Charger Draft Fix

By Nick McCann

Greg Maddux was only two outs away from securing his 350th victory when Trevor Hoffman threw a 1-2 changeup that Benji “The New Padre Version of a Barry Bonds” Molina crushed into the left-field bleachers with one out in the top of the ninth inning, tying the game at 1.

Then those of us who weren’t watching the NBA playoffs, blinked our eyes, and realized it was the 13th inning, and the Giants had just pushed across two runs in the top of the inning off Glendon Rusch (0-2), the Padres' sixth pitcher of the night. An RBI bloop single from Fred Lewis and Aaron Rowand's third knock, an RBI single, made up the winning runs.

What happened after has become normal. The Padres are who they are: a team that can’t hit, and a team that should not think they are better than any team in their division.

With the Padres at 9-12, fans need to look to something that is completely stripped of disappointment. This weekend’s NFL Draft, and the Chargers hope of improving their already talented roster, are exactly what we need. No matter what the experts say about your team’s draft “performance”, they can all be proved wrong in the fall. This is the beauty of the Draft. This is why interest grows every year. This is why it is an escape. This is why the coverage before the draft is addicting and why the lack of coverage shortly after the draft is hard to replace.

I will look like this Monday morning:



from Afterglow (2005) directed by Melissa Yu

Luckily the Chargers have one of the best GM’s in all of sports. Resident grease ball, AJ Smith, understands the way the modern NFL’s finances work and he isn’t afraid to draft his way out of problems. The Chargers rarely sign free agents, but it isn’t because Smith doesn’t want to get the stars; it is just because he would rather draft a good players and sign them for cheap salaries, let them play in the system for a few years, and then sign the ones that are the most valuable.

Regardless of what the Chargers draft on Saturday and Sunday, AJ has earned the right to expect the Charger fans to believe he is making a good move. At this point, we have no right to question his lack of participation in free agency. All we have to do is wait for him to make his picks and then be happy for our future, even if it doesn’t work out later.

While dealing with the Padres lack of success, being given the escape of knowing the Chargers have a real shot to get better, if only for a weekend, will completely hit the spot.

Give me a hit Mel Kiper. I’m sick, give me the good shit.