Quentin, Headley Close to Return

June 24, 2013; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Padres third baseman

(7) is congratulated by left fielder

(18) after scoring during the ninth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

Two important Padres are getting healthy.

According to Jeff Sanders of the U-T, Chase Headley is expected to return from the DL after the minimum stay.  He is scheduled to come off the DL on May 10th.

A quick rehab by  Carlos Quentin could put both Headley and Quentin in the Padres lineup for next Saturday’s matchup against the Marlins.

Headley and Quentin are the number 3 and 4 hitters for the team. The two players have not both been in uniform for the Padres since last July 30. That was nearly 100 games ago. That’s a long time for a team to go without the heart of their lineup.

How important is it to have both of these players playing?

Since becoming teammates in 2012, Headley and Quentin have both been in the lineup 155 times. At least one of them has been out of the lineup 198 times.

With both men in the lineup, the Padres are 77-78, a .497 winning percentage. With at least one of them out of the lineup, they are 88-110, a .444 winning percentage. A .497 winning percentage equates to 81 wins in a season. .444 equates to 72 wins. Having both men in the lineup is worth about 9 additional wins over the course of a season.

With the Padres’ improved pitching this year, those 9 extra wins could be the difference between the Padres playing October baseball and playing October golf.