San Diego Padres starting pitcher Chris Paddack lowered his season ERA from 2.84 to 2.70 by carrying a no-hit bid into the eighth inning against Miami Wednesday. File Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI |
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MIAMI, July 18 (UPI) -- San Diego Padres pitching coach Darren Balsley told manager Andy Green that starter Chris Paddack looked the "best he's ever seen" before a game against the Marlins in Miami Wednesday.
Balsley was right, as Paddack kept a no-hitter into the eighth inning in the Padres' 3-2 win at Marlins Park. Miami second baseman Starlin Castro spoiled the no-hit bid with a solo home run in the first-at bat of the frame. The no-hitter would have been the first in Padres history.
"I kinda had a chip on my shoulder coming into the game," Paddack said. "[Miami] is the team that drafted me.
"This is where it all started for me, being a professional athlete. The Marlins were the first team to give me an opportunity. It's crazy to see how it all lays out now."
Paddack said he started to count the outs remaining in the game after the sixth inning. He picked up his sixth win of the season by limiting the Marlins to one hit, one run and run walk in 7.2 innings. Paddack used a fastball, curveball and changeup to toss eight strikeouts in the win.
"That shows you how hard it is to throw a no-hitter," Paddack said. "You make one mistake, two mistakes, you're beat. That's a big league lineup and big league team over there."
The Padres took a 1-0 lead on an RBI single from Greg Garcia in the fourth inning. Austin Hedges pushed the lead to 3-0 with a two-run homer in the same frame. The score remained 3-0 before Castro broke up the no-hitter with his seventh home run of the season in the bottom of the eighth inning.
Despite Paddack's performance, the Marlins remained in the game and had a chance to win in the bottom of the ninth inning. Miguel Rojas and Neil Walker both reached base on errors to leadoff the frame for Miami. Castro went on to plate Rojas with an RBI single, cutting the Padres' lead to one run.
Marlins veteran Curtis Granderson then stepped into the box to face relief pitcher Kirby Yates with runners on third base and second base. Yates got a called strike three on Granderson to end the game in dramatic fashion.
"[Paddack] looked really sharp from the get-go," Green said. "He executed all day long and made big pitches when he had to ... It was really fun to see a guy attack the lineup the way he did tonight."
Padres star Manny Machado, Eric Hosmer and Garcia each collected two hits in the win. Castro was 2-for-4 with two RBIs, two strikeouts and a run scored for the Marlins.
"He's good obviously," Marlins manager Don Mattingly said of Paddack. "He locates. He attacks the strike zone. Good changeup, good breaking ball. He's good."
The Marlins host the Padres in the final game of the series at 12:10 p.m. Thursday in Miami.