Bill Center, longtime sportswriter for U-T San Diego, is an employee of the Padres.
The All-Star Game is one month away, so it is time to revisit who might represent the Padres at Petco Park. I have two names on my list: first baseman Wil Myers and closer Fernando Rodney.
Few Major League hitters are hotter than Myers at the moment. Over his last 11 games, Myers is hitting .444 (20-for-45) with four doubles, six homers, 15 RBIs and 12 runs scored. He has three homers in his past two games and has scored at least one run in nine straight games. He goes into Saturday's game at Coors Field riding a six-game hitting streak (12-for-23 with five homers, 10 RBIs and eight runs scored. On the season, the 25-year-old Myers is hitting .294 with 12 doubles, a triple, 13 home runs, eight stolen bases, 37 RBIs and 39 runs scored. He has a .328 on-base percentage and a .517 percentage to go with his .294 batting average for a .845 OPS. Plus, he's a perfect All-Star Game reserve, since he can also play all three outfield positions as well as first.
Too bad Rodney hasn't had a chance to shoot more arrows, because the closer has been close to perfect. He is 11-for-11 in save opportunities with a 0.00 ERA. The 39-year-old right-hander has a 0-1 record due to an unearned run allowed in a non-save situation on April 15. On the season, Rodney has allowed eight hits and 10 walks with 21 strikeouts over 22 1/3 innings. Over his last 15 appearances, opposition hitters have only two hits off Rodney. The only problem with Rodney is that he has only 22 appearances in the Padres' first 62 games. He has only two saves in 27 games since picking up saves in both ends of the Padres' doubleheader sweep of the Cubs at Wrigley Field on May 11.
NOTES FROM THE SCOREBOOK
• Right-hander Luis Perdomo, 23, had his longest Major League outing Friday night in relief of Andrew Cashner. He allowed four runs (three earned) in eight hits and a walk with seven strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings. He had gone five innings in an earlier relief outing but never went deeper than 4 1/3 innings in any of his three starts. Perdomo has given up at least one run in each of his nine most recent appearances.
• Left fielder Melvin Upton's homer Friday night was only his sixth hit -- and only extra-base hit -- in 41 at-bats (.146) since May 28.
• Shortstop Alexei Ramirez was 2-for-4 with two runs scored Friday, one game after his season-high 10-game hitting streak ended. Ramirez is hitting .341 (15-for-44) while hitting safely in 11 of his 12 last games with a double, three homers and eight RBIs and nine runs scored.
• Center fielder Jon Jay has hit safely in eight of his last nine games (15-for-42) and 14 of the last 16 games (24-for-72).