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Home , Alan Wiggins, Andy Green (baseball), Contact play, Ryan Buchter, Willson Contreras

Padres Press Clips Thursday, June 1, 2017

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Padres beat Cubs again, sealing first sweep of season UT San Diego Lin 2

Padres rises, helping now and later UT San Diego Acee 4

Homers sink Cal Quantrill, Storm UT San Diego Sanders 7

Padres bullpen trending in right direction UT San Diego Lin 8

Wrecking ball won't destroy Q memories UT San Diego Krasovic 10

Padres edge Cubs to finish off sweep MLB.com Cassavell/Muskat 13

Perdomo paves way despite win eluding him MLB.com Posner 16

Wellman no longer offers comic relief on field MLB.com Castrovince 17

Lamet forcing way into rotation conversation MLB.com Posner 22

Richard, Marquez to duel as Padres host Rox MLB.com Posner 24

Bullpen is stellar in back-to-back wins MLB.com Center 25

Padres win 2-1 to send Cubs to 6th straight loss Associated Press AP 27

This Day in Padres History, 5/31 Friar Wire Center 29

Padres On Deck: Franmil Reyes has 2 HRs, 6 RBIs for Friar Wire Center 31 AA-San Antonio

That time the Padres drafted Brendan McKay UT San Diego Sanders 33

Perdomo tames left-handed batters in latest start UT San Diego Lin 35

Padres Sweep World Champions NBC 7 Togerson 37

1

Padres beat Cubs again, sealing first sweep of season Dennis Lin Youth, with all its springy possibilities, carried the Padres to an improbable feat on Wednesday. They completed their first series sweep of the season, and their first of the since 2012. A rebuilding club extended its winning streak to four games, its longest since San Diego claimed five consecutive victories in August of 2015.

A 2-1 decision over the defending champions involved a second-year major leaguer on the mound, a rookie behind the plate, a rookie cleanup and a rookie leading off in just his fourth career start. In the bottom of the eighth, he made it a start to remember.

Padres center fielder Franchy Cordero, promoted from -A just four days earlier, had struck in each of his first three at-bats. , the 2015 Cy Young Award winner, had bested him every time. On a 1-1 , the 22-year-old displayed a short memory.

Cordero hammered an elevated splitter thrown by Koji Uehara. The ball screamed out to right- center, hopping against the fence. The rookie sped past second and charged into third with a one-out triple.

“I was honestly just looking for a up, he gave it to me, and I tried to put my best swing on it,” Cordero said through an interpreter.

“When I made the turn at first, I saw the fielder hadn’t gotten to (the ball) yet, so I knew I was going to go for three.”

When redirected the very next pitch, sending a hard grounder to , Cordero broke toward home.

A moment later, his right foot skidded across the plate, between the legs of . The Cubs attempted a tag. He was a beat late. Cordero popped up, having broken a 1-1 tie.

“A lot of young guys don’t have that resiliency, to punch out three times and come up with the game on the line in the eighth and a triple,” Padres said. “Most people don’t turn that into a triple, either. He was flying around the bases, and then the speed to score on a ground ball to second base on the contact play, gets his foot in there clearly. There’s a lot of tools to like there.”

For the Padres, a three-game set against a struggling but still formidable Cubs team showcased their potential. In the opener, rookie right fielder smashed a . On Tuesday, catcher Austin Hedges drove in four runs and caught five electric by Dinelson Lamet, who was making his second big-league start.

2

Wednesday afternoon, Luis Perdomo pitched seven full innings for the first time this season, outlasting Arrieta, who completed six. The Padres right-hander surrendered just three hits and two walks. Left-handed batters, a familiar problem, went 0-for-14 against him.

The only damage came in the second inning. With a runner on third, Perdomo delivered an 0-2 , down and away. Javier Baez lunged at it, producing weak contact. Ryan Schimpf charged the resulting bouncer, but the ball flew out of his glove as he attempted the transfer. A scored from third, giving the Cubs a 1-0 lead.

Leading off the bottom of the inning, Schimpf made amends. Arrieta threw him a slider, and he belted it out to right for his team-leading 14th homer of the season, his fifth in his last eight starts.

The starting traded zeroes from there, until the took the mound. In the bottom of the eighth, Cordero’s athleticism took over.

Since debuting with a pinch-hit against 2016 Cy Young winner Max Scherzer, Cordero has gone 5-for-15 with a walk and a pair of extra-base hits. He has covered loads of ground in center field, where on Wednesday he tracked down a couple of deep fly balls with ease.

The sample size is almost negligible. The upside, meanwhile, is clear.

“It’s easy to see a guy who’s going to impact games in the future,” Green said. “That’s how you win games down the line.”

Asked if Cordero reminded him of another player, Green mentioned he’d heard of comparisons to Pittsburgh Gregory Polanco.

“Leggy, long athletes that fly around the field, very toolsy,” the manager said. “(Cordero) whistles the bat in the . So I can see that one, but I think he’s going to be his own player and establish himself in time. It says a lot about the farm system, the way player development’s gone down there.”

Growth at the highest level has been evident, too. On May 20, the Padres suffered their second consecutive blowout defeat, dropping to a league-worst 15-30. They since have gone 7-3, punctuating the stretch with a trio of wins against Chicago.

“They’ve got a heck of a team over there, and any time you can have a series like that against anybody, it’s good,” Schimpf said. “We’re definitely happy with the series, and hopefully we’ll keep it going.”

“Now, you’re seeing a group of young guys that you don’t have to dream on, that you can just believe in because you see what they’ve got,” Green said. “So it’s exciting to see those guys show up and start to do some really good things.”

3

Padres bullpen rises, helping now and later Kevin Acee We’ve seen in the past few days how it was supposed to be.

