Just before Saturday night’s game against the Reds, the Padres had to pull outfielder Matt Kemp because he was being traded to the Atlanta Braves. So Andy Green juggled the lineup, moving Wil Myers from 1st base to right field … shifting Brett Wallace from 3rd base to 1st base … and inserting Adam Rosales at 3rd base.
It took a while but the move certainly paid off. Rosales led off the 10th inning with a home run, giving the Padres a 2-1 walk-off win. It was the 8th home run of the season for Rosales and certainly the most dramatic.
Leading up to it, though, was a stellar pitching performance by Christian Friedrich, who tossed 6.0 innings and allowed just one run. After he left the Padres used four relievers to throw four perfect innings. Jose Dominguez, Ryan Buchter, Brandon Maurer and Brad Hand needed just 39 pitches to set down 12 straight Reds hitters.
The Padres can win the series on Sunday afternoon with Paul Clemens taking the mound against Homer Bailey.