Padres beat at Mariners in 10
SAN DIEGO -- Eric Stults had noth-no inging to show for his best start of the season, though it was just what his team needed.
The San Diego Padres starting pitcher couldn’t have been happier after Will Venable drove home the winning run in the bottom of the 110th inning to beat the Seattle Mariners 3-2 on Wednesday night.
Venable’s third game-ending hit scored Chris Denorfia from third to complete an improbable comeback after Padres batters struggled mightily through the first eight innings.
It also allowed Stults to smile after a career-high, 12strikeout performance where he allowed one run aand three hits over eight dominant innings.
“The numbers were great, but the win was the impor- tant thing,” Stults said. “The end result is all that matters and I’m proud of how we rallied late and were able to finish this game on top.”
Kyle Blanks forced extra innings in the bottom of the ninth with a one-out sacrifice fly off Mariners closer Tom Wilhemsen, who blew his second save in 13 tries by allowing just his second earned run in 23 innings.
The dramatic finish followed a home run from Jason Bay off Padres closer Huston Street that gave Seattle a 2-1 lead in the ninth. Street has given up seven home runs in 20 1-3 innings this season. Stults, by contrast, was on point. “Eric pitched brilliantly,” Padres manager Bud Black said. “Stults has pitched some very good games for us, but I don’t know how you throw any better. All four pitches were effective and were thrown with excellent command. That was impressive.”
The left-hander struck out hitters in bunches, including two stretches of four straight. Stults’ previous strikeout best was nine, set on Aug. 17, 2007, while pitching for the Los Angeles Dodgers against the Colorado Rockies.
“I’m not really a strikeout guy,” Stults said. “I normally pitch to contact, but I felt like I could attack their aggressiveness and use all my pitches to get them out. I was able to throw off-speed pitches low in the zone, and I believed I could make them swing and miss with that game plan.”
The Mariners were frustrated all night by a pitcher who doesn’t throw fastballs above 90 mph and has a curveball 20 mph slower. They’ve lost seven straight on the road, and have struggled to score runs during a brutal 2-10 stretch.
“We have got to get the offense going,” Mariners manager Eric Wedge said. “That’s what sticks with you during runs like this. We’re not scoring enough runs and we’re inconsistent. The guys have to step up.”
Seattle wasted a solid effort by starter Joe Saunders. AP