The expected case of Matt Bush

February 7, 3:19 PMSan Diego Padres ExaminerJudson Green

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Life was once good for 2004 No. 1 pick Matt Bush.

The Padres released Matt Bush yesterday after he was allegedly involved in a drunken assault, according to a Feb. 5 report by Brent Schrotenboer for the San Diego Union-Tribune. Well, at least this time he was above the legal drinking age. The former No. 1 overall pick had a history of off-the field incidents, and coupling that with his on field failures made him the biggest disaster in San Diego sports since Ryan Leaf.

The Padres had given him every chance to redeem himself, but Bush never advanced beyond A+ ball. Still, the shortstop had a great arm, and Bush attempted to reinvent himself as a pitcher. And things started off great. In his first 7 1/3 innings of Rookie ball he had 16 strikeouts, 2 walks, a 1.23 ERA. They moved him up to A ball, he pitched a third of an inning, and then left the game with elbow pain. Tommy John surgery finished him for the rest of 2007 and all of 2008. Even Bush's successes turn into failures.

Bush is Kevin Towers's greatest failure too. Stephen Drew was the consensus choice for top prospect going into the draft, and the Padres were expected to take him. But since Drew was represented by Scott Boras, the Padres backed off. In their defense, so did a lot of teams. But Towers made a huge mistake with his next move. It is always risky to draft a high schooler with the No. 1 overall pick. The mental and emotional maturity usually just isn't there for someone that young to deal with a spotlight that big. But to also put him in a situation where he has to prove himself because the guy everyone liked better just cost too much is poor judgment. If Towers wasn't going to deal with Drew and Boras, he should have picked the next best college star. How might Justin Verlander have looked in a Padres uniform?

The Padres can no longer accept the combination of poor play and poor citizenship from Bush. They are moving forward. Bush needs to figure out his life before he can figure out his career. He'll just have to hope someone will give him a final chance to redeem himself. It's his birthday tomorrow. Matt Bush, think hard about what you'll wish for.