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Padres Press Clips Thursday, June 8, 2017

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Perdomo pounded again by Diamondbacks UT San Diego Acee 2

Green ready for Perdomo to pitch like he should more often UT San Diego Acee 4

A true Padres road trip UT San Diego Acee 6

Mason Thompson goes five for TinCaps UT San Diego Lin 8

Richard looks to slow D-backs in finale MLB.com Cassavell 9

Rookie Cordero making strong impression MLB.com Cassavell 10

Padres fizzle after fast start vs. D-backs MLB.com Cassavell/Gilbert 12

Green keeping even keel on roller-coaster ride Padres.com Center 15

Capps works on delivery in rehab outing MLB.com Cassavell 17

Big inning helps Diamondbacks, Greinke beat Padres 7-4 Associated Press AP 19

Andy’s Address, 6/7 FriarWire Center 21

This Day in Padres History, 6/7 FriarWire Center 24

Padres On Deck: Kelly, Quantrill Pitch Their Teams to FriarWire Center 25

Wins

Padres Strong Start Turns Sour In Arizona NBC San Diego Rosehart 27

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Perdomo pounded again by Diamondbacks Kevin Acee

Luis Perdomo remains a pretty good pitcher against the rest of baseball.

But facing the Diamondbacks, he cannot avoid the big inning or the early exit.

Perdomo left Wednesday’s game at Chase Field after four innings, an outing longer only than his last start against Arizona.

The five runs he allowed in Tuesday’s third inning were all the Diamondbacks would need in what ended up a 7-4 loss for the Padres, their fourth straight.

Perdomo’s three-inning stint against Arizona on May 20 at Petco Park, in which the Diamondbacks scored five runs in the first, ended a stretch of four quality starts. He allowed three runs in six innings his next start and one run in a season-high seven innings a week ago against the Chicago Cubs.

Wednesday, the Padres took a 2-0 lead thanks to Yangervis Solarte’s first-inning solo home run and third-inning RBI single.

But in the bottom of the third, successive two-out walks issued by Perdomo were followed by a Jake Lamb home run. An infield single led to Brandon Drury’s two-run homer.

Perdomo (0-3) has a 16.71 ERA in his two starts (seven innings) against the Diamondbacks and 3.82 ERA in his other eight starts (47 1/3 innings).

A day after blasting his 12th and 13thhome runs of the season, Hunter Renfroe was back in the bullpen on Wednesday.

Yes, the Padres rookie right fielder was in the bullpen.

He was standing at the plate for a portion of Jhoulys Chacin’s between-starts throwing session. It’s something Renfroe started recently as part of his attempt to better track pitches as he looked to become more comfortable and, above all, patient at the plate.

“Honestly, it’s just learning to go up there and battle,” said Renfroe, whose home run total leads National League rookies and is second among all rookies behind the Yankees’ Aaron Judge. “You’ve got to learn what pitchers are trying to do to you. Really, it’s learning period. This is my rookie season.”

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The sexy numbers for Renfroe over his past 25 games leading up to Wednesday are his eight home runs and .279/.374/.651 splits. Those compare with five homers and .200/.225/.352 in his first 33 games of the season.

Those vast statistical disparities are rooted in this simple difference: four walks in 129 plate appearances in those first 33 games versus 13 walks in 99 plate appearances since.

“The power has never been a doubt,” manager Andy Green said. “(The difference) is just consistently working to positive counts.”

Renfroe’s pair of bombs to left field Tuesday were on fastballs seen in advantageous counts. His 409-foot blast in the fourth inning followed a strikeout in the first. It also came in an at-bat where he laid off some pitches he might have swung at earlier in the season.

That Green was more interested talking about that first at-bat was indicative of the excitement over the progress Renfroe has made.

“Even his strikeout against (Robbie) Ray, he works it to 3-2,” Green said. “Then he chases a fastball above the zone a little bit. A lot of good major league hitter are going to strike out on that pitch, but his ability to work to that deep count to force Robbie Ray to make a very good pitch to punch him out, it’s better than going up there and flailing at three pitches above your head or in the dirt. So you see growth even in the at bats that don’t end the way you’d want them to.”

And those lead to the ones that do end well.

Capps continues

Carter Capps made his seventh rehab appearance for Triple-A El Paso on Tuesday, and Green envisions his next to come in rapid succession, likely in the next two days as he works toward a Padres debut likely later this month.

“A lot of work has been done on his delivery, trying to sync him up better and put everything in motion toward the plate more consistently,” Green said. “He’s still got work ahead of him as he’s working back from surgery. I think yesterday was a nice step in the right direction, but he’s still got some more outings there.”

Consistent mechanics are paramount for any pitcher. With Capps’ mid-delivery hop, repetition is even more difficult. Add to that the challenge of coming off a year of inactivity following Tommy John surgery in March 2016.

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Green ready for Perdomo to pitch like he should more often Kevin Acee

Andy Green seems at a crossroads with Luis Perdomo, a crucial point where the manager is weighing his young starting pitcher’s lack of experience with his abundance of ability.

“We have worked extensively with Perdomo on pitching to both sides of the plate to every single batter,” Green said after Perdomo’s four-inning outing against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday. “That is something that did not happen today, and it needs to happen in the future.”

Green is clearly of the mind the training wheels should have been permanently discarded already, and the manager is now ready to take the gloves off.

