Not your padre’s Padres: Late-inning rally leads San Diego to victory
The San Diego Padres made waves during the offseason, turning over a large portion of their roster. With Matt Kemp, Wil Myers and Justin Upton in town (among others), there was some hope that these wouldn’t be your padre’s Padres.
That was evident enough Tuesday night against the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Padres got a strong start from Tyson Ross, but wound up down 2-1 after six innings. Last season, that would have meant the game was over. This year, that’s not going to be the case.
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The Padres clawed their way back into action, tying the game on an error in the seventh. First baseman Yonder Alonso would put the team ahead with an eighth inning single, only to see Adrian Gonzalez tie things up again with a solo shot in the bottom of the inning.
With the game tied in the ninth, the Padres put together a ninth inning rally. After a single and an error put the first two men on, Derek Norris delivered a run-scoring single, breaking the tie. The party didn’t stop there, though. The Padres continued to hit during the inning, eventually plating four runs.
New closer Craig Kimbrel was prepared to pick up his first save with his new club, but the Padres actually took him out of a save situation.
Kimbrel didn’t seem to mind, striking out all three hitters he faced in the ninth.
The Padres scored seven or more runs 16 times last season, with their first coming May 9. In 2015, their first came just two games into the season.
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We’ll see whether A.J. Preller’s moves will lead to a playoff berth, but, for now, it looks like the Padres are going to be a radically different ball club.
ELSEWHERE AROUND MLB
LATOS FALTERS
Mat Latos had a rough debut for the Miami Marlins. The right-hander lasted just 2/3 of an inning, allowing seven earned runs. With the start, Latos became the seventh pitcher to give up at least seven runs in less than an inning of work during the first week of the season.*
The Marlins weren’t able to recover from the deficit, falling 12-2. Tom Koehler will look to turn things around for Miami on Wednesday.
ALL THE GIANTS ARE HURT
The San Francisco Giants dropped a close one Tuesday, losing 7-6 against the Arizona Diamondbacks. To make matters worse, first baseman Brandon Belt left the game with a groin injury. Belt will have an MRI on the injury, and manager Bruce Bochy indicated that the team would have to make a move to replace him.
That’s not all, though. Starter Jake Peavy experienced back soreness during his bullpen session Tuesday, putting his Sunday start in jeopardy. There’s a decent chance he’ll join Matt Cain on the disabled list soon, according to Andrew Baggarly.
THE ROCKIES CAN HIT, OR STEAL
The Colorado Rockies’ offense remained effective, picking up a 5-2 win over the Milwaukee Brewers. The club added six doubles during the contest, bringing their total to 12 in the first two games. Matt Garza was the recipient of most of that damage, giving up four runs.
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Following the game, Garza was dumbfounded at how well the Rockies were adjusting to his stuff. He suggested that he may have been tipping his pitches.
Garza added that he became suspicious after Corey Dickerson moved up in the box after a breaking pitch was called on an at-bat during the fourth inning. The Rockies may be capable of mashing at the plate this season, but Garza may have been helping them out this time around.
C.J. WILSON LOVES THE NEW PACE OF PLAY
Los Angeles Angels starter C.J. Wilson had a fantastic start Wednesday against the Seattle Mariners. The left-hander went eight scoreless innings, giving up just two hits and one walk. He threw 96 pitches during the outing. It was the first time in Wilson’s career that he pitched into the eighth inning without exceeding 100 pitches.
Wilson was mostly matched by Mariners’ starter James Paxton, who allowed just two runs over six innings. Due to the lack of hitting, the game was just two hours and 13 minutes long.
After 22 games, it’s looking like the new pace of play rules might be working.
That’s all for Tuesday. Check out our scoreboard if you’re looking for more detailed results. Let’s do this again tomorrow.
*(H/N: Matt Snyder of CBSSports.com)
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Chris Cwik is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik
