With the worst record in the National League, it’s not hard to understand the Padres are not a good baseball team. But do they have to be this bad?
The Friars took the game to new depths in a 7-4 loss to the Cubs in the final game before the All-Star break. San Diego finishes the first half of the season with a 40-59 record.
Jose Pirela getting picked off second base by the catcher with two outs in the 2nd inning while trailing 5-0 was bad. But the display the Padres defense put on in the 4th inning was even worse.
Cubs All-Star and University of San Diego star Kris Bryant hit a dribbler that catcher Austin Hedges tracked down about 15 feet in front of home plate. Hedges lost the handle and threw the ball into right field, where Hunter Renfroe picked it up and tried to nail Bryant at second base, but threw it into right field so Bryant just kept going and ended up on third base.
It was a display fitting of an undisciplined Little League team, not a Major League Baseball franchise, and it is indicative of the way the Padres have played a majority of the 2018 season.
San Diego starting pitcher Eric Lauer, fresh off his 8.2 inning outing against the Dodgers, only lasted 2.0 innings this time. Lauer allowed five runs on five hits and struck out three. Cubs All-Star Javier Baez continued his huge series with an RBI single in the first inning that touched off a three-run rally.
Chicago got two more in the second against Lauer when Jason Heyward smacked a second-run double that put the Cubs up 5-0.
The Padres first run came in the fourth inning on a solo home run by Christian Villanueva. It was the 19th homer of the year for Villanueva, who set franchise records for home runs and RBI (43) by a rookie before the All-Star break.
They put together a rally in the sixth inning. After loading the bases Cubs All-Star Jon Lester hit Freddie Galvis to force in a run. Then Hedges popped out and Carlos Asuaje walked to force in another run but Manuel Margot, representing the tying run, flew out to right field to end the threat.
Hunter Renfroe hit a solo home run for the final run of the game.
The only Padre that will be playing a game in the next four days is Brad Hand, who heads to Washington, D.C. for the Midsummer Classic. The rest of the Friars have four days off before starting the second half of the season on Friday in Philadelphia.