He knows Perdomo turned 24 not even a month ago, started his first major league game a little more than a year ago and before last season had never pitched above Single-A. Also, in the 7-4 loss to the Diamondbacks, rookie Luis Torrens was behind the plate.

But ...

“He’s young, the guy catching him was young,” Green said. “You have to take it in context with what we’re running out there at that point in time. … But how demonstrative I need to be and (pitching coach) Darren Balsley needs to be to get that message across quicker. That’s what we battle with every day. Clearly we need to be stronger with the message, because it did not get across how we want him to attack in a major league baseball game. If he’s going to be successful, which we think he is, he cannot pitch the way he did today. Chalk it up to a learning experience. But he’s been in the league for a year and a couple months now, so it’s time to start learning those things.”

After issuing successive two-out walks in the third inning, Perdomo hung a 1-0 slider to Jake Lamb that was crushed into the seats. Before Perdomo was out of the inning, an infield single and a Brandon Drury homer on fastball on the inner half followed.

It was the second time in two starts against Arizona this year that Perdomo has given up five runs in an inning. The Diamondbacks beat him May 20 after a five-run first. Perdomo (0-3, 5.47) has a 16.71 ERA in his two starts (seven innings) against Arizona and a 3.82 ERA in his other eight starts (47 1/3 innings).

He was coming off a start against the Chicago Cubs in which he allowed three hits in a season-high seven innings. Each of his past six outings not against the Diamondbacks has been a quality start.

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The problem Tuesday was more with his command and approach, which Perdomo deemed inextricable.

“I didn’t have a lot of command with my slider,” he said through an interpreter. “That ended up hurting. … Today I was focused on attacking right-handed hitters, especially, away. I think command hurt me there.

“It bothers me. It definitely does. Every time I go out there I’m trying to compete. … At the same time I have to recognize it wasn’t a great start and be ready for the next one.”

Green will certainly have something to say about that start.

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A true Padres road trip Kevin Acee

Eric Myers doesn’t see many of his son’s baseball games live, even on television.

“Too late for me,” he said. “Most come on at 10 o’clock.”

But pretty much every morning, from the living room of the Myers home in North Carolina, as Eric sits on his recliner and skips through a recording of the previous night’s game to watch Wil’s at-bats, he can be heard.

“Dang boy.”

“What’s he doing?”

“All right, buddy.”

This week, Eric Myers can say those things up close and in real time, as he is getting a behind-the-scenes view of everything Wil does on this road trip. Eric is one of 13 fathers who accompanied their sons to Arizona for this three-game series.

The dads of Padres players arrived in San Diego at various times over the past week, took the team’s charter flight here on Monday, are staying in the team hotel and attending all the games. (Some of the players got their dad’s their own rooms, many attributing it to their dad’s snoring.) Most of the fathers will return to San Diego with the team Thursday afternoon.

Honestly, can you imagine? This is pretty much the coolest thing a bunch of major-leaguers can do with their dads.

“This has been the trip of my life,” said Tim Kerr, whose son, Phillip, has been the Padres’ massage therapist for the past 10 years.

Tim Kerr spoke for all of the fathers, most of whom had never been behind the scenes like they have this week.

“This is what you get to do?” Ken Spangenberg said to his son after passing through a private TSA portal at Lindbergh Field and boarding the Padres plane via stairs on the tarmac. “You’re lucky.”

It is a special thrill seeing tray tables down and seat backs reclined and people actually standing during takeoff – the sort of thing that could get a person kicked off a commercial flight.

Mostly, though, the bond between fathers and son forged through baseball is what made this such an exceptional experience.

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“You have to catch a ball and throw a ball, and that’s all you need to do to start that relationship,” Clayton Richard said. “It’s unique that you can do almost everything in baseball with your father.”

It was Richards’ suggestion to manager Andy Green that spawned this trip.

“I heard about some other teams doing it,” Richard said. I thought it was the coolest thing. They taught us this game. For them to see how far we have come and how much the game has given us is awesome.”

Many of the fathers were like Barry Richard, who coached Clayton in youth baseball.

“I’d be willing to bet that every single player in here, their dad has meant a ton to them in their baseball career,” Wil Myers said. “It’s really cool for us to be able to share this with them.”

Ken Spangenberg still hits grounders and pitches batting practice for Cory in the offseason.

“My dad has been coaching me as long as I can remember,” Cory Spangenberg said. “I don’t think anybody in here would be here without their parents. They put in as much time and effort as we did.”

Said Hunter Renfroe: “It’s fun they get to experience what we get to do every day. I’m pretty sure baseball was a part of a lot of their dreams too. They’ve done so much for us. This has been really cool.”

Players could be heard around the clubhouse the past couple days asking each other what they did with their fathers. Clearly, beyond the time with their fathers, the trip has been another impetus for connection for this young team looking to build off whatever it can.

“I don’t think that was the goal, necessarily, but any time you do something with your group of guys, it creates a bond,” Richard said. “It give us an opportunity to do something together, and that makes a difference.”

The dads experienced something similar.

“Getting to know the other dads has been really nice,” Eric Myers said.

He was sitting in the stands above the Padres’ dugout next to Todd Renfroe as the Padres took batting practice.

“It’s better than waking up in the morning and watching SportsCenter,” Todd Renfroe said.

Eric Myers could appreciate that as much as anything.

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Mason Thompson goes five for TinCaps Dennis Lin

Mason Thompson made his eighth professional start one to remember. The Padres’ third-round draft selection from a year ago threw a career-high five innings Wednesday, holding Lake County to one run in a 4-2 victory for low Single-A Fort Wayne.