As strode from the bullpen on Wednesday, Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” blared through Petco Park, the scoreboard above the left-field seats playing a montage of pictures and video clips of the Padres’ long-haired closer, the images outlined in blazing orange, a mix of fire and sparks.

Maurer first saw a preview of the video in early May. Wednesday was just the second time the rest of us got to see it.

It just hadn’t been necessary, as the Padres were struggling to the extent that ninth-inning heroics were not required and Maurer was struggling to the extent that he wasn’t consistently getting outs whenever he did pitch.

That Wednesday was the second time in three days the montage was played preceding Maurer pitching a perfect ninth inning for a save is illustrative of the Padres bullpen again being what it was supposed to be.

And that is more important than anything else going on with this young team – now or in the next two months.

Oh, the Padres sweeping the Chicago Cubs the past three days was splendid. The clubhouse was alive with hooting and hollering and music that could be heard by the deaf after Wednesday’s 2-1 victory over the defending world champions.

Give Luis Perdomo credit for allowing a run on three hits over seven innings. Give Franchy Cordero credit, playing in his fifth major-league game, for following three with a three-bagger, which allowed him to score on Yangervis Solarte’s grounder in the bottom of the eighth. Give Solarte credit for his dive across the dirt and throw from his knees to get the second out of the seventh inning and, most importantly, keep a runner at third.

The Padres are riding their first four-game winning streak since August 2015. That is fun, and victories like Wednesday’s can only help a young team seeking consistency to go with its resilience.

However, the best news for this team – for the now and the later – is that in the series against the Cubs the Padres relievers continued a streak that began last weekend in Washington.

With Brad Hand’s scoreless eighth and Maurer’s scoreless ninth on Wednesday, the bullpen has gone 17 2/3 innings without allowing a run.

4

“Everyone is killing it right now,” left-hander Ryan Buchter said. “There is no ‘Big Three’ or whatever. Everybody is going out there giving the ball to the next guy. That's what makes us a good group.”

Oh, there is a Big Three. For now. Until A.J. Preller trades one or more of them.

But that is not the players’ concern. And Buchter tells the truth. It has been a rising tide.

Over the past eight games, during which the Padres are 6-2, the bullpen has thrown a total of 30 innings, allowing 11 hits and five runs (all earned for a 1.50 ERA).

Buchter, Hand and Maurer have allowed a total of two runs over 12 1/3 innings (1.46 ERA) in that span. And where Miguel Diaz, Kevin Quackenbush, Craig Stammen, Jose Torres and Kirby Yates had a collective 4.79 ERA in the previous 19 games (47 innings), they have allowed three runs in 17 2/3 innings (1.53 ERA) over the past seven games.

“The guys who support the three guys we hand the ball to in the back end have really stabilized us,” manager Andy Green said.

Yates has allowed three earned runs in 14 innings (13 games) since being claimed off waivers in late April. Torres has a 1.96 ERA in his last 16 appearances.

Particularly impressive of late has been Diaz, a 22-year-old who hadn’t pitched above -A before this season and has had to become a major-leaguer while being a major-leaguer. The Rule 5 pick, meaning the Padres kept him in the big leagues or lost him, had a 10.67 ERA over his first 14 appearances (14 1/3 innings). Over his past five appearances (8 1/3 innings) he has a 1.08 ERA.

That’s all well and good. You’d rather see the players on the local team doing well.

But operating in the reality that the Padres are not going to the playoffs this season and are very much in a mode of building toward 2019 and beyond, the importance of how well the Big Three – Buchter, Hand and Maurer – are doing is paramount.

It was a year ago next week that Preller kick started the Major League season, as well as commencing a frenetic summer of Padres acquisitions, by sending and a truck full of money to the in exchange for 17-year-old Fernando Tatis Jr.

Preller does not have the same glut of veteran talent to spin into young gold this year, but the Padres general manager at least has more now than it appeared he might before the last week or so.

He has what he (and the rest of us) thought he would at the start of the season.

We approached this season knowing it was about development, that the lineup was young and the starting rotation ratty. But we thought, too, that the bullpen was almost as good as ever, especially those three who could take the ball and retire anyone over the final three innings.

“We picked each other up,” Maurer said. “We knew we all weren’t doing that great. … It’s going to happen. Hopefully earlier than later, to be honest. We were not worried.” 5

At the start of last week’s road trip, pitching Darren Balsley met with his relievers and reminded them they were the strength of the team.

“Sometimes guys with a lot of talent have to be reminded how good they are,” Balsley said. “It was just reminding them that going into the season, we knew this is what the strength was going be.”

Now we’re seeing it.

6

Homers sink Cal Quantrill, Storm Jeff Sanders Cal Quantrill had allowed one as pro – until Wednesday.

The 22-year-old right-hander served up three homers and tied a season-high with five runs allowed in high Single-A Lake Elsinore’s 6-1 loss to host San Jose.

Quantrill (3-4, 3.80) struck out four but allowed seven hits and two walks in five innings.

Since spinning six shutout innings on May 9, Quantrill has allowed 10 earned runs in 14 innings.

Catcher Austin Allen (.255) doubled in Lake Elsinore’s lone run and second baseman Chris Baker (.234) went 2-for-3 with a .

Shortstop Javier Guerra (.220) singled in four at-bats to extend his hit streak to eight games.

Lake Elsinore fell to 25-28 with the loss.

DOUBLE-A SAN ANTONIO (30-22)

 Tulsa 9, Missions 6: RHP Michael Kelly (2.82) allowed four runs – three earned – in five innings and LHP Kyle McGrath (0-1, 7.20) allowed four runs in 2/3 of an inning. C A.J. Kennedy (.071) and PH (.368) both hit their second homers of the season, LF Nick Torres (.239) singled in a pair of runs and SS Luis Urias (.343) went 0-for-2 with three walks and a run scored.

