Arráez’s dominant four-hit debut ignites explosive 13-1 Padres win
Credit: AP Photo
The San Diego Padres cruised to an assertive 7-1 victory against the division rival Arizona Diamondbacks to open the series Friday inspired by good news: Two-time batting champion Luis Arráez became a Padre just minutes before the first pitch in a trade with the Miami Marlins.
In his Padres debut, Arráez smacked four hits and facilitated an offensive explosion for double-digit runs en route to an easy 13-1 victory and series win.
“He’s just a guy who brings a lot of energy,” Padres GM A.J. Preller said of Arráez following the acquisition. “We talked about whether we should wait or do it now. Luis Arráez for 140 games versus going to get somebody else for 60 games.”
In his first at-bat in the brown and gold against Arizona starter Brandon Pfaadt, Arráez ripped a 101-MPH double down the right field line before scoring on a Manny Machado single to go ahead of the Snakes 1-0
For Mike Shildt, right-hander Michael King toed the slab with a 5.00 ERA over 36 frames to begin the season
In his last start against the red-hot Philadelphia Phillies, the hurler got tagged for six earned runs in 5.1 innings
However, King dominated the Dbacks and tossed six scoreless frames, striking out three and walking none.
The Padres added to their lead in the fourth frame. With Jurickson Profar on second and Xander Bogaerts on first, Jackson Merrill dropped a selfless sacrifice bunt to move both runners ahead 90 feet.
Despite the Diamondbacks playing with the infield in, Profar evaded Arizona backstop Gabriel Moreno’s tag at the plate on a chopped ball by Luis Campusano.
Then, unsurprisingly, the hit machine Arráez collected his third knock of the night in as many at-bats to plate Bogaerts and extend the lead 3-0.
Luis Arraez RBI single! He's 3-for-3! pic.twitter.com/erGshelmIp
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) May 5, 2024
Remarkably, Arráez notched his fourth hit in the top of the seventh inning, the beginning of a major rally that plated eight Friars. With Arráez on second and Fernando Tatis Jr. on first, Machado smoked a 395-foot 107-MPH double to score both runners.
Then, Profar crushed his third hit of the night, a 102-MPH two-run home run four rows back in left field.
https://twitter.com/TalkinBaseball_/status/1786939294898139411
The offense did not let up, as Merrill scorched a left-on-left double to plate Bogaerts from second before Ha-Seong Kim connected on his fifth home run, a three-run shot to extend the lead 11-0.
https://twitter.com/TalkinBaseball_/status/178694161892845203
Pouring more salt in the wound in the ninth inning, Campusano ripped a 355-foot to the right-centerfield gap to score Merrill from first and make it a dozen Padres runs. Then, San Diego plated one more for good measure on an RBI ground out from Kim that scored Campusano
At the end of the eventful evening, the offense notched 13 runs on 18 hits, four of which belonged to new Friar Luis Arráez
With the victory, the Padres have won four consecutive games for the first time since late 2023. San Diego looks to break out the brooms and sweep the Snakes in the final game of the three-game set on Sunday
“I am excited to be here with San Diego,” Arráez said post-game. “What a game for us.”
A San Diegan born and raised, Max Schwartzberg is a diehard Padres fan who created and hosts the YouTube channel Padres Previews, a hub where he passionately delivers Padres news, updates, reactions, and hype videos. At Northeastern, Max broadcasts and writes for baseball, basketball, and hockey. Max dreams of following in the steps of Padres broadcaster and Northeastern alumnus Don Orsillo to become a Major League Baseball announcer.