Framing the Friars: Perdomo Continues “Jekyll and Hyde” Act
Did you ever see the movie “Forrest Gump?” It’s kind of an old film, having released during the mid-1990s.
One line from that movie describes Luis Perdomo‘s start against the Minnesota Twins on August 2.
“Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.”
That can be said about Perdomo on the mound. Throughout the season, the 24-year-old right-handed pitcher has struggled to maintain consistency throughout each appearance. It seems as if Perdomo will have one inning where he implodes on the mound, allowing opposing teams to do damage.
The same occurred against the Twins. Perdomo went six innings, allowing five runs on seven hits. He issued two walks and struck out four. He took the loss in the game, as the Twins were victorious over the Padres, 5-2.
Four of the runs allowed by Perdomo came in the second inning. He gave up a leadoff single to Miguel Sano before proceeding to retire the next two hitters.
The inning continued when Jorge Polanco hit a deep line drive to right field for a double that moved Sano over to third base. The Padres elected to issue an intentional walk to the next hitter, Jason Castro, to load the bases for the pitcher’s spot in the Twins’ lineup.
Minnesota’s starting pitcher was Ervin Santana. With the bases loaded, he helped himself by getting around on a first-pitch fastball, sending a lazy line drive over the first base bag that allowed two runs to score.
Perdomo issued a walk to Joe Mauer to load the bases again. Eduardo Escobar smacked a base hit to left-center that drove in two more runs. Like Santana, Escobar swung at a first-pitch fastball. Like Santana, Escobar made the ball find the outfield grass for an RBI-single.
On the other side, the Friars struggled against Santana. The Padres didn’t record a hit until the fourth inning, on a single by Cory Spangenberg avtomatysvyvodom. Pirela followed, and hit a 93 mph fastball over the center field wall for his fifth home run of the season.
Unfortunately, this was all the home team could muster against Santana. He pitched a complete game, allowing only those two runs on four hits, with nine strikeouts.
Despite today’s loss, the Padres have been playing some good baseball, winning five of their last seven. Their record currently sits at 47-59. They have a better record than five other teams.
The story behind the current standings is significant, since “experts” predicted this team to be “historically bad” before the season began. The Padres’ Opening Day roster had four catchers and three Rule-5 players.
If the Padres are supposed to be the standard, or lack thereof, for poor baseball, then five teams are on their way to historic lows at season’s end. The Padres will have a day off before traveling across the country for a three-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates, August 4-6.
Mike is the sports editor for the Fayette Advertiser, and has been with East Village Times since 2015. His work has appeared on Bleacher Report. He is an avid Padres fan who is keeping the faith and trusting the process.