LOW SINGLE-A FORT WAYNE (18-35)

 Bowling Green 5, TinCaps 1: RHP Mason Thompson (0-2, 7.88) struck out five but allowed four runs on six hits and no walks in four innings. RF Jorge Ona (.302) went 2- for-4 with two doubles and a run scored and LF Rod Boykin (.220) went 1-for-2 with a double and his fifth steal.

Note

 Triple-A El Paso (25-28) was idle. RHP Tyrell Jenkins (4-4, 5.33) will start when action resumes Thursday against Salt Lake.

7

Padres bullpen trending in right direction Dennis Lin Nearly two months into the season, the Padres bullpen, forecast to be a strength, has delivered mildly disappointing results. The unit entered Wednesday’s series finale against the Chicago Cubs with a 4.44 ERA, fourth-highest in the National League, and 90 walks in 188 1/3 innings.

Lately, however, the numbers have trended in the right direction. Over the last four games, seven Padres relievers combined to throw 15 2/3 innings without yielding a run. They issued 10 walks but only one hit, striking out 17 batters.

The Padres’ three backend arms — Brad Hand, Brandon Maurer and Ryan Buchter — all pitched, but so did long man Craig Stammen and middle relievers Jose Torres, Kevin Quackenbush and Kirby Yates. The latter three each took the mound Wednesday, helping seal a second consecutive victory over the Cubs.

“You get a win without using (Hand, Maurer and Buchter), we haven’t had enough of those lately,” manager Andy Green said Wednesday morning. “It’s a byproduct of not scoring enough runs, honestly. You don’t put nine, 10 runs on the board, you don’t get those easy wins where your back end of the bullpen gets to rest.

“I think it’s good to get those guys rest yesterday so today we pretty much go in with a lot of guys available and an opportunity to aggressively go after this ballgame if we want to.”

Mixed reviews Right-handed reliever Carter Capps, nearly 15 months removed from Tommy John surgery, faced live hitters Tuesday in Peoria, Ariz. Green said Capps drew “mixed reviews” during the session.

“Some positives and some work to still be done,” Green said, adding that Capps is scheduled to throw to live hitters again Friday. “And then (it will be) step by step from there. We’re going to make determinations based on how he feels and what we see.”

Capps began a rehab assignment April 11, but he was pulled back in early May and sent to the Padres’ spring-training facility to address delivery and command issues.

Under baseball’s new collective bargaining agreement, a returning from Tommy John surgery can be granted up to three 10-day extensions beyond a 30-day rehab assignment. In effect, the Padres could delay another roster decision on Capps until the second week of June.

8

Progress Left-handed reliever Buddy Baumann played out to 105 feet Tuesday for the first time this season. Baumann has been sidelined since mid-March after landing on his left shoulder in a bicycle accident.

“He felt good, so maybe he’s finally starting to move past the inflammation he’s had in his shoulder,” Green said.

9

Wrecking ball won't destroy Q memories

Tom Krasovic

So long, Chargers.

So long, Q — if not now, soon, absent a surprising adaptation on San Diego State football’s behalf.

Today, we go scrap-booking.

Before a visit to the happy bedlam of Mission Valley 1984, I’ll touch on two Chargers connections to the old stadium.

We start with the Sproles Game, known also as the Chicken Skin Game.

“Very, very loud,” is how Chargers General Manager Tom Telesco has described the crowd.

Telesco was an Indianapolis Colts scout that January in 2009, when Darren Sproles amassed 328 yards to rock the Q.

Dome-habituated, Telesco was accustomed to football dins. This one struck him as extraordinary.

Were you there? Was it not thrilling?

From there we plunge deep into the past.

Same stadium, different names.

It was San Diego Stadium or San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium — an exciting place on Sundays in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Dan Fouts was throwing darts to a vaulting John Jefferson. Kellen Winslow was making pass defenders feel overwhelmed.

Watching Air Coryell from Ohio, where the football Jones had gotten into a boy’s blood, I had two thoughts: 1) Who knew football could be like fast-break basketball? 2) San Diego looks like a blast.

Now, we move onto the field’s edge of The Murph, for baseball’s ‘84 League Championship Series and the World Series.

I had the best job in the world as a film runner for the San Diego Union. 10

From an ideal spot, I watched baseball as our photographers clicked away before I whisked the film to the newspaper plant in west Mission Valley.

My vantage was near an edge of the . Or behind home plate, peering through a porthole.

This was baseball bliss.

Pads shortstop ? The telecasts undersold how smooth he was.

Alan Wiggins? A human jet.

Young Gwynn was everything you think of him now, only much faster.

What I remember most was the feeling. A city’s euphoria.

The Murph was a threat to Disneyland’s claim. Actually, it was not just the happiest place but the loudest.

My friend Bob Chandler this week assured me these aren’t off-key recollections, as purple as they may come off.

Bob was a Padres broadcaster in 1984, doing well not to be overly astonished as he conveyed the happenings.

He had tracked the Pads since they joined the big leagues in 1969 — which is to say Bob had mostly tracked teams that had no chance of reaching sea level, let alone the playoffs.

“You remember Jerome Holtzman?” Bob said.

The late Holtzman, who invented the save statistic, was a longtime Chicago baseball writer and columnist. He began reporting on baseball in 1957.

“Jerome Holtzman told me it was the loudest, most excited baseball crowd he’d ever seen,” Chandler said of the San Diego scene that October.

“As you know,” Bob said, “Jerome was a crusty old baseball writer, and he’d seen it all. For him to say that was impressive. I’ve never forgotten him saying that.”

When the Padres returned to the World Series in 1998, the stadium by then was enclosed to suit the Chargers.

The Murph had lost its charm and, due to the business of sports, also its name.

Padres crowds in 1998, whipped up by the rock-concert-style orchestrations of the age, impressed blue-bloods from the as the loudest they’d heard in any October.

The ‘84 vibe was different.

