Padres Midseason Report Card

May 5, 2014; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Padres left fielder

(12) slides into third base after a triple during the first inning against the Kansas City Royals at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

Bench:

Seth Smith: A

Smith was brought to the team to hit right-handed pitching, and he has excelled at that, with a .289/.384/.515 line against righties. He leads the team in BA, OBP. SLG, doubles, triples, homers, runs, and walks. He has been the only player on the team whose season could actually be considered “good”.

Tommy Medica: B

Medica has spent time both in AAA and the majors, and has done pretty well in the bigs, hitting .258 with a .474 SLG. His 4 homers in 97 ABs show more of the promise we saw in last year’s cup of coffee with the big league team. In his first week after getting called up in May, he hit .533, going 8-for-15 with two homers. He shows promise, which has been a nice change of pace from the rest of the offense this year.

Chris Denorfia: C+

Denorfia started off hot, hitting .305 in April, but dipped to .226 in May, and is mired in a .150 slump in June, bringing his season average to .250. He’s only got one home run, but has contributed 7 steals to the offense, and is one of the few decent situational hitters on the team. His hustle gains him a few extra points.

Alexi Amarista: C+

Amarista has not been good at the plate, with a .550 OPS. But he has managed to fill in adequately defensively at 2B, SS, 3B, and the outfield. His defensive versatility is a big plus.

Jace Peterson:

Not ready for prime time. Hit .100

Overall bench: B

These guys have been better than the starters.