Davies wins fifth straight as Padres beat Rockies
SAN DIEGO – Zach Davies won his career-best, fifth-consecutive start and Mitch Moreland hit his first homer for the Padres as San Diego beat the Colorado Rockies, 5-3, to complete its sweep of the threegame series on Wednesday.
Davies (7-2) was fantastic, after allowing a run in the first, as he tied a season-high with eight strikeouts, plowing through the Rockies with his changeup and splitter. He gave up three runs on five hits, with two walks, over six innings as the Padres won their fourth straight game.
Trevor Rosenthal, the third Padres’ reliever, pitched the ninth for his ninth save.
No one in the majors throws a higher percentage of changeups than Davies and he mostly kept Colorado away from hard contact – before Matt Kemp’s goahead, two-run homer in the sixth.
The Padres seized a 4-3 lead in the sixth when Wil Myers’ triple scored Moreland after he opened with a walk. Jake Cronenworth’s sharp single through a drawn-in infield brought in Myers.
Antonio Senzatela (3-2) nearly matched Davies. He was touched for Moreland’s two-run homer in the first and navigated through a scratchy second
when the Padres loaded the bases with one out.
San Diego leads the majors with seven grand slams but Senzatela retired Trent Grisham on a fly and Fernando Tatis, Jr. via a fielder’s choice.
The Rockies’ righthander went five-plus innings, giving up four runs, six hits and four walks, with two strikeouts. He was chased in the sixth before recording an out.
Kemp gave Colorado a brief advantage in the sixth as he continues to produce against his former teams. Four of his five home runs have come against the Padres, and the other one, versus the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Moreland pushed the Padres ahead, 2-1, with his first-inning shot, which followed Manny Machado’s double. It was Moreland’s initial homer since joining the Padres on Aug. 31 after being acquired from the Boston Red Sox
The Rockies struck in
the first when Trevor Story’s solo homer, his 10th blast of the year, came off Davies’ 79 mph changeup.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Padres: OF Tommy Pham (hand) took batting practice on Wednesday. Pham is scheduled to face live pitching at the team’s alternative training site this weekend and he could return next week.
UP NEXT
Rockies: RHP German Marquez (2-5, 4.58 ERA), who has lost four straight decisions, faces the Los Angeles Angels to begin a three-game series on Friday. Marquez pitched well in his last time out on Sept. 5 when holding the Los Angeles Dodgers to two runs and five hits over seven innings.
Padres: RHP Chris Paddock (4-5, 4.75 ERA), who has lost two of his previous three starts, will go against the San Francisco Giants in the opener of a fourgame series on Thursday.