San Diego had never gone to a World Series. Affording open views of Mission Valley, the pre- enclosed stadium felt more like a ballpark than the Q ever would. 11

“You know, you only get to the World Series for the first time once,” Chandler said. “And for the Padres, that was it. Think about it, this was only the second winning season in Padres history, and they’re in the World Series.”

The giddiness extended outside the stadium’s borders.

Fresh off the final playoff victory over the Cubs, Chandler was greeted with a standing ovation upon entering a Kearny Mesa pizzeria where he was known.

“I can remember down at the beach -- people were partying all over,” Bob said, “but it was not like Detroit. And, the police let them do it. There was a lot of screaming and honking horns.

“It wasn’t like that in ‘98. But in ‘84, it was.”

Among Chandler’s fellow San Diego broadcasters who worked outside of sports, there was an expression in October 1984.

Padres Throat.

Even the golden throats had screamed themselves hoarse, cheering on the Padres from their homes or the stands.

As a crusty old sportswriter, it’s hard to believe it can be like that again. San Diego, engaged. San Diego, unified.

12

Padres edge Cubs to finish off sweep By Carrie Muskat and Ryan Posner / MLB.com | May 31st, 2017

SAN DIEGO -- Franchy Cordero hit his first Major League triple and scored on an grounder with one out in the eighth inning to lift the Padres to a 2-1 victory over the Cubs on Wednesday at Petco Park, as the defending champs lost their sixth in a row.

"There's no magic potion," Cubs manager said. "We just have to keep going out there and playing, believe in our guys -- which I do, 100 percent. These are good young players. They've shown it in the past. They'll show it to you again. I've been involved in difficult West Coast road trips in the past, and this was another one."

With the win, San Diego won its fourth in a row, its longest streak since winning five straight Aug. 17-22, 2015. It also was the Padres' first three-game sweep of the Cubs at home since August 2012. The loss left the Cubs oh-for-California, as they went 0-6 combined against the Dodgers and Padres.

"Instead of getting like caught up in streaks or stretches, rather, I get caught up more in what you see in young players you can believe in," Padres manager Andy Green said. "They're showing things. Franchy Cordero is showing things. I see him as a guy who's going to impact games in the future."

With the game tied at 1 and one out in the Padres' eighth against Koji Uehara, Cordero tripled into the right-center gap and then scored on Yangervis Solarte's fielder's choice with the infield drawn in. Solarte hit the ball to second baseman Ian Happ, who threw home, but Cordero slid under the tag by catcher Willson Contreras. The hit was big considering Cordero had struck out in his first three at-bats.

"It was impressive," Green said of Cordero's triple. "You know, it's one game so you don't make a lot of it, but he flies. … There's some special tools inside him."

The Cubs will be happy to turn the calendar after going 12-16 in May, their first non-winning month since last July (12-14). It's the first time they've lost six in a row since a seven-game skid in 2014, which means it's the first time the Cubs have lost a half-dozen games consecutively since Joe Maddon took over as manager.

Jake Arrieta started the Cubs' West Coast trip with a loss to the Dodgers last Friday, and did not get a decision on Wednesday, giving up one run over six innings. That run came on Ryan Schimpf's leadoff home run in the second, which tied the game at 1. It was the 11th homer off Arrieta, who served up 10 total in 2015 when he won the National League Cy Young Award.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED Step by step: The Cubs have had plenty of baserunners but not many clutch hits. In the second inning, was hit by a pitch for the second time in three games, then stole second and advanced on Happ's flyout. One out later, Contreras walked and Rizzo then tallied on Javier Baez's infield single which third baseman Schimpf bobbled. The Padres recovered in time to throw out Contreras at third and end the inning. How frustrating has it been for the Cubs? After Contreras doubled to lead off the fifth, he looked to the dugout, lifted his arms up and shouted, "Let's go!"

13

"I feel we have to have more fun, like last year," Contreras said. "Last year, we were out there and had fun. It was more about hitting the ball over the fence. We went out there and had good at-bats. That's how I feel -- that's why I did what I did today."

Glove work: With the game tied and one out in the Chicago seventh, Contreras was hit by a pitch and moved up on a by starter Luis Perdomo. Padres second baseman Solarte made a sliding stop of Baez's hard-hit ball, and threw him out at first. Perdomo did not get a decision, scattering three hits over seven innings.

"For us, it's just about stringing consecutive games together with good, clean, efficient baseball with good defensive play," Green said. "Solarte goes on the other side of the bag and makes a diving play and saves a run, throws Baez out at first."

QUOTABLE "You've got to give their guy credit, Perdomo. He threw the ball well today and had good sinking velocity. He didn't have a lot of strikeouts -- I was [one] of them -- but he forced a lot of weak contact. They were able to make one more play than us today. The ball that Happ caught in center field [in the sixth] was a tremendous play. We played some good defense today. We just weren't able to do quite enough offensively to make a difference in the game. You've got to give their guys credit as well." -- Arrieta

SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS Chicago's went 0-for-3, which ended his 26-game streak of reaching base safely, dating back to April 26. It was the second longest such streak of his career. WHAT'S NEXT Cubs: After an off-day on Thursday, the Cubs will face their division rivals, the Cardinals at Wrigley Field on Friday. gets the start in a rematch against Lance Lynn, whom Lackey beat on April 6 at Busch Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 1:20 p.m. CT.

Padres: The Padres will be off on Thursday before starting a three-game series against the Rockies at Petco Park. Clayton Richard, who will start the opener at 7:10 p.m. PT on Friday, is currently second in the Majors with 127 ground-ball outs this year.

14

Perdomo paves way despite win eluding him

By Ryan Posner / Special to MLB.com | May 31st, 2017

SAN DIEGO -- Luis Perdomo was still seeking his first victory of 2017 through nine starts after the Padres' 2-1 win over the Cubs on Wednesday, but that was certainly not a slight on his outing.

