Richard pitches into the eighth, Padres top Pirates 6-2
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Clayton Richard’s plan was simple. After the San Diego Padres gave him a three-run lead in the first inning, Richard decided to attack the zone early and often. It worked.
Richard (3-5) allowed two runs in 7 1/3 innings, Christian Villanueva homered and drove in two runs, and the Padres beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-2 on Saturday night.
The left-hander pitched into the eighth inning for a third straight start after allowing a combined five runs and 12 hits in his previous two. He gave up seven hits with two strikeouts, and had 65 strikes on 84 pitches.
“I think we established that we were going to be in the zone,” Richard said. “When our offense jumps out to that type of lead, it’s a huge help. You don’t have to be as fine. You give up a homer on a first pitch, it’s one run. You still have a two-run lead. So, being able to just attack the zone early in the count really helps.”
Jose Pirela also had two RBIs for the Padres, who have won two straight games and three of their past four. Villanueva’s 11th home run gave San Diego a 4-0 lead with two outs in the eighth inning.
The Pirates lost a second straight game after winning eight of their previous nine. “We tried a couple different things, but we weren’t able to push (Richard) until late,” Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. “He had really good command tonight. Really good command of the fastball.” Rookie righthander Nick Kingham (21) gave up three runs on five hits for the first loss of his major league career. He retired the first 23 batters of his debut against the St. Louis Cardinals on April 29 before allowing four runs on six hits in 5 1/3 innings in a 6-4 win over the Milwaukee Brewers on May 4.
“You can’t let the game speed up on you,” Kingham said. “You’re going to get punched in the mouth sometimes. You’re going to get guys on base early, just like tonight.”
A walk to Eric Hosmer followed by three consecutive doubles gave the Padres a 3-0 lead with one out in the first. Franchy Cordero doubled down the right-field line before Pirela drove in two runs with a double down the opposite line, and Villanueva hit the third double to score Pirela from second.