Padres Squander Opportunities, Lose Fourth Straight 4-1 to Reds
Credit: Padres
Petco Park- San Diego, CA
Chris Paddack made his fourth start for the Padres on Thursday night against the Cincinnati Reds.
The Padres hoped Paddack would be the losing streak stopper.
Things did not start well for the right-hander as he was rudely greeted by one of the best hitters in the game, Joey Votto. The 2010 MVP launched his first career leadoff home run, giving the Reds a very early 1-0 lead.
One of the stories before the game was Padres shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. being bumped up to the leadoff spot. Tatis made an immediate impression as he singled in his first at-bat in that slot. Tatis has arguably been San Diego’s most consistent hitter recently.
The Friars would be unable to capitalize on his hit, which would become a theme during the evening.
After Votto’s blast, Paddack settled in as he went on to retire the next 11 Reds in a row. In the top of the fifth, Paddack surrendered a leadoff walk to Scott Schebler which came back to bit Paddack as Tucker Barnhart hit his first home run of 2019, giving the Reds a 3-0 lead.
Paddack left after six innings, finishing with three earned runs on three hits, one walk, and five strikeouts, with two home runs allowed being the difference.
San Diego was finally able to get on the board in the sixth inning. Luis Urias led off with a walk and then he reached second on Tatis’ second single of the night. Eric Hosmer struck out, giving the Padres two outs with a runner in scoring position. After a pitching change, Manny Machado was finally able to capitalize with runners on base, as he launched a ground-rule double to left, scoring Urias in the process, cutting the Reds lead to 3-1. Franmil Reyes struck out to kill any further rally.
MANNY!
Machado gets the @Padres on the board with an RBI ground rule double in the bottom of the 6th!#FriarFaithful pic.twitter.com/9H6HOIfMVg
— Bally Sports San Diego (@BallySportsSD) April 19, 2019
Brad Wieck pitched a solid seventh inning in relief, allowing one hit and striking out one, giving the Padres further momentum to mount a comeback.
Alas, it was not to be. The Padres stranded a leadoff double by Hunter Renfroe in the seventh and then Phil Maton surrendered a solo home run to Jesse Winker in the ninth, extending the Cincy lead to 4-1.
With the heart of the order due up in the bottom of the ninth, the Padres were unable to chip away at the deficit against closer Raisel Iglesias, and the Padres dropped their fourth straight game, 4-1.
The Padres fall to 11-9, still above .500 but losing momentum rapidly. The bats remain dormant, and the bullpen is starting to show signs of mortality. The Friars look to snap the streak Friday night in brown, with Matt Strahm on the hill against Anthony DeSclafani.
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.