Minus one big inning, it might be a different view. That’s why games are decided on the field.
San Diego batted around in the second inning and Brandon Bielak lacked his best stuff, resulting in the Astros dropping a 13-2 decision on Saturday at Petco Park.
The Padres (17-12) sent 13 batters to the plate in the second inning, accounting for nine runs. Right fielder Wil Myers led off the bottom of the second inning with a deep home run to the seats in left-field. Jake Cronenworth singled to center field, Jurickson Profar got a board with a walk before Trent Grisham drove the second of three home runs over the center-field wall. The two long balls accounted for the Padres 6-1 lead as it continued to bat in the inning.
Zach Davies (4-2) picked up the win, allowing two runs, four hits, two walks, and struck out seven over eight innings. Davies’s solid performance kept Astros’ batters in check most of the evening.
Bielak, who took the mound for the Astros, struggled and never got comfortable as his evening ended after hitting Fernando Tatis, Jr. with a pitch. The pitch set off an alarm as umpire Alfonso Marquez warned each team about fighting.
Bielak (3-1) lasted 1 1/3 innings and surrendered seven runs on five hits and a walk.
Humberto Castellanos relieved Bielak. But the damage continued. Castellanos faced seven batters in the inning. Manny Machado, Ty Francis, and Myers singled to load the bases setting up Cronenworth’s grand slam. That made the score, 11-1. That gave San Diego it’s fifth grand slam in its last six games which marked the first time any team in major league history has accomplished the feat.
History caught up with the Padres earlier in the week as it became the first Major League Baseball team to hit four grand slams in four straight days.
Outside of Taylor Jones picking up his first major league home run, Houston struggled at the plate.
The Astros (15-12) scored a run in the top of the first inning after Yuli Gurriel’s sac fly scored Altuve to give Houston a 1-0 lead.
The Padres responded in the bottom of the first by hitting two home runs, one by center fielder Grisham and third baseman Manny Machado in the bottom of the first to take a 2-1 lead.
The Astros will attempt to avoid the sweep when it sends Zack Greinke to the mound vs Padres rookie, Adrian Morejon in game two of a four-game series on Sunday.
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