Thompson allowed two hits and two walks, striking out six, another career high. Emmanuel Ramirez followed Thompson on the mound, allowing one run over four innings.

Designated hitter G.K. Young (.259) went 3-for-4 with two doubles and two RBIs. Left fielder Jorge Ona (.310) went 2-for-3 with a walk. Shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. (.261) went 1-for-4 with a double and a leaping catch of a line drive.

Fort Wayne moved to 20-39.

Triple-A El Paso (28-32) Chihuahuas 6, Albuquerque 5: Third baseman Christian Villanueva (.306) went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs. Left fielder Nick Buss (.358) went 2-for-3 with a walk and a steal. Catcher Tony Cruz (.300) went 1-for-4 with a home run. Kyle Lloyd (6.75) allowed five runs on eight hits, including three home runs, and two walks over five innings. Logan Bawcom (2.61) threw two scoreless innings of relief. Phil Maton (2.96) pitched around a leadoff triple in the ninth to collect his 12th save.

Double-A San Antonio (33-25) Missions 8, Midland 6: Second baseman Jose Rondon (.299) and designated hitter Franmil Reyes (.278) each went 2-for-4 and drove in a pair of runs. Center fielder Auston Bousfield (.239) went 1-for-4 with a go-ahead, two-run double. Enyel De Los Santos (5.26) allowed five runs on five hits and four walks over 4 1/3 innings. Brad Wieck (3.54) struck out two in a perfect inning, recording his second save.

DSL Padres (2-2) DSL Mariners 5, DSL Padres 3: Third baseman Carlos Luis went 1-for-4 with a home run. Luis Eusebio allowed three runs over 4 2/3 innings.

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Richard looks to slow D-backs in finale By AJ Cassavell / MLB.com | 6:34 AM ET

Neither the Padres nor the D-backs enjoy facing left-handed pitching much. On Thursday afternoon, both

offenses will get tested once again in a duel between southpaws. San Diego's Clayton Richard will square

off with Arizona's Patrick Corbin in the finale of a three-game series.

It will be Richard's fourth start against Arizona already this year. He was dominant in his last one, tossing

a complete game on 96 pitches while allowing one run. The D-backs, meanwhile, are just 8-9 this year in

games started by left-handers. Entering play Wednesday, they were batting .232 against lefties with a .680

OPS. (Compare that with a .266 average and .792 OPS against righties.)

The Padres have struggled even more against left-handed pitching. Their .195 average and .591 OPS serve

as the lowest marks in baseball. Manager Andy Green pointed to his roster, which is heavy on lefties and

young right-handed hitters who didn't see much quality left-handed pitching during their time in the

Minors.

"It takes time to make those kinds of adjustments," said Green. "With this kind of roster construction,

Hunter Renfroe has done great against lefties, but outside of that, it's been a battle for us."

Things to know about this game

• No hitter in baseball has reached base more against Richard than Paul Goldschmidt, who has nine hits

and eight walks in 35 career plate appearances. This season alone, Goldschmidt is 4-for-9 with a double, a

homer and a walk against Richard.

• The D-backs have lost Corbin's last two starts, during which he's allowed 19 hits and 12 earned runs in

just nine innings. He's faced the Padres twice this year, posting quality outings -- and a 2.77 ERA -- in

both.

• One thing Richard has been able to do well this season is get opposing hitters to chase. They've swung at

35.6 percent of Richard's pitches that Statcast has tracked as outside the zone, the highest chase rate for

any MLB starter with at least 300 out-of-zone pitches in 2017.

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Rookie Cordero making strong impression

By AJ Cassavell / MLB.com | @AJCassavell | 3:03 AM ET

PHOENIX -- Franchy Cordero's long-term fit with the San Diego Padres is still a bit hazy. But his short-

term role couldn't be clearer.

Cordero, the club's No. 23 prospect, according to MLBPipeline.com, is the starting center fielder. And,

thus far, he's made the most of that opportunity.

The speedy 22-year-old made his eighth start in 10 games since he was called up from Triple-A El Paso

10 days ago. Batting leadoff for the second time on Wednesday, Cordero went 2-for-4, while showing off

some outfield range, during a 7-4 loss to Arizona.

The Padres always seemed likely to send Cordero back to Triple-A El Paso when Manuel

Margot returned from his right calf strain. But Cordero is batting .333/.375/.500 in 30 at-bats since his

callup and is making an early case to stay.

"I don't really look ahead," Cordero after he notched his third multi-hit game with the Padres. "I'm really

just trying to enjoy everything today. I'm going to go out there and everyday I'm in the lineup, I'll give it

my all and focus on every game day-to-day. I don't worry about what might happen tomorrow."

Of course, Cordero remains raw in center field -- a relatively new position that he hadn't played until two

years ago. They'd like to get him everyday reps in the outfield, and that might not be possible with Margot

in center, Hunter Renfroe in right and a plethora of options in left.

But that might be looking too far ahead. It was only last week that Margot shed his walking boot. When

he reaches full health, it's a distinct possibility he needs a rehab stint.

As for Cordero, he was red hot during his final month at Triple-A, batting .351/.413/.543 in May. He's

carried that over to the big leagues.

So what does Cordero see as the biggest difference between the two levels?

"It's probably the command and the pitch sequencing," he said. "It's not that the pitches themselves are

that different. But there is still a big difference [in the pitchers]."