Perdomo turned in his finest start of the season, throwing a season-high seven innings and allowing a season-low three hits while matching his season low of one run allowed to lead the Padres to a sweep of the defending World Series champions.

"I think he mixed really well: He had the , the slider, the to both sides. He pitched up and in at times," Padres manager Andy Green said. "[Pitching inside] is something he hasn't done very successfully this year, and I thought that kept them from leaning out over and hitting balls to left field. I was really pleased with his effort today.

"It would be nice to get that guy a [win] at some point in time and score some runs for him."

Lack of run support has been a common theme for Perdomo this year. He entered the day with the fourth lowest run support in the National League.

Ryan Schimpf's team-leading 14th home run of the season -- a solo shot in the second -- proved to be the only run Perdomo received in the outing. But he kept the Padres close in part by holding the Cubs' left- handed hitters to an 0-for-14 mark.

"For me, it was just keeping that two-seam down against lefties and getting my four-seam up," Perdomo said through a team interpreter. "I always feel pretty good with my slider. It's my No. 2 pitch and my No. 2 weapon."

Perdomo faced a pivotal moment in the the second, hitting Anthony Rizzo to lead off the inning. Rizzo appeared upset after getting hit by the 93-mph fastball, but that didn't keep Perdomo from working inside. He also hit Willson Contreras in the seventh, but stranded him on third to end his day.

"I think it helped open things up," Perdomo said. "I was able to get in there and establish that pitch and I was able to attack with it low and away as well."

The Cubs left a runner in in each of Perdomo's last three innings. A diving play by Yangervis Solarte likely kept Contreras from scoring in the seventh and Franchy Cordero's first Major League triple helped put the Padres ahead in the eighth, scoring on a Solarte fielder's choice.

"You've got to give their guy credit, Perdomo," Cubs starter Jake Arrieta said. "He threw the ball well today and had good sinking velocity. He didn't have a lot of strikeouts -- I was [one] of them -- but he forced a lot of weak contact. They were able to make one more play than us today."

Perdomo's outing comes on the heels of a superb start from rookie Dinelson Lamet in Tuesday's 6-2 win, and Green was enamored with the Padres' young pitching against a prolific lineup.

15

"You see a group of young players you don't need to dream on, you can just believe in them because you see what they've got," Green said. "It's exciting to see those guys show up."

16

Wellman no longer offers comic relief on field Minor League skipper wants to be known for more than famous tirade

By Anthony Castrovince / MLB.com | @castrovince | 12:00 AM ET

The Phillip Wellman we know is three minutes, 21 seconds of hat-tossing, dirt-kicking, plate-covering, base-flinging, military-crawling, grenade-toss-mimicking YouTube gold. In the annals of the sacred-but- dying ritual that is baseball's managerial blowup, Wellman's incomparably inspired insurrection -- which took place on a wet Chattanooga, Tenn., night 10 years ago -- earns a special, singular spot. And he's got more than a million Internet clicks to prove it.

Wellman's antics will live in perpetuity, sure to be summoned on whatever platform is pertinent the day he gets ejected from this game we call life. "Dad," his son, Brett, has said to him mischievously, "how does it feel knowing when you die, they're still going to show that video?"

Such is the oddly comic existence of the inadvertent social-media star, and Wellman has lived it for a decade now, the time flying by much like the rosin bag he so famously hurled at an umpire's feet.

But don't look for that Wellman should you check out the San Antonio Missions, the Padres' Double-A affiliate for whom he serves as skipper. Don't make the mistake an elderly woman in a wheelchair did when she sat behind Wellman's dugout and waited patiently for an explosion that never arrived before shakily rising to her feet, pointing a crooked finger at the manager as he walked off the field and yelled, "Hey Wellman! Do something!"

If you want that Wellman, he's just a Google search away.

The real Wellman, though, has his own story to tell. About the emanation of the intensity that led to that manic managerial meltdown. About the reputation he's earned away from the spotlight and how it sustained him in a very unlikely place, in the lonely year when baseball didn't love him back. The 55- year-old says he's "too old and fat" to crawl on the ground anymore, but after some trying times, his passion for baseball is actually even stronger than it appeared on June 1, 2007.

* * * * *

The night of Wellman's tirade, the then-manager of the Double-A wasn't hip to the 21st century realities that would consume him. Chattanooga owner Frank Burke, aware of Wellman's penchant for performance art disguised as argument from the skipper's time with the Lookouts, sensed trouble brewing when Wellman had a couple tiffs with third-base umpire Rusty Barrett. Burke went to his office to fetch a camera.

So when Wellman did explode on a ball call from plate ump Brent Rice, Burke's camera was ready. The video aired that night on WDEF-TV in Chattanooga, and by the next morning, it was everywhere. ESPN. CNN. And then its final resting place -- YouTube, which, to that point, Wellman didn't even know existed. 17

Wellman was mortified.

Yes, entertaining arguments were Wellman's shtick. But this one spread so wide that the distraction it caused was overwhelming. He hated that his parents back home in San Antonio had to field calls from reporters and that Brett, his daughter, Britnee, and his wife, Montee, had to hear about the incident from people in their community. The one and only time Wellman watched his unscripted spectacle in full, what bothered him most was not his own image but the word "Braves" so visible across his chest. He was all but certain he had earned a pink slip.

Until Bobby Cox called, laughing.

"I don't know how funny this is, Bobby," Wellman said.

"It's awesome," Cox replied. "If I thought my bad knees would let me get up off the ground, I'd try it myself."

That didn't mean Wellman was off the hook. Braves president John Schuerholz suspended him a few games, and even that small sentence ate at Wellman, who in 34 years of has only missed games for his kids' graduations and the death of his grandmother. Tracking those three games on his computer, he felt terrible.

