It’s taken two years, but Kokomo’s Joe Thatcher and the San Diego Padres are back enjoying the intensity of games where a playoff berth hangs in the balance.

The excitement and tension are palpable, even if it’s not the Padres who have everything on the line.

“We go into playoff atmospheres and everybody has a chip on their shoulders,” said the San Diego reliever. “We want to be spoilers. We want to ruin teams’ seasons, and then, hopefully get this turned around next year and be playoff contenders again.”

Thatcher knows a little bit about turnaround seasons. He’s in the midst of one right now.

After a mercurial rookie season in 2007, Thatcher suffered through a 2008 season that saw him bounce up and down between San Diego and Triple-A Portland as he didn’t have command of all his pitches.

This season, he’s racked up more miles between the southern California coast and green Oregon, but has worked through pitching issues and is enjoying a strong season. He’s been with the senior club for the better part of two months and is enjoying a great spell.

On July 2, Thatcher’s ERA was 5.17. Since then he’s made 25 appearances and given up just two earned runs. Today, Thatcher’s ERA is at 2.70. For the season he’s pitched 36.2 innings in 40 appearances, has 43 strikeouts, 15 walks and has given up 30 hits. Opponents are batting .227 against the lefty.

“I’m grateful to the Padres for giving me so many chances,” said Thatcher, who started the season in Portland and has made three trips up to the parent club this year. The team has struggled as well, giving Thatcher plenty of mop-up games to get into a groove “I don’t know if it was necessarily being with [a team that is below .500.] that helped me, but the ability to come in and work on some things. Right now, I feel proud to be a part of our bullpen. We’ve got a great bullpen right now. We’ve been playing really well in the last month and a half. We’ve inherited the role of spoilers in the west.”

The team has taken to that role. Thatcher noted the Padres are excited after taking two out of three against the Dodgers, Braves, Marlins and Cubs recently. The Padres continued their spoiler role Wednesday, taking the rubber game of a three-game series against the Giants.

The Padres have won 10 of their last 13 series.

Trading his mop for a fire hose

As that’s happened, Thatcher has just made another turnaround. For the vast majority of the season, he was on mop-up duty, entering with the Padres trailing. But after scoring a win when he entered a tie game against Atlanta on Aug. 25, all five of his subsequent outings have been in Padres’ victories. He’s been credited with three holds in those games — his first holds of the year.

“It definitely is a good feeling to know the coaches have confidence in you,” he said. “I had that in ’07, in the pennant race down the stretch I was pitching in big games and big situations. Last year, I didn’t have the year I wanted or expected. I kind of had to re-prove myself again that I could pitch in big spots. It kind of helped me out a little bit too that I was pitching in blowout games [earlier this year] … so I could get comfortable on the mound again and get confident and not worry I that a pitch was going to lose a ballgame for us.

“I love being in big-time situations, especially when I know I’m going to get somebody out. That’s the way I feel these days, like I know that I’m going to get everybody out.”

Getting the victory a couple weeks ago was good, but getting used in tense situations is even better.

“Being a reliever, wins don’t really mean that much. You happen to be at the right place at the right time, but it does show that if you get wins and holds, that you’re pitching in close ballgames,” Thatcher said. “That’s a big thing. It felt really good to get a win and see your name on SportsCenter, it was cool. But being a reliever, I like coming in and getting out of a bases-loaded jam more than getting a win.”

He’s getting those opportunities.

“I think I’ve had four or five times where I came in with bases loaded in a couple weeks stretch,” he said. “Since I’ve got in situations like those, I struck out a guy here or got a big out, confidence started to snowball. As long as you’ve got confidence, you can pitch in this league a long time.”

BUILDING BELIEF

That confidence is the key element. He’s got more confidence in his pitches, and more confidence in himself.

“A lot of it is confidence,” Thatcher said. “Last year, I didn’t feel like I was going to get people out. I was hoping I’d get them out instead of knowing I was going to get them out. I made a few mechanical adjustments this year, nothing major.”

Thatcher moved his foot further toward first base on the pitching rubber.

“I moved over to the far side of the first base rubber, and with the arm angle, balls are starting behind lefties and it’s tough for them to stay in there,” he said. “It was a minor change but it definitely helped. But the biggest thing is confidence and knowing you’re going to get guys out.”

That confidence has come primarily from better command of his slider, something which escaped him last year. When he didn’t have command of his slider, his go-to pitches were cut in half.

“I feel like now I’m throwing the ball even better than ’07 because I feel like I can throw a slider and get a strike any time,” he said. He’s partnering that with the cut fastball he comfortable with. “Now, I feel like I can throw either one at any time and have success with it.”

A better position

This year has been key for Thatcher. He’s in his third season and after three years, baseball rules dictate the Padres can’t send him up and down without worry. Beginning next season, if the Padres want to send him down to Portland, he has to clear wavers, where another club might pick him up. It’s a good situation to be in, giving him more security.

“Hopefully, I’ll have a good end to this year and a strong start next year and never have to worry about that again,” he said.

That would be ideal, because last offseason there was plenty to worry about.

“Last winter was rough because after my last year, I didn’t know if I’d ever pitch in the big leagues again or if I’d blown my opportunity,” Thatcher said. “I worked harder than I ever had in the weight room and running.”

He plans to work the same way this offseason because his run in 2009 won’t carry much weight next spring.

“What’s in the past is in the past and you have to prove yourself every year,” Thatcher said. “That’s my motivation.”