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Counting on Klesko
Counting on Klesko
Padres look to Klesko for boost down stretch
By Tom Krasovic
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
August 16, 2005
JIM BAIRD / Union-Tribune
With Phil Nevin gone and two other hitters on the disabled list, the Padres are looking for Ryan Klesko to help lead them to their first playoff berth since 1998.
With Phil Nevin gone and two other hitters on the disabled list, the Padres are looking for Ryan Klesko to help lead them to their first playoff berth since 1998.
The team leader in home runs, pennant-race experience and salary, Klesko is viewed by several players as vital to the team's stretch drive that resumes tonight in Miami, said first baseman Mark Sweeney.
"Ryan is one of our headliners you look at when you expect the team to win," said Sweeney, who ranks among the offense's leaders in several categories. "Ryan probably feels like he's struggling a little now, but we've got to have him to win."
Klesko, who hasn't gone to the playoffs since Atlanta traded him after the 1999 World Series, said he's aware that his teammates expect him to play a major role in the final 45 games.
"I expect that of myself," he said. "I'll help out as much as I can. But this is a team sport. Everybody's got to do something to help the team win."
Like the Padres as a whole, Klesko yearns to regain his form of earlier in the season. Entering July he was batting .276 with 13 home runs and on-base (.379) and slugging percentages (.476) close to his career marks. Since July 1, however, he is batting .211 with an on-base-plus-slugging percentage (OPS) of .674, about 200 points off his career OPS.
Klesko, 34, refused to use injuries as an excuse, although he had a cortisone shot in his neck Friday and missed five games on the last trip after his lower back seized up when he turned on a shower at the team hotel in Pittsburgh.
"I've been hitting the ball hard," he said. "I just haven't been getting any hits. You can't let it get to you. I just try to make solid contact. I feel good."
When they last faced the Marlins in May, the Padres were enjoying the winningest month (22-6) in franchise history. They've since gone 25-40, the league's worst record in that time.
"We've seen this team play very, very good baseball, and we've seen it play really bad ball," Klesko said. "Teams that go all the way play consistently. If we can take it out there like we did in May, we can do it."
Defensively, Klesko has improved upon his subpar work in 2004, when he was thrust into left field as a regular for the first time since 1999. Pitcher Woody Williams and other teammates commended Klesko's hustle in left and his improved throwing.
Still, to speed up his outfield defense, manager Bruce Bochy envisions Klesko at first, the position held by Nevin, who was traded to Texas on July 30. Bochy's plan was postponed Aug. 2 when Klesko's back gave out one day after Klesko fielded grounders for the first time this year.
"My back's not 100 percent," Klesko said Saturday. "It's good enough to play. I'll do whatever the team asks of me to help us win, but I do want to be comfortable over there (at first base)."
It is Klesko's left-handed bat, though, that earned him a multiyear contract that guarantees him $10 million this year and $10.5 million next year. Klesko's bat used to inspire more confidence from Bochy, who, to Klesko's chagrin at times, has benched Klesko against lefties more than he did in previous years.
Just when Bochy began to ask more of Klesko – penciling him in against lefty Dave Williams – the severe spasms knocked Klesko from the lineup Aug. 2. Klesko has gone 2-for-17 since his return.
Klesko, whose best month last year was September, said his right shoulder, surgically repaired in September 2003, feels strong and that his outlook is confident.
"My bat speed is way better than last year," he said. "I've been driving the ball better. Am I as quick with my feet as I was five years ago? Maybe not. But I can look myself in the mirror and say, 'Hey, I gave it my best every game.' "
Sweeney said he and other Padres will lean on Klesko and slugger Brian Giles much like second-place Arizona will turn to veteran hitters Luis Gonzalez and Troy Glaus.
"It's like (left fielder) Greg Vaughn in 1998, when he helped carry us the final two months," Sweeney said. "It's like with (Padres ace) Jake Peavy. When Jakes goes out there, we expect to win. That's what's so great about Giles. Day in and day out, he's doing everything he can to help us win. He's earning his money, in my eyes."
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Tom Krasovic: (619) 293-2207; tom.krasovic@uniontrib.com
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Originally Posted by padrefanforever
