Field Level Media
Jun 6, 2018
Five Padres relief pitchers held the Atlanta Braves to four hits Wednesday afternoon as host San Diego scored a 3-1 victory over the National League East leaders at Petco Park.
Due to starter Joey Lucchesi being on the disabled list and with Thursday being a day off, Padres manager Andy Green designated Wednesday a "bullpen" game and started left-handed reliever Matt Strahm. The southpaw was followed by fellow relievers Jose Castillo, Adam Cimber, Kirby Yates and Brad Hand.
Castillo (1-0) was credited with the win in his second career major league appearance. Hand worked two innings to get his 18th save. The five Padres relievers had 13 strikeouts.
Freddie Freeman gave the Braves a quick 1-0 lead in the top of the first when he hit his 11th home run of the season off Strahm, the ball traveling 419 feet deep into the right field stands.
But the Padres scored twice in the second off Mike Foltynewicz, who entered the game with a 2.22 ERA that ranked fourth in the National League.
Hunter Renfroe opened the inning with a sharp ground single to the second base side of shortstop Dansby Swanson. Cory Spangenberg followed with a triple to right-center.
Spangenberg was forced to hold at third when Freddy Galvis grounded to first. But after Raffy Lopez walked, Manuel Margot singled to drive home Spangenberg with the go-ahead run.
Foltynewicz (5-4) gave up the two runs on five hits and three walks with eight strikeouts in five innings and suffered the loss.
The Padres scored an insurance run in the eighth on singles by Jose Pirela and Spangenberg, with Pirela scoring on a perfectly placed safety squeeze by Galvis.
Strahm allowed the one run on two hits with two strikeouts in 2 1/3 innings. Castillo allowed a hit and hit a batter in 1 2/3 scoreless innings. Cimber struck out the only three hitters he faced, and Yates issued two walks in two innings.
The left-handed Hand struck out the side after Ozzie Albies led off the eighth with a double to put the tying run at second. His last two victims in the inning -- Freeman and National League hits leader Nick Markakis -- went down on feeble swings.
--Field Level Media