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Cordero has shown some remarkable range in the outfield -- perhaps more than the Padres envisioned

when they converted him from shortstop in 2015. If there's a long-term place for him, it's probably in left

field, alongside Margot and Renfroe.

But that's a problem for another day -- and a good one to have, at that.

"I don't get too caught up in that," said manager Andy Green. "He's got a baseball game to play. He

played it today and played a good one. All that stuff takes care of itself if he takes care of the day-to-day.

... Right now, he's going to play a lot more than he's not. That's the situation he's in, and he's capitalizing."

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Padres fizzle after fast start vs. D-backs

By AJ Cassavell and Steve Gilbert / MLB.com | 3:21 AM ET

PHOENIX -- The D-backs scored five runs in the third inning to overcome an early deficit as they beat

the Padres, 7-4, on Wednesday night at Chase Field. The D-backs will go for a sweep of the series

Thursday afternoon.

The Padres jumped out to a 2-0 lead with single runs in the first and third innings off Arizona starter Zack

Greinke, who raised his record to 8-3 despite being able to get through just five innings. Greinke's

offense helped him in the third when Jake Lamb hit a three-run homer and Brandon Drury added a two-

run shot.

"A nice win for us," D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said. "I don't think it was Zack's best day. I think he

was a little erratic with several of his pitches and just wasn't commanding the ball as he has been, but in

true Zack form, he grinded out five innings and got a win and that's the bottom line."

Both of the homers came off Padres starter Luis Perdomo (0-3). The right-hander walked four, including

two with two outs in the third. Lamb wasted no time capitalizing.

"It was a pitch in the middle," Perdomo said through a team interpreter. "I made the mistake there, hung it

and paid the price."

Yangervis Solarte supplied the early offense for the Padres with a solo homer in the first and an RBI

single in the third -- both on pitches at his ankles. Jose Pirela came off the bench and chipped in with a

career-high three hits, but it wasn't enough.

"Our approach was better against [Greinke]," said Padres manager Andy Green. "But if you've got to put

up a touchdown against him, you're probably not going to win a lot of baseball games."

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

Drury's the difference: After Lamb's three-run homer, Chris Owings beat out an infield tapper to third

base bringing Drury to the plate. After taking two fastballs for balls, Drury drove a 92 mph heater from

Perdomo over the wall in left-center to complete the five-run inning.

"Brandon Drury, the big two-run home run kind of sealed the deal for that inning," Lovullo said.

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Could have been more: The Padres had Greinke on the ropes in the fifth after Pirela doubled

and Franchy Cordero followed with an RBI single to cut the lead to 5-3 with no one out. After Solarte

popped out, Wil Myers drew a walk and it looked like it could be a big inning. Instead, Greinke

fanned Hunter Renfroe swinging and got Ryan Schimpf looking to end the threat.

QUOTABLE

"Clearly we need to be stronger with our message because it did not get across how we want him to attack

in a Major League Baseball game. If he's going to be successful -- which we think he is -- he cannot pitch

the way he did today. Chalk it up to a learning experience, but he's been in the league for a year and a

couple months now, so it's time to start learning those things." -- Green on Perdomo's inability to attack

both sides of the plate

TROUBLE FOR TORRENS

Facing arguably baseball's most aggressive team, the Padres gave rookie Luis Torrens the start behind

the dish on Wednesday. For a rookie Rule 5 pick who had never played above Class A until this season,

his struggles to contain the running game were perhaps predictable.

Torrens allowed four wild pitches to scoot by him. He also air-mailed a throw to second base in the third

inning when no throw was necessary. With a full count and two outs, neither middle infielder was

covering the bag. But after Paul Goldschmidt drew a walk, Torrens threw anyway -- and into center

field, allowing David Peralta to take an extra base.

"He had a rough time back there today," said Green. "There's no other way to say that. He's done a solid

job for us, considering where he's coming from. He's grown a lot, he's learned a lot. There's still growth

ahead. There's going to be some bumps in the road. Today was one of those."

RENFROE'S ROCKET

Up by three in the seventh, Owings lifted a deep fly ball into right field, which should've easily plated

Goldschmidt for an insurance run. But Renfroe does not make things easy on opposing baserunners. He

uncorked a missile from 264 feet away in right fielld and hit the glove of catcher Luis Torrens just as

Goldschmidt was sliding across the plate. Goldschmidt was initially ruled out, but the D-backs

successfully challenged the call, negating Renfroe's other-worldly throw.

WHAT'S NEXT

D-backs: Patrick Corbin takes the mound for the D-backs on Thursday afternoon in the final game of

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the three-game series at 12:40 p.m. MST. Corbin is looking to get back on track. In his first six starts of

the year he had a 2.29 ERA. In his last six starts he has an ERA of 9.00.

Padres: Clayton Richard threw a complete game on 96 pitches against the D-backs last month. The

veteran left-hander will be looking for an encore performance when he faces them again in Thursday's

series finale. First pitch is slated for 12:40 p.m. PT.

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Green keeping even keel on roller-coaster

ride

Capps, Friedrich on rehab assignments; Renfroe on HR

surge

By Bill Center / San Diego Padres | June 7th, 2017

The Padres went into Wednesday night's game in Arizona having lost three straight after a five-game

winning streak.

Before that, the Padres had lost eight of 11.

