Well, that sure was bad, wasn't it? What was the worst part, do you think? Edinson Volquez imploding in the 5th inning? Anthony Bass imploding in the 8th? The offense imploding in general? In fairness, the Cardinals are the best team in ...
Well, that sure was bad, wasn't it? What was the worst part, do you think? Edinson Volquez imploding in the 5th inning? Anthony Bass imploding in the 8th? The offense imploding in general? In fairness, the Cardinals are the best team in baseball right now, and Adam Wainwright is one of the best pitchers in the league. If you expected this to be easy or a guaranteed win just because the Padres have been part of so many sweeps, you're an idiot.
But let's look at the good stuff. We scored on Wainwright, and we did it early! Jedd Gyorko picked up a leadoff double in the 2nd and moved to second on a Chris Denorfia single. He scored on the next play as Alexi Amarista grounded into a double play. Amarista also grounded into a double play to end the game, but we're focusing on the good here. The good guys picked up one more run in the 9th on a pair of singles from Yonder Alonso and Gyorko and a throwing error by Daniel Descalso. Thus endeth the good stuff.
Edinson Volquez was looking pretty good through the first four innings. He had some tough luck in the 3rd as Descalso reached first when Alonso knocked a sharp grounder down but couldn't complete the play. Descalso scored on a Matt Carpenter double deflected by Amarista. But it was just one run, and Volquez recovered to sit the Cardinals down in order in the 4th. Unfortunately, he imploded in the 5th, allowing 6 of his 8 hits and 4 runs. He'd pull it together for one more inning after that, but the damage was already done. Despite avoiding the walks that have typically been his Achilles' Heel and picking up 5 strikeouts, Volquez left the game having allowed 5 runs, all of them earned.
When Anthony Bass came in to relive Volquez, he sat the Cardinals down in order and picked up two strikeouts. The 8th inning wasn't as good. It started badly as Matt Holliday struck out but reached first anyway on a wild pitch. It got worse when Allen Craig singled. With one out, Bass intentionally walked Jon Jay to load the bases and set up a double play. Descalso made him pay by hitting his second grand slam of the year.
Even Tyson Ross didn't come out of tonight's game unscathed. He came in for the 9th inning and gave up a run on two singles, an error, and a sacrifice fly. Not that it mattered at that point.
Burch Smith will try to pick up his first career win against Tyler Lyons, who will be making his major league debut. A win tomorrow gives the Padres a series win and a winning record on the homestand. First pitch at 7:10 PM.
21 - 24
Games Back: 4.5
Streak: Lost 1
Games Left: 119
Final - 5.21.2013 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
St. Louis Cardinals
0
0
1
0
4
0
0
4
1
10
13
1
San Diego Padres
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
7
1
WP: Adam Wainwright (6 - 3) LP: Edinson Volquez (3 - 5)
Complete Coverage >
