Baserunning miscues, Blackmon homer gives Padres another Coors Field loss
Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
The San Diego Padres looked like they had plenty of chances, but a big three-run home run off Charlie Blackmon proved deadly to the Padres.
The Padres hopped into an early lead when an RBI double from Ha-Seong Kim put them ahead in the second inning. It was Kim’s second double of the game, but the Padres could have led by much more. Kim and Jake Cronenworth were both in scoring position with just one out in the first, but back-to-back strikeouts ended the threat. Cronenworth’s groundout in the second left two more runners in scoring position.
Nomar Mazara flew out to the warning track in the fourth. After blasting three home runs in the first game of the series, the Padres could not seem to knock one out of Coors Field. They had four batted balls that traveled at least 370 feet, including Kim’s 427-foot double, but none of them left the stadium.
Even with the missed opportunities early, the Padres one-run lead held up for the first four innings. Mike Clevinger had mowed through the Colorado Rockies lineup, surrendering just one hit in four innings. Garrett Hampson hit a soft single up the middle, which scored Ryan McMahon with two outs in the fifth.
The first three hitters of the sixth inning all reached base for the Rockies, with Blackmon’s home run being the final hit. McMahon then chased Clevinger from the game with a one-out triple. Manager Bob Melvin said that Clevinger “just ran out of gas.” It’s possible that the thin air made it difficult for Clevinger to work through the outing.
Nick Martinez entered the game and wiggled out of the jam in the sixth. However, in the seventh, he struggled. He allowed an unearned run on an RBI groundout and could not finish the frame. Martinez left with a minor sprain on his right ankle, with Melvin saying that he was day-to-day.
He did not allow a hit to leave the infield, but the Rockies took advantage of a three-base error by Trent Grisham. Grisham, who misplayed a ball in center field in the first game of the series, continues to struggle defensively.
The Padres scored twice in the eighth to get back into the game, but it could have been much more. Luke Voit walked before Jorge Alfaro singled. Austin Nola hit a ball to left field, and Voit was thrown out attempting to move to third base. Back-to-back singles from Esteury Ruiz and Nomar Mazara scored two runs. Ruiz, who was making his MLB debut, had two hits and an RBI in the win. Ruiz had stolen 60 bases in the minor leagues in 2022, but he was caught attempting to steal third base.
Count it! First AB, first @MLB hit for Esteury Ruiz! 👏 #TimeToShine pic.twitter.com/VDlTLTUeCK
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) July 13, 2022
If the Padres had avoided outs on the base paths, they certainly could have scored enough to tie the game. Reiss Knehr worked 1.1 shutout innings to keep the game within two, but the Padres went down in order in the ninth.
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San Diego continues to struggle in Colorado, as they have won just one of their last 12 games in Denver. The Padres out-hit the Rockies, 10 to six, but the Rockies came up with big hits when they needed it.
The Padres first batter reached base in six of nine innings, but they failed to score in four of those six opportunities. Joe Musgrove will take on Chad Kuhl on Wednesday as the Padres seek to take the lead in the series.
Sam is a Senior in High School. He has been writing for three years, and started at EVT in June of 2021. He’s headed to Syracuse’s Newhouse School of Communications in the fall of 2023.