Peavy's Presence Gives Pads Glimmer of Hope

When rumors surfaced that ace Jake Peavy was heading to the White Sox, fans of the Friars had to be holding their collective breath.

Before the season began, Padre fans waited anxiously while "Peavy to the Cubs" rumors ran rampant. The hot-stove league came and went, and Peavy was still in a Padre uniform, much to the delight of the San Diego faithful.

On Wednesday, Peavy put the kabosh on any Windy City trade talk. According to ESPN's Peter Gammons, the team on the South Side was going to give San Diego four players in return for the stud pitcher.

Earlier in the day, I heard that Peavy really enjoys the nuances of the National League (getting to hit, staying involved the whole game, etc.) and wanted nothing to do with playing in the American League.

Whatever the reason behind Peavy's decision to quash the trade, the Padres can still cling to hopes of reaching the post-season.

While I understand that this possibility is fairly unlikely, having an ace on the pitching staff definitely increases those odds. Also, it looks like San Diego is coming out of its funk.

As of the (butt)crack of dawn Thursday morning, the Padres were three games below .500 and 9.5 games back of the hated Dodgers. But the Fathers have strung together six straight wins, including consecutive series sweeps over the Reds and the Giants. The latter, of course, was huge and drew the Padres within a half-game of San Francisco.

After starting the season on a 9-3 roll, the Padres had been mired in a 4-19 skid. If the pitching staff continues to do well, and the offense can generate something (anything, PLEASE), the team could be in good shape.

Peavy has looked especially sharp in the month of May. In his four May starts, he has an ERA of 1.80 and has fanned 37 batters in 30 innings of work. The Padres are 1-3 in those games, but that's more a testament to his lack of run support than anything else (seven runs in four games won't cut it).

His most recent start was his best, a complete-game four-hitter over the Reds.

Making the playoffs might be a long shot. But with no Peavy, there's no shot.