Norfolk Tides AAA Report

It's been an up and down week for the Norfolk Tides. After losing two straight to the Indianpolis Indians, they won four in a row against the Richmond Braves, only to get hammered yesterday by the Pawtucket Red Sox. Norfolk stands in first and has a nice four game cushion in the International League South.

Veteran Brian Daubach, who only three years ago hit 20 homers for the Boston Red Sox, has been tearing it up for the Tides. He sports an impressive .373/.438/.672 line. Equally as impressive has been infield prospect Jeff Keppinger. Primarily a second basemen, Keppinger has also seen some time at third base, and is hitting at a .368/412/.503 clip in 163 at bats.

On the pitching side, Juan Padilla has been the most impressive. Used primarily as a reliever, Padilla is 2-0 with a 0.94 ERA and a 0.837 WHIP. Most importantly, he has a rock solid 27/4 strikeout to walk ratio. He's saved two games, and has yet to give up a homer in 28 2/3 innings.

The Tides have three more games with Pawtucket before moving on the Ottawa Lynx come to town.