"I see my job as keeping it level," Padres manager Andy Green said recently. "Figuring out things you are

doing wrong in games you lose by a mile and things you do right when winning by a mile.

"We're probably doing more extra work than any team in baseball right now. You just don't look at a few

games and say, 'We're doing it right.' The job is to get better. You don't stop working because you're

winning games. You work harder."

Green noted that the job is ongoing.

"We're a long way from arriving," he said. "We need to keep the hammer down when we're doing well.

I'm not wondering about how other teams are doing. There's plenty to concentrate on here.

"We've done a better job recently rallying when we're down. A lot of times we're deflated when down."

NOTE WORTHY

• RHP Carter Capps restarted his rehab assignment with Triple-A El Paso on Tuesday night. He gave up

a homer to the first hitter he faced, then allowed only one more hit and no more runs the rest of his inning.

He had one strikeout. Before Capps went back out, Green said, there were "mixed reviews" on Capps'

most recent performance against hitters in extended spring training. "Capps had some rough ones and

showed some flashes," said Green. He said Capps' velocity was around 92 while throwing at 80 percent.

• RHP Christian Friedrich, who started the season on the disabled list, has reported to Double-A San

Antonio and is expected to make his first rehab start Thursday.

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• RF Hunter Renfroe homered twice in Arizona on Tuesday night. It was the second multihomer game of

his Major League career (the first was last Sept. 27 against the Dodgers) and gave him three homers over

back-to-back games, marking the second time this season that he has homered in back-to-back games.

Renfroe has eight homers in his past 22 games.

• 1B Wil Myers has hit safely in seven of his past eight games but is only 7-for-31 with a double and a

homer for two RBIs with 12 strikeouts as his average has slipped to .260. "Wil's always been a little

streaky," Green said recently. "But he's been a little unlucky lately."

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Capps works on delivery in rehab outing

By AJ Cassavell / MLB.com | @AJCassavell | June 7th, 2017

PHOENIX -- Padres right-hander Carter Capps began his second rehab stint Tuesday, pitching one

inning for Triple-A El Paso. Capps allowed one run and struck out one as he continues to recover from

Tommy John surgery in March 2016.

In early May, Capps had his first rehab stint shut down as he struggled to hone his command and

mechanics. He spent the next month at the club's Spring Training complex in Peoria, Ariz.

"A lot of work's been done on his delivery, trying to sync him up better and put him toward the plate more

consistently," said Padres manager Andy Green. "He's still got work out ahead of him as he's working

back from the surgery. Yesterday was a nice step."

Capps, who hasn't pitched since August 2015 with Miami, is best known for his quirky hop step delivery.

During the offseason, Major League Baseball instituted a rule specifying that a pitcher cannot reset his

pivot foot or make two distinct movements toward home plate.

Capps' delivery has not been deemed illegal at Triple-A, and the Padres are confident it's within the

constricts of the new rule. That said, the funkiness of Capps' motion has made his recovery more difficult

as he tries to perfect his mechanics after a year on the sideline.

"He's done a lot of work with [his delivery] and being consistent down the slope, keeping his toe on the

ground the whole time," said Green. "He's continuing to work on all facets. Coming back from surgery,

that's not an easy thing."

Weaver on the mend

Jered Weaver is throwing bullpen sessions every two days as he continues to recover from his inflamed

left hip. Both Weaver and Green lauded the freedom of movement in Weaver's most recent session on

Tuesday.

Weaver's ERA skyrocketed to 7.44 last month, before he was placed on the disabled list with

inflammation he has been battling for the better part of the past year.

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"Any tightness or restriction prevents you from getting the ball where it needs to be, and that's kind of

what I've been dealing with," Weaver said. "You try to battle through, but it came to a point where the

performance wasn't showing up. ... No matter how I'm feeling I want to take the ball, but I came to a

realization that I needed to get my body back to where it needed to be.

"If I get it back, I get it back. If not, it was a good ride. But I'm not ready to give up. I still know I can get

it back, so I just keep working."

It's unlikely the Padres send Weaver on a rehab stint until he's not inhibited by any tightness. Weaver says

his bullpen sessions have helped build stamina, so a potential Minors stint could be abbreviated.

Diaz to start Saturday

The Padres have informed rookie right-hander Miguel Diaz that he will make his first career start on

Saturday against Kansas City.

In 21 appearances out of the bullpen this season, Diaz has posted a 7.50 ERA. But most of the damage

was done during his first few weeks. Since May 9, Diaz has posted a 2.79 ERA in 9 2/3 innings.

The Padres acquired Diaz from Milwaukee with the first-overall selection in December's Rule 5 Draft. He

spent the 2016 season with Class A Wisconsin, where he made 15 starts and posted a 3.71 ERA.

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Big inning helps Diamondbacks, Greinke

beat Padres 7-4 Associated Press

PHOENIX -- When their ace wasn't sharp, the Arizona Diamondbacks relied on a lineup that has thrived at home this season. Jake Lamb and Brandon Drury homered in a five-run third, and the Diamondbacks scored five times in an inning for the second consecutive night to beat the San Diego Padres 7-4 on Wednesday. Zack Greinke labored through five innings for his eighth win. Arizona came back from a two-run deficit to win its eighth straight home game, improving to 23-8 at Chase Field.

That record ties the club's best start to a season at home, set in 1999. The winning streak is the longest for the Diamondbacks since they won eight home games in a row in July 2012.

