They've admitted their jalopy was the product of everyone on their assembly line – with the possible exception of salesmen Henry Paulson and George W. Bush – and that's still to be determined.
EARNIE GRAFTON / Union-Tribune
Padres General Manager Kevin Towers: "If we thought it was Buddy Black, we probably would have let him go."
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Yesterday, in the Petco Park dugout before a media contingent, they did an act of contrition and refused to fade from Black.
Just when so many thought the blame bomb would be dropped on sophomore manager Bud Black, the team announced he would return in 2009, the final year of his contract. He may be a lame duck – OK by him – but he's still quacking around.
“If we thought it was Buddy Black,” General Manager Kevin Towers was saying, “we probably would have let him go.”
At least a few people remain in that organization with the ability to think clearly in difficult times without running to Nancy Pelosi for help.
I don't know enough about the art of managing – does anybody? – to determine how much Black had to do with the Padres' 99 losses. But I seriously doubt another skipper would have made them the '27 Yankees.
Black, who came within a pitch of earning a postseason berth his rookie season, didn't deserve a pink slip.
“This guy didn't get that dumb in one year,” Towers correctly assessed.
The best manager in the National League this year was Manny Ramirez, the great hitter the Dodgers managed to get in an 11th-hour steal. Suddenly, Joe Torre was a Hall of Famer again.
“Those kinds of guys can make a manager look pretty good,” Towers admitted.
Even with ManRam, the Bums managed to win just 84 games, or five fewer than the Black-led Padres won in 2007. Which is why there's a sliver of hope for next season. The NL West is not a Germanic tribe.
I'm certain Black made decisions he'd like to forget. Saying that, he probably did things that led to a few wins.
“Some moves I made didn't work out,” he said. “I accept that responsibility.
“I learned more this year than last year. I'm better off this happened. It humbles you.”
The easy way out in baseball is to put it all on the manager – in the Padres' case, it's always much simpler to kick out the hitting coach – but Towers and CEO Sandy Alderson, whose fingerprints are on every decision, wisely did not take that alleyway.
They didn't jerk their knees. Towers met with Black for five hours in L.A. during the late-season series with the Dodgers. He went back to Alderson with “We've got to keep Buddy” in his notebook.
“There can be division when you place the blame on other people,” Towers said. “The players can get confused (not unusual under many circumstances). We didn't think Buddy deserved it. To take this far of a step back is a wake-up call for everybody. We all think we failed this year.”
So, does Black, who admits his failure.
“If you look at it, yeah, there are reasons why we had this season,” he said. “Being in uniform and being responsible for decisions, yeah. (But) I feel we all factored into this.”
Failure came from all directions. The franchise talked about re-signing center fielder Mike Cameron and left fielder Milton Bradley, two good players and vocal leaders, after the 2007 season. But the Padres never made Cameron an offer and Bradley surprised some in the organization by accepting a deal from Texas.
Black may have been in on personnel decisions, but he hardly had the final say. He found himself severely nicked in the starting staff, his middle relief drastically underperformed, his hitters couldn't hit, his team was slow, his batsmen struck out incessantly, and the farm was harvested for young players, some of whom did OK, some of whom didn't. He did what he could with what he had, and it couldn't cut yogurt.
“There are people pointing fingers, who to blame,” Towers said. “All of us are to blame. I felt I let them down when it came to providing a strong bullpen and a strong bench. We had difficulty bridging the gap between (set-up man Heath) Bell and (closer Trevor) Hoffman.
“The season was a disaster. The players, coaching staff and front office all have to be held accountable. Buddy definitely is the right guy.”
OK. So now what?
The Padres will have a smaller payroll in 2009. Right fielder Brian Giles will be in an option year and he's coming off a very consistent season. Hoffman becomes a free agent in November, and as much as many people threw knives at him earlier, the Pads don't win 63 games without him.
“We're probably leaning more toward extending his (Giles') option than not,” Towers said. “We'd like to have Trevor back, as well. I think there is willingness on both sides to get something done.”
There's an elephant in this building. Where will help come from? Youth? We'll see. Maybe the Padres will get it by moving in the right-field fence, a yearly Alderson craving.
“We looked at the fences yesterday,” Towers said. “We're going to look at 'em again.”
Now that should do it. Didn't Manny Ramirez hit two over the current wall? Now that guy can manage.
Nick Canepa: (619) 293-1397; nick.canepa@uniontrib.com