So, no, Wellman is still not ready to flip on the clip and have a good laugh about it.

But one other exchange from that aftermath sticks with him. A devout Christian, Wellman went to his home church after the season ended. His pastor, Richard Loser, teased him.

"If I would have known you were coming back this Sunday," Loser said, "I would have had the video ready."

"This is a holy place," Wellman said sheepishly. "You don't need to be showing that."

The pastor shook his head, and with just two words pointed out the good in the clip.

"That's passion."

* * * * *

Passion became profession. Wellman was signed by the Braves out of college, and while he wasn't a huge prospect, he led the Class A Sumter Braves with 21 homers in 1985, playing on a roster that featured future stars such as Tom Glavine, Ron Gant and Jeff Blauser. He never got past Double-A, though, and got his first managerial gig in Rookie ball at 30 in the Orioles' organization, and by 45, he was back with the Braves as their Double-A skipper, becoming a social-media sensation the night he tried to rile up his first-place club in the midst of a rough patch.

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As the video of Wellman dragging his big belly through the infield grass was making the rounds, people who knew him best would point out what a "great baseball man" he is, how much care he had for giving direction to young kids who needed it, helping them become not just better players but better citizens.

You don't see that in the YouTube clip. You just see a man possessed.

But Wellman's real reputation would serve him well the day baseball turned its back on him.

* * * * *

Wellman spent three full seasons managing Mississippi after the infamous ejection and another three as a hitting coach in the Cards' system. He had no reason to suspect his single season managing the Angels' Double-A affiliate in 2014 might be his last in pro ball.

But the Angels didn't renew Wellman's contract at season's end and, quickly, the phone stopped ringing. He had been in talks with a Major League team (he won't say which) about an assistant hitting coach job in the bigs, but the general manager of that club shot the idea down because he deemed Wellman -- a full seven years removed from the video -- as "too much of a risk."

Where do you go when the only world you know has given up on you?

If you're Wellman, you go to church. There, he ran into a friend named Brent Bass, vice president of sales at Covenant Transport, a trucking company in Chattanooga, where Wellman had not only made YouTube magic but had also made his permanent home. Wellman told Bass what was going on in his life. The next week, Bass had a message for him.

"Our senior vice president of operations wants to talk to you," Bass said. "He said he knows you." "A lot of people think they know me," Wellman replied, "because I've got this video floating around."

But Andy Vanzant did know the real Wellman. He had been a season-ticket holder for the Lookouts, so he had seen the side of the manager those three minutes could not convey. He requested a meeting, talked to Wellman a bit about his career and asked him what the Angels had been paying him.

"Sleep well tonight," Vanzant told Wellman. "You'll have a salary, benefits. You know nothing about this industry, and I understand that. Just come in here and give me a good eight hours."

Just like that, the field manager became a fleet manager, responsible for addressing the schedules and needs of drivers traversing the country.

"He was a little rigid at first," Vanzant says now. "But once he got to know his drivers and heard their hard-luck stories, his entire demeanor changed. It became, 'Do you want to go to church with me while you're here for the weekend? Can I buy you lunch?'"

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Vanzant called Wellman the company's best fleet manager out of 40 people. He became a father figure to folks inside the building. His hiring was an enormous gain for Covenant.

"The ultimate compliment I can give him is I'd hire him back right now," Vanzant said.

For the first time in Wellman's life, he had to buy a set of slacks and dress shirts, and he had to make the morning and evening commute. That his drive happened to pass AT&T Field, the home park of the Lookouts and the place where he made the rosin bag toss seen 'round the world, only made the situation more strange.

But Wellman adjusted, learned to appreciate the non-baseball blessings in his life. And though he didn't have the heart to step foot in a pro ballpark, he stayed active giving hitting lessons in the evenings.

Wellman also came to understand why baseball executives might not want their managers acting like madmen.

"After a year in the corporate world, I get it," Wellman said. "If I got upset there, I couldn't crawl around on the ground and fire a stapler across the room like it's a grenade."

* * * * *

So by the time San Diego called about its Double-A gig in the lead-up to the 2016 season, a more grateful and self-assured Wellman answered. In his interviews with the Padres, he addressed what he called "the elephant in the room" right away and vowed that while he will always sticks up for his players, he's thrown his last fake grenade.

Still, the video remains a part of Wellman's life. No matter the sport or the time of year, if a coach somewhere blows a gasket, some network or website is going to run a list of the greatest tirades of all- time, and Wellman will almost definitely be included, if not No. 1 with a bullet. He's had current players, who were in most cases 10 or 11 when it happened, ask him, "So skip, aren't you the guy who ..." He puts up with it all as best he can, and he doesn't hide from his past.

To still be present, though, that's the trick. Wellman wouldn't have survived that stunt had he not built a solid reputation beforehand, and he would not be back in baseball had he not learned from it. As manager of the Missions, he still gets ejected occasionally -- here's one from 2016 when he logged a "" - - and his friends back at Covenant Transport have an over/under wager for how many times he gets ejected in a season (the number for 2017 is set at five).

Just don't hold out hope for a sequel to Wellman's 2007 saga.

The Padres are an organization in the midst of building from the ground up, and the trust they've put in Wellman at a pivotal developmental level speaks volumes, even if his tone has been turned down. The Phillip Wellman from YouTube will always have a place in the game as a source of humor. But the real Phillip Wellman still has a place in it as a source of leadership.

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"There are very few Major League games I watch now where I haven't crossed paths with some of those kids," Wellman said. "So I'm hoping when they put me six feet under, people will remember me for more than just that video. If they don't, they didn't know me."

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Lamet forcing way into rotation conversation

By Ryan Posner / Special to MLB.com | May 31st, 2017

SAN DIEGO -- Even with Jered Weaver and making their way back from respective 10- day disabled list stints, Padres manager Andy Green seemed hopeful Wednesday that the team would continue to find a spot in the rotation for rookie Dinelson Lamet.