"One of the traits of this team that I enjoy seeing is that they smell a little blood and they get an opening and they pound through that," manager Torey Lovullo said. "We can hit home runs with the best of them and that's the high side of things. But we can keep tacking on and building on innings and creating moments for us to score runs."

Yangervis Solarte homered early for the Padres, who lost their fourth straight overall. Greinke (8-3) had to work out of a jam in the fifth after Franchy Cordero singled in Jose Pirela, who opened the inning with a pinch-hit double. The right-hander struck out Hunter

Renfroe and Ryan Schimpf with two runners on.

Greinke allowed three runs and seven hits while equaling his shortest outing of the season. He struck out eight and walked one but needed 102 pitches to get through five innings.

"Started off pretty good and then got worse from there," Greinke said. "It was OK for the most part. Flat stuff got a little flatter in the last two innings. Command was still all right but my stuff just wasn't as sharp."

Luis Perdomo (0-3) took the loss after allowing all five runs in the third. He lasted four innings and gave up five hits with four walks, a strikeout and two wild pitches. "I didn't have a lot of command with my slider, and I think that affected me a lot. It ended up hurting me," Perdomo said.

Arizona's five-run rally started with two outs, when Perdomo walked David Peralta and Paul

Goldschmidt in front of Lamb. His 15th home run of the season gave him the major league lead with 53 RBI.

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Two batters later, Drury homered to center field for his fifth of the year.

"It's kind of one of those games where ... it's kind of slow moving. Those are the tough ones," Lamb said. "You've got to stay with it and we had that big inning."

The Diamondbacks went back up by three when Peralta hustled home on a wild pitch after a double steal in the seventh. Chris Owings hit a sacrifice fly to make it 7-3. Fernando Rodney pitched the ninth for his 15th save after a scoreless inning by Archie Bradley that included two strikeouts. Pirela, called up Tuesday from Triple-A, finished 3 for 3 after his eighth-inning RBI single.

"If you are going to have to put up a touchdown to win, you are probably not going to win a lot of baseball games," Padres manager Andy Green said.

HOMERS AT HOME

Arizona has gone deep in 11 straight home games, with 22 home runs during that span. The team last accomplished the feat in 2001, the year the Diamondbacks won their only World Series title.

GOLD(SCHMIDT) STANDARD

Goldschmidt has reached base safely in a career-high 34 consecutive home games. He's three games shy of Stephen Drew's club record.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Padres: RHP Jered Weaver (left hip inflammation) threw a bullpen Tuesday. He's missed 16 games while on the disabled list. ... RHP Carter Capps, recovering from major elbow surgery, will get back on the mound in the next day or two, Green said. Diamondbacks: RHP Taijuan Walker threw four-plus innings and 64 pitches in an extended spring training game. He is coming back from a blister on his right index finger. ... C Chris

Herrmann, who left Tuesday's game with right hand soreness, was rested but seems likely to avoid the disabled list. UP NEXT

Padres: LHP Clayton Richard (4-6) will face Arizona on Thursday afternoon, his fourth outing against the Diamondbacks this season. Richard threw a complete game against Arizona on May 21. Diamondbacks: LHP Patrick Corbin (4-6) takes a four-game home winning streak into his start against the Padres.

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Andy’s Address, 6/7

Andy addresses Cosart’s trip to disabled list,

Saturday starter, speed of games

Bill Center

The Padres placed right-handed starter Jarred Cosart on the disabled list Tuesday with right elbow soreness and recalled infielder-outfielder Jose Pirela from Triple-A El Paso, where he was hitting .323 with 13 homers and 41 RBIs.

“Cosart had an MRI Tuesday,” said Padres manager Andy Green.

“He has some inflammation in there. He’s got some swelling. I don’t think it’s anything that jumps off the page. There’s a lot of little things he’s dealing with, very real things for him to have to deal with. He’s not going to pick up a ball for the next week. I wouldn’t be able to put a timetable on his return.”

“Jarred’s dealt with some elbow injuries the past couple of years. He still has some things bothering him in there.”

“He finished Sunday’s start and didn’t say anything about it. He always gets treatment on his elbow. But he came back the day after when we were traveling and there was swelling in there. They decided to keep him home and have X-rays and MRI.”

Green said he is leaning toward having Rule 5 rookie Miguel Diaz make Cosart’s scheduled start Saturday night against Kansas City at Petco Park.

“We’ve been talking about Diaz making a start for some time,” said Green. “This looks like an opportunity to do that. There’s a good chance that we do that this Saturday.”

Green said center fielder Manuel Margot is upping his workload, but there is no timetable for his return. Green said it is also too soon to talk about Franchy Cordero’s role with the Padres or back at Triple-A El Paso when Margot returns.

Green was also about Commissioner Rob Manfred’s initiative to quick the pace of play in Major League games.

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“You don’t want a game that drags,” said Green. “I understand where he’s coming from. Some things tend to take longer. Strikeouts, swinging for home run.”

“You want people to come to the ballpark and enjoy the action and not be there for 4 ½ hours for a nine-inning game. But more velocity at top of strike zone, more guys going for the strikeout, more guys going for the home run, more swings and misses . . . those things tend to take longer. That’s a real thing.”

“Clearly, a bigger strike zone would speed the game up. But you still want action.”

Green spoke about shortstop Chase d’Arnaud and closer Brandon Maurer.

“Maurer’s back to what Maurer was,” Green said of the closer who has allowed one hit and a walk over his last five appearances.

