PHILADELPHIA -- The Padres have certainly experienced their share of growing pains during the season's first two months. Ahead of the All-Star break Sunday, manager Andy Green lauded his club for its recent resiliency.
Over the past month and a half, the Padres are 20-18. They secured their first winning road trip this week and, despite a 7-1 loss in Philadelphia on Sunday, they will head into the break having won five of seven.
"It's a nice stretch going into the break for us," Green said. "We've played some consistent baseball. We still have a long way to go to be the type of team that we want to be. But there's a lot of positive things to highlight."
Of course, the Padres' -128 run differential is the worst in the Majors, and Green was quick to note that he'd like to see his club do better to avoid games that spiral. But on a broader scale, the Padres, who are 38-50, have generally bounced back well from their poorest performances.
"It's probably fair to say we've been blown out more than anybody in baseball, but we've responded incredibly positively from some really rough stretches and shown resiliency overall," Green said.
The examples are numerous, perhaps most notably a sweep of the reigning champion Cubs, shortly after being steamrolled for three straight games in Arizona.
"We've got a lot of young guys learning together," said catcher Austin Hedges. "It gives us a short memory, and we just try to win that day. As a whole, nobody really cares if we won or lost the day before."
Green credited the culture created by his veteran players, specifically the influence of left-hander Clayton Richard.
For a young ballclub, there's still plenty of development ahead on the field, Green said. But he added that the upbeat -- yet still workmanlike -- nature of the clubhouse can foster that growth.
"Whether you're a first-place team or a last-place team, you need to enjoy what you do everyday in life," Green said. "If it ever gets to be drudgery or gets to be work, you're not going to respond well to adverse circumstances. It's a credit to the guys that make up that clubhouse."