"That stuff works itself out over time," Green said. "I'm just glad to see him throw the ball well, to fill the strike zone up."

Lamet is 2-0 with a 2.70 ERA through his first two career starts and has struck out 16 batters in 10 innings. The 24-year-old picked up a win in the Padres' 6-2 victory over the Cubs on Tuesday and has held opponents to a .211 average.

"Obviously, if we're taking a long-term view of things, we've got a young guy throwing the ball like this," Green said. "I'm sure we'll find a way to get him an opportunity."

The hard-throwing right-hander is ranked as the Padres' No. 10 prospect, per MLBPipeline.com. He joined the rotation on May 25 in place of Weaver, who went on the disabled list with left hip inflammation.

Weaver, who has a 7.44 ERA and has allowed 16 home runs through 9 starts, threw a bullpen session on Tuesday and told Green his hip felt more free.

Cahill was shut down for 10-14 days after an MRI on his ailing right shoulder revealed no structural damage. He hasn't pitched since May 13 and has a 3.27 ERA in seven starts this year.

No Cubs comparisons for Green

Green wasn't ready to think about any similarities between the state of the Padres and the state of last year's World Series champions a few years ago.

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The Cubs finished last or second to last in the for five straight years before making back-to-back postseason trips. The Padres have finished in fourth or worse in the NL West the last two years and entered Wednesday in last place.

"No. Not at all," Green said when asked if he thinks about the comparisons. "Guys on this field are incredibly important and are fighting like crazy to establish themselves as big league ballplayers. It would be completely wrong of me to look years down the road and dream what this might be.

"That's what fans get the luxury of doing. That's what the front office does."

Worth noting • Green said nothing has changed to his knowledge on the status of hybrid reliever Christian Bethancourt, who's pitching at Triple-A El Paso and has a 12.54 ERA in nine appearances.

• Carter Capps, who's on the 60-day disabled list recovering from Tommy John surgery, faced live hitters on Tuesday at the team's facility in Peoria, Ariz., to "mixed reviews." The hard-throwing reliever is expected to throw again on Friday.

• Buddy Baumann threw out to 105 feet on Tuesday for the first time since being placed on the DL April 1 with left shoulder soreness.

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Richard, Marquez to duel as Padres host Rox

By Ryan Posner / Special to MLB.com | May 31st, 2017

With his Rockies near the top of the standings, former Padres manager will return to Petco Park for the second time in just over a month as Colorado opens up a three-game series on Friday against the Padres.

Rox rookie right-hander German Marquez will take on Clayton Richard in the series opener.

Marquez, who has filled in the rotation spot left vacant by starter Jon Gray, has been brilliant of late, going 4-0 with a 1.46 ERA over his last four starts. He held opponents to a .233 average over his five May outings and picked up his fourth consecutive win on Sunday against the Cardinals, giving up two runs over 5 2/3 innings.

Richard is just a start removed from the fourth complete game of his career in a start against the D-backs - - and his first since having surgery in 2014 to address thoracic outlet syndrome. He allowed three runs on 10 hits through six innings against the Nationals on Saturday in a losing effort.

Three things to know about this game

•.Ian Desmond is hitting .333 with two homers in 15 career at-bats against Richard. Ryan Schimpf, Yangervis Solarte and are the only Padres with plate appearances against Marquez, with none of them recording a hit.

• Richard is 25-22 with a 3.05 ERA in 60 career starts at Petco Park.

• Marquez made his Major League debut against the Padres last September, allowing three runs in 2 1/3 innings of relief.

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Bullpen is stellar in back-to-back wins Relievers combine to allow one hit over nine scoreless innings

By Bill Center / | May 31st, 2017

The Padres have had a number of players step up during their back-to-back wins over the reigning World champion Cubs Monday and Tuesday.

Rookie right fielder, for example, had the decisive hit in both games with a grand slam home run Monday and a tie-breaking, two-run double Tuesday.

Catcher Austin Hedges had a career-high four RBIs Tuesday with a two-run double and a two-run homer.

And right-hander Dinelson Lamet allowed two runs on five hits and a walk with eight strikeouts Tuesday night to run his record to 2-0 in two starts while becoming only the eighth pitcher in Major League history to have eight strikeouts in each of his first two games.

Great performances. But no match for what the Padres bullpen did in the two wins.

Asked to work five innings Monday afternoon and four more Tuesday night, six relievers allowed only one hit over nine scoreless innings. They issued seven walks and hit two batters with nine strikeouts. But no Cub crossed the plate against the Padres bullpen in 5-2 and 6-2 wins.

Left-hander Jose Torres worked both games, pitching a total of 2 2/3 hitless innings. And right- hander Kirby Yates gave end-of-game pitchers Brad Hand and Brandon MaurerTuesday off by working two innings.

Rookie Torres was the first reliever into both wins. He allowed two walks with a strikeout in two innings Monday. Tuesday night he hit a batter in two-thirds of an inning. Kevin Quackenbush followed Torres and issued two walks in 1 1/3 hitless innings.

Yates gave up the hit, a single to the first Cub he faced (former Padre Jon Jay) Tuesday night. He then retired six straight Cubs to end the game, including four by strikeouts.

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Hand worked 1 2/3 innings Tuesday night, hitting a batter while striking out two. Maurer struck out one in a perfect ninth to get his seventh save. Ryan Buchter also appeared for one-third of an inning Tuesday, although he walked the bases loaded before Hand killed the threat.

NOTE WORTHY:

-- Lamet is 2-0 after two Major League starts. The 24-year-old has allowed three runs on eight hits and three walks with 16 strikeouts in his first 10 Major League innings. He has exactly eight strikeouts in each of his first two Major League starts, becoming only the 13th pitcher in Major League history to accomplish that feat . . . and the first since the Yankees'Masahiro Tanaka in 2014.

