Bullpen Implodes, Padres Waste Quantrill’s Solid Start, Lose 7-5 to Phillies
Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports
San Diego, California
Cal Quantrill was recalled to try and win the series for the Padres against the first place Philadelphia Phillies.
He last pitched in the majors on May 25 in his home country of Toronto, where he earned his first career win with a career-high nine strikeouts.
He went toe-to-toe with 2015 Cy Young winner Jake Arrieta and out-dueled the former All-Star.
It started a bit shaky for Quantrill after he allowed back-to-back doubles by the red hot Jay Bruce and Scott Kingery to give the Phillies an early 1-0 lead in the second inning.
The Padres promptly responded in the bottom of the third when rookie Josh Naylor launched the second home run of his career over the right field wall, scoring three runs and giving San Diego the 3-1 lead. The Friars were not done there, as Wil Myers, the very next hitter, also went yard, to center, extending the Padres lead to 4-1, his 11th of the season.
🇨🇦 ➕ 💪 = @JoshNaylor44#FriarFaithful https://t.co/A3ELprzeL6
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) June 5, 2019
The Padres bats have come alive in this series against Philadelphia, scoring 19 runs in the three games.
Jay Bruce responded for the Phillies with a solo home run off of Quantrill in the fourth, his third home run in two games against the Friars, cutting the lead to 4-2.
Quantrill settled in and did not allow another base runner as he finished with five innings, two earned runs with seven strikeouts and zero walks. It was a nice statement after being recently recalled, making a case to stay a part of the San Diego rotation.
The Padres added a run when Ty France lined a base hit up the middle, scoring Myers, who had just stolen a base, making it 5-2. Arrieta finished the day with five earned runs and five walks in 4.2 innings pitched.
After Quantrill, the bullpen was shaky at best. Miguel Diaz started the bullpen’s day off well with a scoreless sixth in his triumphant return from the 60-day injured list. In the seventh, Trey Wingenter got two quick outs before things slipped away. Cesar Hernandez tripled home a run to cut the lead to 5-3. Bryce Harper then doubled home another run before Jean Segura singled home Harper to tie the game at 5-5.
In the top of the eighth, Craig Stammen allowed a one-out walk and a double by Adam Haseley, who made his major league debut, to put the Phillies in front 6-5. Andrew Knapp singled home Haseley, extending Philadelphia’s lead to 7-5.
The Friars made some noise in the bottom of the eighth, getting the bases loaded with one out. Phillies closer Hector Neris came in an inning early to clean up the mess. Ian Kinsler struck out before Manny Machado nearly landed a game-tying blooper before it found Segura’s glove to end the inning.
Neris retired the Padres without much fuss in the ninth inning, sealing the 7-5 victory and series win for Philadelphia.
The Padres now welcome the Washington Nationals in town on Thursday for a four-game series. Joey Lucchesi takes the hill against Patrick Corbin at 7:10 PM PDT.
Native of Escondido, CA. Lived in San Diego area for 20 years. Padres fan since childhood (mid-90s). I have been writing since 2014. I currently live near Seattle, WA and am married to a Seattle sports girl. I wore #19 on my high school baseball team for Tony Gwynn. I am a stats and sports history nerd. I attended BYU on the Idaho campus. I also love Star Wars.
This is what happens when you trade away too many good relievers. You overuse the ones that are left, they tire, and then they get slapped around by good teams. It’s too early to evaluate the Mejia trade, though he has to become a star for it to make any sense at all, but they sure could have used Hand and Cimber the last 2 games.
This team stinks. Let’s be honest about this, please. How many leads has the middle relief blown? The Padres have to be the leaders for blown leads. Who constructed this roster, particularly the middle relievers?
LB – If the Padres stay on this pace, they will finish at, or slightly above .500 . Compared to the past 8 seasons, that is not stinky. They could be better and our relief pitching is showing weakness. As much as I hated to see them blow today’s game, there’s a lot of promise on the field.
This team’s true talent level is 74-78 wins. They are playing slightly above that. They do not stink, they are struggling, there is a difference.
Hey Nick,
Toronto isn’t a country. It’s a province in Canada which is a country.
Hey Randall,
Toronto isn’t a province. It’s a city. The province it’s in is Ontario.