Butt stuff at Padres spring training
One potential Padres starting pitcher is dealing with butt stuff, SDFC extends Tyler Heaps (who is still looking for a home for Chucky), SDSU gets a lifeline, and UCSD tops USD is baseball (finally).
I have nothing fun or funny or creative to say up here today. I’m also low on time.
I hope Matt Waldron’s butt infection doesn’t impact the San Diego Padres season.
Now, onto the links…
San Diego Padres
Padres notebook: Matt Waldron sidelined; Nick Castellanos works at first; Marco Gonzales returns - San Diego Union-Tribune
The competition to fill out the back end of the starting rotation has lost an entrant.
Matt Waldron has been sidelined following hemorrhoid surgery and could begin the season on the injured list.
“Had an infection in his rear end and had to have surgery to drain it and make it better,” Padres manager Craig Stammen said. “… He’ll be out week to week, depending on how that incision heals and how he’s feeling moving around.”
Return of Michael King to Padres gives hope - Gaslamp Ball
He dealt with right shoulder nerve impingement and left knee inflammation that limited him to 15 starts and 73.1 innings pitched last season. Shoulder injuries tend to sap a pitcher’s arm strength, which could keep them out of action for an extended time. Many trainers believe King’s knee inflammation can be attributed to his anxiousness to get back on the mound sooner than expected.
Right now, there is no rush to get him into games. Instead, the plan is for King to participate in scheduled throwing sessions at the Peoria Sports Complex. All will be good if he is ahead of the curve and pitches like his vintage self.
Tom Krasovic: Former manager Bud Black is again a piece of Padres’ ‘puzzle’ - San Diego Union-Tribune
Black said his Padres duties come down to this: “Watch baseball and talk baseball.”
He’s scouting Padres minor leaguers in spring training and will track them further in San Antonio, Texas; Fort Wayne, Indiana; and Lake Elsinore. Leading up to the summer draft, he’ll also scout amateur players as directed by Chris Kemp.
Black will also serve as a sounding board to the organization’s managers and coaches.
San Diego FC / San Diego Wave FC
San Diego FC Director Addresses Hirving Lozano Future, Confirms Club Interest - Athlon Sports
“And, on the action items on your desk in that same position, what we’ve been talking about, Lozano and his situation, you and Mike had mentioned that there have been clubs that were interested. Is there any update on that, or what the situation is with Lozano moving forward? Will he be here for the summer?” Sanchez asked.
Heaps said, “Yeah, there is interest, but there’s no update at this time. As soon as there is an update, I’ll be sure to let you guys know, and be as transparent as we can be.”
San Diego FC sporting director Tyler Heaps receives contract extension - NBC 7 San Diego
Tyler Heaps built a roster that made Major League Soccer history in its first season, an effort that landed him a contract extension Tuesday.
Heaps’ new deal will keep him in the role of sporting director through the first half of 2029.
“I’m thankful, I’m grateful,” Heaps told reporters Tuesday. “We have fantastic owners. We have a fantastic facility. It’s an unbelievable city and community so I’m happy to be a part of it.”
Five San Diego Wave FC Players Called Up for February, March FIFA International Window - San Diego Wave FC
Kimmi Ascanio has earned a call up to the U.S. U-20 Youth National Team training camp running from Feb. 24 through March 3 at the Elite Athlete Training Center in Chula Vista, Calif. Ascanio, the youngest on the USYNT roster, is one of the most experienced players having played at the 2022 Concacaf Girls’ U-15 Championship, the 2024 Concacaf U-17 Women’s Championship and the 2024 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.
Odds & Ends
Botched final play between Luka, LeBron dooms Lakers vs. Magic - ESPN
After Magic center Wendell Carter Jr. scored on a putback with 6.7 seconds remaining to put Orlando up one, L.A. called timeout. On the ensuing play, James passed the ball to an open Doncic, who caught it on the left wing beyond the 3-point line but opted not to shoot.
“I know I was open, but I just thought I was a little bit far,” Doncic said. “Tried to take one dribble closer. And I probably shouldn’t have picked up the ball and just tried to attack.”
Handed a lifeline, Aztecs can climb back into first place with a win vs. Utah State - San Diego Union-Tribune
Utah State (23-4, 13-3) comes to Viejas Arena on Wednesday night with only a one-game lead, meaning an Aztecs win puts them back in first place with three games to play. Two of those three are on the road in places the Aztecs have historically struggled — New Mexico and Boise State — but the point is, there’s still a chance.
“If they had won,” Dutcher said of Utah State’s 80-77 loss at Nevada, “our fate would have been in someone else’s hands. Now we have our fate in our own hands.”
Then he added this qualifier:
“Unfortunately, we’re not playing really good basketball right now.”
Tritons Walk Off USD in Ten - UCSD Tritons
UC San Diego baseball topped San Diego, 8-7, in an extra-innings contest on Tuesday night at Triton Ballpark. The Tritons' (3-4) offense capitalized on 12 walks and six hit batters in the 10-inning battle with the Toreros (6-2) that lasted nearly five hours. It is the program's first Division I victory over the crosstown foe in 12 meetings.
The Best and Worst of USA Hockey’s Brotherhood, All at Once - The Ringer
For the U.S. men, winning Olympic gold this weekend overwrote the annoyance of last year’s OT loss to Canada in the final of the surprisingly heated, glorious 4 Nations Face-Off tournament, even as it also created new distractions. And the win helped ensure that in the future, American hockey success won’t take some miracle on ice—it’ll just be what’s expected. The victory reflected not only the work of the brothers brothers on the American roster but also the closeness of the many other players who have been growing up together in one big USA Hockey family for quite some time. And when it comes to family: Sometimes your people will embarrass you, and sometimes they’ll make you proud.
Milwaukee Bucks legend Marques Johnson is still dunking at 70 years old - The Athletic
“It’s that last connection to our youth as players,” Johnson said. “Being able to dunk, it was always, for guys, a big part of your basketball personality. Just to be able to see how long you could do it, and if you could still do it in your advanced years. It’s still special. And I’m sure that’s kind of how others feel about it.”
Something Of Moderate Size And Importance Is Happening - Defector
At MegaCorp, however, there are far more people than real needs. Many of the people are managers, existing in a hierarchy that extends so far that from the point of view I enjoy that the CEO might as well be an infallible, inscrutable god. The daily work at MegaCorp does not consist of finding some solution, any solution, to technical problems, nor deploying those solutions to prod as quickly as possible, nor staying up all night to patch the problems introduced by the unavoidable frictions and problems created by this rush to produce. Instead, the issue is the existence of quarterly reports, and shareholders, and performance reviews. (My first one went well, thanks.)