Bullpen blows lead as Padres lose to Phillies, 8-5
Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports
After the San Diego Padres have relied on their pitching staff all season, they could not hold off a talented Philadelphia Phillies lineup. San Diego recorded just five hits, meaning they have just nine in their last 20 innings. Despite jumping into a 5-2 lead, the Padres lost 8-5 after their offense stalled out.
Yu Darvish’s second straight against the Phillies was not his finest, but he still put together his 11th quality start of the season, tying him for the fourth-most in baseball. It was a shaky start, as a two-out walk and single put a runner in scoring position, but he struck out Alec Bohm to get out of trouble. Bryson Stott singled Odubel Herrera home to tie the game at one in the second before Stott came around on Kyle Schwarber’s double.
After retiring nine of the next ten batters he faced, Darvish ran into trouble in the fifth. Rhys Hoskins laced a two-out double down the left-field line before Nick Castellanos brought Hoskins home. In the sixth inning, which proved to be Darvish’s finest, he struck out Herrera and Garrett Stubbs to end his day. Darvish finished with 102 pitches, striking out nine Phillies, surrendering seven hits and three runs.
San Diego got off to a quick start at the plate first inning. Jurickson Profar walked and a Kyle Gibson pitch hit Jake Cronenworth. Two productive outs later, Profar crossed the plate on Eric Hosmer’s RBI groundout.
The two Phillies runs in the second put the Padres behind, but not for long. Gibson retired two of the first three batters in the inning, but the Padres put together some two-out thunder. Hosmer singled Cronenworth to third before a 106-mile-per-hour double from Austin Nola put the Padres in front. Walks from Ha-Seong Kim and Nomar Mazara loaded the bases before C.J. Abrams laced a ground-rule double to put the Padres up by three.
OK, C.J. 👏 #TimeToShine pic.twitter.com/qG28CMi0zA
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) June 26, 2022
After Abrams’ double, the next 13 Padres were retired before Hosmer doubled to lead off the eighth. San Diego could not push Hosmer home, as Kim hit a deep fly ball to the deepest part of Petco Park.
The Padres bullpen, which has been solid for much of the homestand, struggled drastically on Sunday. Nabil Crismatt came into the game in the seventh, having not allowed a single run in June. Crismatt allowed a single and a walk before Schwarber put Philadelphia ahead with a three-run home run. It was the first home run that Crismatt had given up in 2022.
With San Diego behind, it was critical that Luis Garcia put up a scoreless frame. However, Garcia allowed a double to Bohm and a single to Stubbs, helping the Phillies to extend their lead. With the Padres down by two, the recently recalled Ray Kerr entered. He threw a wild pitch, which let Matt Vierling, who doubled to lead off the ninth, put Philadelphia up three.
Phillies interim manager Rob Thomson brought Andrew Bellatti into the game as Bellatti looked to record his first career save. Bellatti retired all three batters he faced, securing the game for Philadelphia.
After the game, Bob Melvin said it was “A game that we usually win,” multiple times, emphasizing that the Padres put themselves in positions to win.
The loss meant that the Padres lost the season series with Philadelphia.
San Diego will have a much-needed off day on Monday before heading to Arizona for a quick two-game 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.
The one thing that will keep Kim from being a quality MLB player is his inability to hit line drives. His uppercut does not match his strength. He will always be a fly ball out type of player. I can’t believe they’ve not fixed that in a year and a half. Maybe it’s him and he won’t change. His inability to adjust his swing will keep him as a back up player.