“He’s been great. It’s the best I’ve ever seen him, against really good lineups. More of the same is what we want. The fastball is not just down and away right now, it’s to all quadrants of the zone and that’s a good step forward for him. I think he’s doing a good job.”

“Maurer had experienced a lot of bad luck for a while, the way some of the saves got away from him. I’ve been impressed with his resiliency. Even as every day passes, he’s more comfortable in that role, pitching in high leverage situations. His confidence is there right now and he’s going to do some great things.”

“With Maurer and (Brad) Hand, it’s looking at the game and trying to figure out the best way to get through the eighth and the ninth. Some days, when one guy down, it makes the decision easier. Where we are in the lineup and how we like the matchups is how we’ll proceed with that. The only negative (with deploying two closers) is if someone’s ego is bigger than the team and we don’t have that situation. I don’t think there is a negative whatsoever.”

“I think both these guys are mature that way, selfless that way. They just want to win baseball games and be in situations where they can succeed. I don’t feel obligated to pitch someone. I like looking at the lineup the way you do the rest of the game. You do that all the way through a baseball game until you get to the ninth and then you basically turn your brain off and say ‘go close it out.’”

“That doesn’t make sense when you have the flexibility we have. Now if you’ve got Trevor Hoffman sitting in the ninth, then, yeah, I’m going to hand him the ball and get out of the way. We’re not sitting there right now. They have a good vibe collectively down there.”

D’Arnaud made his seventh start at shortstop Tuesday.

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“D’Arnaud is going to continue to play,” said Green. “He’s played well. He’s going to get some days off. You are talking about a guy who basically sat for the entire first month of the season . . . he hasn’t played that much.”

“It’s not like Erick (Aybar) has been forgotten about at this point in time. Chase is going to play and get ample opportunity as he builds himself up. We’ll see what he does and the better he plays the more he plays. It’s no secret that we like guys who have that type of energy and that kind of intensity and cover that kind of ground.”

“We’ve been kind of looking to have that answer long-term and there’s no indication that he is or isn’t the answer at this point in time. But he’s going to get the opportunity and get a look. There’s been a lot of guys who get the opportunity later in their careers and run with it. He’s happy to have opportunity. He’s happy to be on the field. He’s working. He’s a Southern California guy through and through as you are ever going to see. He loves it here.”

“He’s helped us win baseball games with his glove. It’s good to see. I looked at video and thought this guy could play shortstop. He’s got the arm strength, he’s got the lateral mobility. He’s got the want to and he’s locked in pretty well. He’s looked good so far. Now, there’s a difference between playing a couple days and grinding out month long stretches. He’s got the opportunity right now and we’ll see how he handles it.”

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This Day in Padres History, 6/7

McReynolds’ 7-hit day, Gwynn’s 100th homer,

Finley’s 5-RBI game

By Bill Center

June 7, 1972 — Clay Kirby allows eight hits over 13 shutout innings but Pittsburgh defeats the Padres 1–0 in 18 innings at San Diego Stadium.

June 7, 1974 — Dave Freisleben pitches a complete-game, six-hit shutout and Dave Winfield hits a solo homer as the Padres defeat St. Louis 1–0 at San Diego Stadium.

June 7, 1985 — Center fielder Kevin McReynolds goes 7-for-10 as the Padres sweep a doubleheader in Cincinnati.

June 7, 1997 — Tony Gwynn becomes the third Padre with 100 career homers. №100 comes off Houston’s Donne Wall at Qualcomm Stadium.

June 7, 1998 — Center fielder Steve Finley is 4-for-5 with three doubles and five RBIs in the Padres 17–8 interleague win over the Rangers in Texas.

June 7, 2009 — A three-run, pinch-hit homer by David Eckstein caps a five-run ninth as the Padres tie Arizona 6–6 to force extra innings. But the Diamondbacks score three in the 18th to win 9–6 at Petco Park.

June 7, 2010 — Adrian Gonzalez hits two home runs as the Padres score a 3–1 win in Philadelphia.

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Padres On Deck: Kelly, Quantrill

Pitch Their Teams to Wins

Blash hits two homers for Triple-A El Paso

By Bill Center

Right-handed pitchers Cal Quantrill and Michael Kelly each allowed one run over six innings Tuesday night to lead their respective teams to wins.

Quantrill, the eighth overall pick in last June’s draft and the Padres’ second-ranked prospect by MLB Pipeline, allowed a run on five hits, no walks and six strikeouts in Advanced Single-A Lake Elsinore’s 2–1 win at Stockton. Quantrill, 22, lowered his earned run average to 3.54.

Kelly, 24, the 48th overall pick in the 2011 draft, is now 5–1 with a 2.84 ERA for Double-A San Antonio. Kelly allowed one run on three hits and two walks with eight strikeouts in the Missions’ 8–2 win over Midland Tuesday.

Elsewhere, right fielder Jabari Blash hit two solo homers for Triple-A El Paso in five at-bats. Blash is now hitting .257 with seven homers.

Designated hitter Nick Torres (.234) was 2-for-4 with a homer and four RBIs for San Antonio, which improved to 32–25. Shortstop Jose Rondon (.294) was 3-for-5 with a double, a RBI and a run scored. Third baseman Ty France (.371) was 3-for-4 with a RBI and a run scored. C Stephen McGee (.264) was 3-for-4 with a double and a run scored.

