San Diego @ Florida preview
Sun Life Stadium
Last Meeting ( Jun 26, 2010 ) San Diego 2, Florida 1
The San Diego Padres did something against Josh Johnson on Saturday that not many teams have been able to do of late - they scored a pair of runs off the ace of the Florida Marlins.
And while two runs is nothing to write home about, against Johnson it is quite a feat considering the right-hander had gone nearly two months by allowing one or fewer runs while on the hill.
The two runs were plenty as San Diego secured a 2-1 win to grab the first two of the three-game set. With the victory, the Padres, who lead the National League West, moved to 14 games over .500 (44-30) for the first time since concluding the 2007 campaign.
The Padres will be eying the road sweep when they take the field against the reeling Marlins in Sunday’s rubber match.
Florida has been undergoing some turmoil as manager Fredi Gonzalez was fired earlier in the week after three-plus years on the job. Interim manager Edwin Rodriguez dropped to 1-3 since taking over the club, which has now lost 11 of 18 games overall.
The Marlins could face a tough task trying to break back in the win column as they will be pitted against upstart Mat Latos.
Latos has been one of the most pleasant surprises in the NL as well as for San Diego. The 22-year-old right-hander is tied for the team lead in wins (8) and owns a team-best 79 strikeouts and 0.95 WHIP.
Latos, who will be making a homecoming of sorts as he went to high school in South Florida, burst onto the scene after making just 10 starts a season ago. He has flourished as of late, picking up wins in seven of his last eight decisions. Latos will be eying his fourth consecutive win in addition to exacting some revenge against Florida.
He labored through the worst start of his season on April 26 when he allowed season-highs of seven runs and seven hits in 2 2/3 innings of a loss to the Marlins.
Opposing him will be Anibal Sanchez, who is quietly putting together a solid campaign in Florida. The right-hander is currently 7-4 with a 3.30 ERA while winning six of his last eight decisions.
Sanchez has been plagued by walks at times this season, averaging nearly four per outing over his last four starts, two of which were defeats.
The right-hander took a loss by allowing two earned runs in 6 1/3 innings of his lone start against San Diego this year.