You definitely need a scorecard to tell these guys apart

I spent today's off day transferring files from my old computer to my new one and while doing so I came across the San Diego Union-Tribune's "Meet your 2007 Padres" page and realized that this team is nothing like it was back in April.

Of the 25 players on the opening day roster, seven players are currently not on the roster (two have spent most of the season in the minors but are on the 40-man roster), one has shuttled back and forth all season between the minors and the Padres and two of the starters have lost their jobs.

As fans we all applaud the job Kevin Towers has done as the season goes along, but looking at these changes wholesale, the job he has done seems even better. Replacing guys like Jose Cruz Jr., Rob Bowen, Russell Branyan, David Wells and Scott Linebrink with Milton Bradley, Michael Barrett, Morgan Ensburg, Rob Mackowiak and Justin Germano may not sound like much (and we may be missing Wells as we search for a No. 5 starter) but these moves have kept the Padres within striking distances while the Diamondbacks seem to be having a "team of destiny" type season playing well beyond their talent. Personally I would much rather be battling for the division title to the wire than sitting here trying to determine what happened to the promising season the Padres appeared to be having at the end of May.

No matter how much we want it to happen, not every move made by Towers will work out in our favor but with his track record, chances are the moves will work out more often than not. The same goes for wins - the Pads may not win them all but they need to be winning more games than they lose at this point. And if that happens, we should be enjoying another postseason.

Padres end up buying as trade deadline passes

I don't know about you but after all of the deals the Padres had made before today, I didn't think Kevin Towers would pull the trigger on any more deals but alas, SD is welcoming four new players into the organization: Rob Mackowiak, Morgan Ensburg, Wilfredo Ledezma and Will Startup.

The truly masterful stroke of all of this dealing though is the fact that the only real player with any experience in the majors is Royce Ring - which I would say is a pretty good deal.

I do admit though that I am a little puzzled by the move to acquire Ensburg since SD clearly wanted Mark Loretta or Mike Lamb from the Astros. And the fact that Houston designated him for assignment and seemingly gave up on him raises a red flag, but maybe a change of scenery will help like it did for Milton Bradley. Mackowiak's comments on being traded make me think he doesn't want to be on his way to SD either but maybe when he is on a winning team again that will change.

The best thing about all of these moves though is the fact that it signifies Towers and company are not satisfied with the team this is now and want to do what they can to make sure we get past the first round of the playoffs.

The depth of the bench just a major boost and it will be interesting to see how all of these pieces fit together. This is a great time to be a Padres fan. Now let's hope they can get back on track against the Diamondbacks.