Padres shut down by Wheeler and Phillies, 3-0
Credit: AP Photo
Turnabout is fair play. Or at least that is what they say.
One day after shutting out the Philadelphia Phillies on five hits, the San Diego Padres were held to four hits and lost 3-0.
Zack Wheeler went seven shutout innings, surrendering just four hits while striking out nine batters in the game. His fastball topped out in the upper 90s, and the Padres could not do anything productive against the tall right-hander. Corey Knebel shut down the Padres on four pitches in the ninth inning, as the Padres’ offense went down quietly.
The Padres fall to 23-14 on the season as they stay a few games behind the Dodgers for first place in the N.L. West.
Luke Voit went 0-for-3 in the game with two strikeouts as the big DH continues to struggle with the bat.
Jake Cronenworth doubled in the sixth off Wheeler but is still hitting .206 this season. Wil Myers went 0-for-3 and is hitting .232 with a .575 OPS on the year and Trent Grisham went 0-for-3 and is hitting .151 on the season. The lineup is currently being carried by the production from Manny Machado and Eric Hosmer. That duo has put up a .999 (Machado) and a .891 (Hosmer) OPS so far in the 2022 season.
The rest of the lineup must step up if the Padres wish to contend late into the season.
Blake Snell started on Wednesday, making his debut in 2022. Snell was sidelined with an adductor injury as the season began. On Wednesday, the lefty was a little wild as he walked three batters in 3.2 innings of work. The former A.L. Cy Young award-winner struck out five but coughed up three runs in his outing. Snell threw 84 pitches and left the game healthy. That was the Padres’ first priority. There will be better days for the southpaw as he gains momentum in 2022.
A day after MacKenzie Gore “piggybacked” Mike Clevinger, the Padres elected to allow Nick Martinez to relieve Snell on Wednesday. The right-handed pitcher struck out the side in his first inning and went a total of four innings, allowing two hits and striking out six batters in his 50-pitch effort. Martinez after Snell could be something the Padres explore as they create playing time for their abundance of starting pitchers.
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On Thursday, the Padres will go for the series win in Philadelphia.
The morning game (10 a.m-pst) will see Yu Darvish (3-1 4.62 ERA) take the mound for the Padres against Kyle Gibson (3-1 4.10 ERA) of the Phillies.
James was born and raised in America’s Finest City. He is a passionate baseball fan with even more passion towards his hometown Padres. Editor-In-Chief of EastVillageTimes.com. Always striving to bring you the highest quality in San Diego Sports News. Original content, with original ideas, that’s our motto. Enjoy.