SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA – JULY 25: Dinelson Lamet #29 of the San Diego Padres pitches during the first inning of a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at PETCO Park on July 25, 2020 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
On Opening Day the Padres used their preferred formula to win a game: solid effort from the starting pitcher (6.0 scoreless innings from Chris Paddack), timely hits to build a mid-game lead (six RBI from Eric Hosmer), turn the ball over to one of the best bullpens in baseball to lock it down (final score 7-2).
I see a pattern forming here.
In Game 2 the Padres got a great start from Dinelson Lamet (5.0 innings, one run, eight strikeouts, one walk), a timely mid-game hit to build a lead (3-run home run in the 4th inning by Wil Myers), and handed it over to the 'pen (4.0 innings, no runs, no hits, four strikeouts) to beat the Diamondbacks 5-1 and stay undefeated at Petco Park in 2020.
Arizona had a 1-0 lead in the 4th when Myers, who was the designated hitter for this game, unloaded on a Robbie Ray off-speed pitch for the first San Diego home run of the season.
Lamet's fastball touched 100 MPH several times but most of his strikeouts came on the wipeout slider. He was pulled after allowing a leadoff double to Starling Marte but got picked up by Matt Strahm. The lefty came on and got the next three AZ hitters to strand Marte and keep it a 3-1 game. Strahm got four outs and Craig Stammen got the next five outs. The only runner Stammen allowed was on his own throwing error.
In the 7th inning the big bats went boom. Fernando Tatis Jr. smoked a ground-rule double and scored when Manny Machado got the green light on a 3-0 pitch and detonated a 2-run home run to pump the Padres lead up to 5-1.
Machado's bomb made it a 4-run lead and not a save situation but All-Star closer Kirby Yates came on to throw the 9th anyway. He went 1-2-3 with a pair of punchouts.
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The Friars are 2-0 to start the year and here's a fun little fact. The Dodgers lost to the Giants 5-4 to fall to 2-1 so the San Diego Padres are all alone in 1st place in the National League West. Their Magic Number to clinch the division is 58.