Left-hander Kyle McGrath (5.14 ERA) followed Kelly and struck out two in a perfect inning. Right-hander Cesar Vargas (2.95) allowed an unearned run on a hit in an inning. Right-hander Trey Wingenter (2.14) issued a walk while striking out three in an otherwise perfect inning.

Right-hander Zech Lemond (2–1, 2.45 ERA) followed Quantrill for Lake Elsinore and allowed a hit with a strikeout over two scoreless innings to get credit for the win. Right-hander Colby Blueberg (1.80) allowed a walk with a strikeout in an otherwise perfect inning to get his seventh save.

First baseman Carlos Belen (.202) was 2-for-3 with a solo homer for Lake Elsinore (29–30). Right fielder Edwin Moreno (.243) was 1-for-3 with a hit-by-pitch and a run scored. Third

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baseman Ruddy Giron (.226) was 1-for-4 with a RBI. Designated hitter Josh Naylor (.313) had a double in four at-bats.

The Padres recalled infielder-outfielder Jose Pirela from El Paso Tuesday and sent right-handed reliever Carter Capps to the Chihuahuas to resume his rehab assignment. Right-handed starter Christian Friedrich was also sent out on a rehab assignment to San Antonio. Catcher Webster Rivas was promoted from Single-A Fort Wayne to San Antonio while catcher A.J. Kennedy was transferred to Fort Wayne from San Antonio.

Around the Farm:

TRIPLE-A EL PASO (28–32) — ALBUQUERQUE 9, Chihuahuas 6: Starting RHP Tyrell Jenkins (4–6, 6.71 ERA) allowed seven runs (five earned) on seven hits and three walks with two strikeouts in five innings. Capps allowed a run on two hits with a strikeout in an inning. Right-hander Jose Valdez (5.93) allowed a run on four hits with three strikeouts in two innings. 3B River Stevens (.500) was 2-for-3 with a RBI and a run scored. C Rocky Gale (.257) was 1-for-3 with a RBI and a run scored. PH Christian Bethancourt (.429) was 1-for-1 with a RBI. CF Rafael Ortega (.313) was 1-for-4 with a walk and a RBI. LF Nick Schulz (.208) was 1-for-3 with a walk and a run scored.

SINGLE-A FORT WAYNE (19–39) — Lake County 2, TIN CAPS 1 (13 innings) — Starting RHP Adrian De Horta (3.72 ERA) allowed a run on two hits and two walks with three strikeouts in six innings. RHP David Bednar (2.05) allowed a hit with five strikeouts in two scoreless inning. RHP Blake Rogers (2.79) allowed a hit with three strikeouts in two scoreless innings. RHP Diomar Lopez (0–1, 3.92) allowed a run on three hits with four strikeouts in three innings. SS Fernando Tatis Jr. (.262) was 2-for-5 with a double. CF Buddy Reed (.222) was 2-for-4. 1B Brad Zunica (.205) was 1-for-4 with a run scored. LF Jack Suwinski (.212) had a triple in four at-bats.

DOMINICAN SUMMER LEAGUE PADRES (2–1) — PADRES 7, Mariners 1: Starting RHP Luis Patino allowed three hits with five strikeouts over five scoreless innings. LHP Gabriel Morales allowed a run on three hits and a walk with a strikeout in two innings. 3B-2B Luis Guzman (.200) was 2-for-5 with three RBIs and a run scored. SS Bryan Torres (.385) was 2-for-5 with a double and two runs scored. 1B-2B Elvis Sabala (.500) was 2-for-2 with two walks, a stolen base and a run scored. DH Carlos Luis (.400) was 2-for-5 with a double, a RBI and a run scored. CF Jaffe Garcia (.222) had a two-run triple in four at-bats. RF Yordi Francisco (.200) was 2-for-4 with two steals.

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Padres Strong Start Turns Sour In Arizona Lamb Overshadows Solarte At The Plate

By Ben Rosehart

Yangervis Solarte took the reins of the Padres offense Wednesday night with a solo shot and a

RBI single in his first two at-bats.

But then the Friars were silenced by a lamb. Jake Lamb to be exact.

The Arizona third baseman hoisted a three-run homer off of Padres starter Luis Perdomo in

the bottom of the third inning to put the home team up 3-2.

Two batters later, Diamondbacks second baseman Brandon Drury tagged Perdomo for a two-

run missile that landed over the centerfield fence.

Those two swings flipped a 2-0 San Diego lead into a disappointing 5-2 deficit and the

Diamondbacks led the rest of the way to secure a 7-4 victory.

What made it worst was that Perdomo had two outs when he gave up both long balls.

The young righty lasted just four innings and fell to 0-3 while his earned run average rose to

5.47.

Franchy Cordero and Jose Pirela added RBI singles in the fifth and eighth innings respectively

but the visitors could not string together a crooked number in any frame.

Even Padres all-star candidate Brad Hand was a little bit off his game.

A slider got away from catcher Luis Torrens and allowed Arizona to tack on an insurance run

in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Minutes later, Hunter Renfroe appeared to throw out a runner at home plate with a bullet from

right field, but Arizona challenged and the call was overturned to give the D’Backs a 7-3

advantage.

Former Padres all-star closer Fernando Rodney entered in the ninth inning and locked down

his 15th save of the season.

Rodney struck out Renfroe to end the game.

San Diego tries to salvage a game in the series in a Thursday matinee.

First pitch is set for 12:40 in Phoenix with Clayton Richard opposing Patrick Corbin.