D-backs Hold On for 6-4 Victory Over Padres

Tommy Pham leads the way and Arizona takes game one of double header with good execution on offense and defense.

On a day where neither their starting pitcher or their closer seemed able to command the baseball, the Diamondbacks managed to hold on for a 6-4 victory over the San Diego Padres.

The Padres loaded the bases with two outs against Paul Sewald in the ninth inning on two walks and a hit by pitch. Sewald kept missing badly with his trademark sweeper, but stuck with it.  Delivering one more sweeper to Juan Soto on the outer part of the plate, the slugger drove the ball to the wall in left field that looked like a homer on T.V., to all in the ballpark, and to Sewald who reacted as if he had given up a grand slam. But the ball died at the track and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. was able to corral it for the final out. It was Sewald's 26th save, 5th in six chances with D-backs, and his 3rd on this road trip.

Merrill Kelly started for the Diamondbacks and was handed a 2-0 lead in the top of the first. Corbin Carroll doubled to lead off the game and later scored on a base hit by Gurriel. Alek Thomas had the first of his three hits, an RBI single to drive in Christian Walker who had walked with two outs. 

Kelly was not able to hold the lead, immediately giving up a leadoff homer to Ha-Seong Kim. Soto singled, but got picked off first base after a replay review overturning a safe call. It was a good thing too because Manny Machado hit the first of his two solo homers to tie the game at 2-2. 

Tommy Pham, who got into a verbal altercation with some fans that insulted him prior to his first at bat, tripled to lead off the third inning and scored on a Walker ground out to put the D-backs up 3-2.  Kelly continued to struggle however. He walked two batters in the 2nd inning and the leadoff batter in 3rd inning, but got out of it both times. Back to back stellar defensive plays by Geraldo Perdomo provided the escape hatch for in the third inning, including a double play that was once again overturned on replay review.  Video coordinator Allen Campbell was 2-for-2 in replay reviews and is 22-for-34, 65% this year, good for 3rd best in MLB.

Kelly gave up a two out double in the 4th inning to Luis Campusano, followed by an RBI base hit to Matt Carpenter tying it up again at 3-3.  Pham helped the D-backs answer back with a two-run homer in the 5th. It was a line drive missile just over the outstretched glove of Soto to put the D-backs up again 5-3.   Kelly held the lead this time, pitching a scoreless 5th and got one out in the 6th before coming out of the game. 

Kelly had to battle all day throwing 102 pitches, but just 56 for strikes. He did not have a whiff on a breaking or offspeed pitch all day. He gave up five hits, four walks, and two homers while striking out just three. He held the Padres to just the three runs somehow in a gutsy performance when the team really needed it in the first game of a double header.  Kelly is now 10-5 with a 3.13 ERA. 

The D-backs executed well to get a tack on run in the top of the 6th. Thomas singled and moved up to second on a walk to Jace Peterson.  Jose Herrera moved the runners up with a sac bunt and Perdomo hit a sac fly to center to bring in Thomas. 

Kyle Nelson got three outs and and then turned it over to Kevin Ginkel in the 7th after giving up a base hit to Trent Grisham.  Ginkel got Kim to pop out and struck out Tatis Jr. to end the inning. He gave up a solo shot to Machado in the 8th to allow the Padres to draw closer, but that's all they got after Sewald wiggled off the hook in the 9th. 

Game 2 of the Double header starts at 5:40, when Scott McGough will be the opener and Yu Darvish will start for the Padres. Here is a highlight reel from game one.

D-backs Down Padres 6-4 in thriller at Petco Park https://t.co/b054dw3FtQ #MLBFilmRoom via @MLB

— Jack Sommers (@shoewizard59) August 19, 2023