ALFARO FEELS RIGHT AT HOME IN S.D.
Jorge Alfaro was in the Rangers organization for five years before they packed him off to Philadelphia in the Cole Hamels trade in July 2015. He spent another four years with the Phillies and another two years in Miami when the Padres acquired him on the eve of the lockout.
Whatever questions he had about how the San Diego community was taking to the 29-year-old Colombian — and there really weren’t much at all — were answered when Alfaro awoke Friday morning to find his likeness and the unofficial, not-safe-for-work slogan he coined painted on the side of a building in Chula Vista.
The Padres have commissioned murals of Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado, Joe Musgrove and Yu Darvish in the past, but not this one.
No, this was the work of Padres fans themselves following Alfaro’s walk-off single on Tuesday and ensuing postgame comments in which he said “Let’s (expletive) go San Diego.” The artist(s) painted duct tape over the curse word.
“It was a longer stay in Philly,” said Alfaro, fittingly
wearing a brown “LFGSD” shirt as he walked onto the field for early work. “It was longer in Miami. Right when I came here I was thinking about it, how’s it going to be? It’s only been a couple months and I just feel comfortable.
“I feel like home.”
His bat has certainly made it easier for fans to roll out the welcoming mat. Alfaro has paired a .288/.324/ .492 batting line with six homers in his first 39 games with the Padres, including a walk-off blast on Mother’s Day, in forcing himself into a virtual timeshare behind the
plate with Austin Nola.
Alfaro learned of the mural when he opened Twitter on his phone on Friday. He immediately forwarded it to his father, also Jorge, in Colombia, who asked if it was real.
It is, and Alfaro is hoping to see it in-person in the coming days.
“This is the first time that something like that has happened to me,” Alfaro said. “It means a lot to me and my family. My dad was really (emotional). … It means a lot, not just to me but the whole team. We can feel that love, that positive vibe.
Good vibes everywhere we go in San Diego.
“It’s always nice. The people are nice. It’s amazing. It’s heaven.”
More Machado activity
For the second day in a row, Manny Machado worked out lightly in right field to continue to test the left ankle he sprained on Sunday in Colorado.
He declined comment again, too, but Padres manager Bob Melvin continued to report progress as Machado has also been swinging in the indoor cage. Melvin, though, admitted it would be “a stretch” to think Machado could come off the bench this weekend.
“Remarkably from the very beginning, it’s been amazing to see him actually playing catch and (jogging) a little bit yesterday and swinging a bat,” Melvin said. “So we’re certainly not going to be in a hurry with him, but you definitely don’t want to jump the gun, put him on the IL if you don’t have to.”
Machado was last on the injured list in 2014, after the second of two knee injuries. He played through a shoulder injury last year that very likely deserved a trip to the injured list and is second only to Paul Goldschmidt (1075) with 1,072 games played since the start of 2015.
“I think it’s kind of a badge for him,” Melvin said. “He really wants to stay off that (IL). It speaks to, one, durability; two, playing hurt. Because there some days he was out there that maybe some other guys aren’t. I know he’s got a very high pain tolerance. He likes to play, and he wants to be there for his team, first and foremost. I know that’s the case right now.”
Notable
Melvin provided some clarity on LHP Adrian Morejon’s ailing shoulder after Thursday’s game, hours after he landed on the 15-day injured list: “Just some shoulder soreness. I don’t think it’s anything serious. He’s obviously somebody we’re going to be careful with after what he went through (Tommy John surgery). It’s not the elbow. It’s just some soreness in his shoulder. So we’ll shut him down probably a few days from throwing and get him back ramped up.”
DH Luke Voit was back in the lineup after sitting Thursday with a hamstring twinge.