My vote is for Francis. He is supposed to be are ace on the mound, but the only good outing that I can remember thus far for Francis was his (I think it was 8) shutout innings he pitched, matching Peavy to start the 22 inning game that the Rockies were able to win. Of course, the Padres hitters are struggling more this year than the Rockies hitters.
Well I'm going to say it's not a certain player but more of a lack of timely hitting by the team. Francis has had some poor outings but when you don't have much run support you press more and make mistakes. Atkins and Barmes are the only ones with decent numbers at the plate. There are several batting averages that are below what these players normally hit. Put up some runs and get big leads in the game and the pitcher can relax on the mound.
The effort is the worst surprise so far. The players are quitting in most games and when falling behind. I would be very happy if they finished around .500 for the year because I don't see it happening. The talent is not there and so is the effort. They're a bad group of players that quit when the going gets tough.
Whaqt totally disgusts me is that the ones most disappointing are the ones who signed the big contracts over the winter. Atkins and Barmes don't have the big contracts, Cook is the only one of the long terem contracts that is performing. Hawpe, Holliday, Corpas, Francis, and Torrealba have all sucked to high heaven. Tulo did too, before he got hurt.
I just do not want the Monforts to get bashed over this, they did what the fan base wanted them to do.
Hopefully these over priced hyenas will get it together, orit could be several long years.
The biggest disappointment for me out of this most disappointing season is probably Tulo although it is so hard to choose and just pick one. He couldn't hit and his defense wasn't as solid as last year. He could still make some spectacular plays but not with regularity.All winter long I couldn't wait to for the season to begin to watch what a year of maturation would do in furthering Tulo's talent. The desire is always there. Then the injury came and they say we won't be seeing Tulowitzki until the All Star Break. Some reports say it won't be until August. The way this season is going I think they should be conservative and just make sure it is totally healed so that it doesn't affect his range in the future.
As for a pitcher, I think I am most distressed by Corpas. I thought it was foolish of management to give him a long term contract considering that he is so young and did not have a wealth of experience at the closer position but I didn't think he would fall apart the way he did. It has been awful. The other player besides Tulowitzki whose development I was most interested in this year and thought might have his breakout year was Jimenez and so I am deeply disappointed by his performance. as well. I am mostly saddened when I watch Jeff Francis because I know he puts a lot of work in between starts and he wants to win so badly each time he starts. I'm just wondering if the World Series meltdown might still be affecting him.
Probably the biggest disappointment though is the team's attitude. Last year even before they started winning a lot they had a resiliency and there was always a sense they could come from behind. This year there is no clutch hitting, there has been horrible baserunning, stupid defensive mistakes from a lack of concentration, and a general lack of cohesiveness as a team. This was a team that was known last year for it's chemistry and they were purposely kept together. Now the injuries are mounting. It does not look promising for a happy summer in Denver.
Holiday is my biggest disapointment. He has always sucked in the field. But this year he can not hit worth a darn when it really matters. Hawpe may have struggled a lil bit this year but I think he has like 5 game winning or game tying rbis. Helton has done his thing you can not hate their. Corpas is worthless and I never counted on him or fuentes. The closer job is just being faked until Weathers is big league ready. Right now basically the whole team is hurt or on the dl. When we get healthy and dump holiday taveras fuentes and corpas, we can once again be solid contenders.
Worst surprise... Gotta say Francis. If someone asked me in March if I thought Francis would have one win by May 1st, I would've laughed at the ridiculous bet being offered and slapped my money down....and I would be one sore loser sitting here on May 28th and our would be 'Ace' rocking a 6.18 ERA and a 1-5 record.
Ubaldo - hey, not surprised. Pleased that he did so well late last year after being called up, but big league hitters adjust a bit faster and a bit better than what he's used to. You get away with success for a while, then WHAM! step it up or go back down to AAA.
Corpas - Slightly disappointed. I thought we had a pretty good 1-2 punch for the 8th and 9th. I had high hopes, but at least I wouldn't have put money on those guys back in April. Fuentes scares me, Manny frustrates me. I'd like to see Herges and Buchholz get a chance at 8th and 9th (respectively). you know, just for fun...can't get any worse.
Tulo - disappointing start but basically a bad hitting slump. The kid is talented he'll snap out of it sooner or later. Note to Dan, Charlie, and Dick - Maybe you should've held back that big of a contract and used some of that money to lock up guys like Holliday and Atkins.
Taveras - Not a special player, never was, probably never will be. But hitting .241 in the lead-off spot....c'mon THAT is disappointing.
Helton - Todd is exactly who I expected him to be. OBP = .402, making pitchers burn 8, 9 pitches every time they face him (working the count), not a power hitter. Ok he's not EXACTLY who I expected him to be, he's actually legged out 10 doubles so far! I thought his $16.6M legs would start slowing down this year.
Those who voted 'Player not listed', I gotta believe some of you are referring to Hawpe. He has been a disappointment. Always lots of strikeouts, but usually a worth-while trade off for his power hitter numbers. Strike-outs are up and power numbers are down...so far.
I voted for Francis but the list of guys who are disappointing is a long one. Francis is supposed to be the ace. The guy that sets the tone. He has been sloppy and undisciplined in his approach this year.
Todd Helton. I love Helton. If there was a stat for firstbasemen called digs, where you get credit for digging a ball out of the dirt. He would lead the league in that. Great glove but I cant watch him hit 280, not after seeing him hit 330 for most of his career. I cant believe he will stick around and be a 270 hitter with no power. Sad.
Not to mention Helton's contract is enormous! Hopefully he can get it going. I voted for Francis too...seems like he is scared out there. I don't think Hurdle is helping much either. I might be wrong but I think he rode the train last year and might need a talking to.
No one has really talked about Tulo but I think he may be the biggest disappointment. If he hadn't gotten hurt he might not be hitting any better than .200 right now. This is the guy everyone hyped up as the next Derek Jeter and he can't even hit better than .200 early in the year. A side note to that is how well Barmes played before his injury, I was really excited to see that.
Also, what in the world is up with Corpas? Awesome end of the year last year, and a huge part of the playoff run, but the guy can't get anyone out. 3 runs today and not a single out..ARE YOU KIDDING ME!
