The last time the Padres had a 3rd baseman put up numbers like this in the final months of the season, Ken Caminiti won himself an MVP award.
It might be happening again.
Friday night at PETCO Park, Chase Headley hit a pair of home runs, one from each side of the plate, to help the Padres beat the Diamondbacks 6-5. San Diego has won 13 of 17 games, and 7 straight against Arizona.
Headley's first blast came in the 3rd inning when (batting right-handed) he demolished a Tyler Skaggs offering over the Frazee Paint Can in left field. If anyone ever puts a ball in that can, a $500,000 donation will be made Padres charities.
In the 8th inning, Headley (batting left-handed) broke a 5-all tie with a 408-foot bomb into the Padres bullpen in left-center. The solo shot was the game-winner, giving Chase his 4th multi-homer game of the season.
He has 26 home runs and 98 RBI (2nd-most in the National League) but what Chase has done since the MLB trade deadline is staggering.
The Padres have played 34 games. Headley has driven in 46 runs. If he kept that pace over a 162-game season, Headley would have 218 RBI. The single-season record is 191.
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It's crazy to think Headley is just entering his prime. He's 28 years old. We can expect 4 or 5 more years of this.
General Manager Josh Byrnes made a wise move to not deal Headley at the deadline. Now he needs to make another good decision and lock of Chase to a long-term deal and keep him in San Diego for life.