-- Renfroe was 1-for-4 with his tie-breaking, two-run double in the fifth inning Tuesday night. Renfroe has hit safely in eight straight starts, going 13-for-34 (.382) in those eight starts with five doubles, two home runs, eight RBIs and four walks. His 12 doubles on the season lead all Major League rookies.

-- Hedges had a career-high four RBIs Tuesday off a two-run homer in the second and a two-run double in the fifth. Hedges' homer was his ninth of the season, the second-highest total among in the Major Leagues this year to the 11 hit by Kansas City's Salvador Perez.

-- 2B Yangervis Solarte is 11-for-28 (.383) with seven walks (.514 on-base percentage) in eight games since moving into the No. 2 slot in the order. Solarte's batting average had tailed off to a season low .226 on May 20 before moving from the fourth to the second slot. He is now hitting .251 after going 2-for-3 with a walk Tuesday.

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Padres win 2-1 to send Cubs to 6th straight loss

Associated Press

SAN DIEGO -- Sweeping anybody is a big deal for the rebuilding, rookie-laden San Diego Padres. Make it the defending World Series champion Chicago Cubs, and that's huge for a team that hopes to be contending by 2019 or 2020.

San Diego rookie Franchy Cordero tripled leading off the eighth inning and scored on Yangervis Solarte's fielder's choice, and the Padres beat Chicago 2-1 on Wednesday to hand the Cubs their season-high sixth straight loss.

Luis Perdomo, in just his second big league season, and two relievers combined to hold the struggling Cubs to three hits. The Padres won their season-best fourth straight game and swept the Cubs for the first time since August 2012.

The 22-year-old Cordero, who batted leadoff and struck out in his first three at-bats, made his major league debut on Saturday. Rookie slugger Hunter Renfroe batted cleanup in this one. And the Padres started rookie Luis Torrens at catcher, giving Austin Hedges a day off.

Perdomo pitched seven strong innings a day after rookie Dinelson Lamet produced another solid outing, striking out eight in five innings of a 6-2 win to improve to 2-0.

"Playing that way, pitching that way, seeing Dinelson Lamet throw the ball the way he's thrown it and seeing it in Perdomo, and now you see it in a group of young guys, you ... don't have to dream on, you can just believe in because you see what they've got," manager Andy Green said. "It's exciting to see those guys show up and start to do some really good things." The Padres have won four straight for the first time since August 2015.

Nice, but Green is more impressed with the way the young guys have played.

"Those kind of things will be impactful for the organization in the future," he said. "Young guys all over the and they're doing a nice job right now."

Cordero tripled to right-center off Koji Uehara (1-3) leading off the eighth. Solarte hit a grounder to second baseman Ian Happ, whose throw home wasn't in time to get Cordero. Cordero showed his speed on both the triple and his dash home.

"I'm really happy, really excited to be able to get the triple and to score the run there," he said through a translator. "And just really, really happy to have won the game. `'

Green said Cordero has "special tools inside of him. He's young and a lot of young guys don't have the resiliency to come up with the game on the line in the eighth inning and get the triple -- and most people don't turn that into a triple, either. He was flying around the bases and had the speed to score on the groundball to second base there on the contact play, get his foot in there clearly." 27

The Cubs, who were swept at the Dodgers last weekend, finished their first winless trip of at least six games since August 2012, when they also lost three at and three at San Diego.

Overall the Cubs have lost seven in a row on the road.

"You've got to give their guy credit," manager Joe Maddon said. "Perdomo threw the ball really well today; good velocity, good sinking velocity. He forced a lot of weak contact, threw a lot of strikes, and they were able to make one more play than us."

Perdomo allowed one run and three hits, struck out four and walked two.

Brad Hand (1-3) pitched a perfect eighth for the win, and Brandon Maurer worked the ninth for his eighth save.

The Cubs took a 1-0 lead in the second. Anthony Rizzo was hit by a pitch for the second time in three games and didn't look happy about it. He tossed his bat aside and slowly walked to first. He stole second, advanced on Happ's fly to center field and scored on Willson Contreras' two-out infield single.

Ryan Schimpf tied it with a leadoff homer against Jake Arrieta in the second. Shimpf came in hitting .166. Of his 25 hits, 14 are home runs.

Arrieta went six innings, holding San Diego to one run and five hits while striking out seven and walking two.

QUOTABLE

"I think with what we accomplished last year, obviously the expectations are really high and they should be, and we'll take it," Arrieta said. "We'll deal with the criticism, and continue to move forward. ... I think it's been magnified because we haven't been doing really anything collectively well."

UP NEXT

Cubs: Return home for an off day Thursday before RHP John Lackey (4-5, 5.18 ERA) is scheduled to oppose RHP Lance Lynn (4-3, 2.93) in the opener of a three-game series against St. Louis.

Padres: After a day off, LHP Clayton Richard (3-6, 4.33 ERA) opens a three-game series against Colorado, which counters with RHP German Marquez (4-2, 3.76).

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This Day in Padres History, 5/31 1994–8 straight hits, 13 runs in an inning; 2005 — Best month ever; 2013 — Padres win 17-inning marathon

By Bill Center

May 31, 1976 — Left-hander Randy Jones named the National League Pitcher of the Month for May. He was 6–1 in seven starts with a 1.48 and 0.836 WHIP.

May 31, 1985 — Right-hander Andy Hawkins is named the National League Pitcher of the Month for May. Hawkins was 6–0 with a 2.72 earned run average in six starts in May.

May 31, 1991 — Shortstop and captain Garry Templeton traded by the Padres to the for Tim Teufel.

May 31, 1994 — The Padres set franchise-records with eight straight hits and 13 runs in an inning (the second) in a 15–5 victory over Pittsburgh at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium.

May 31, 1997 — was named the National League Player of the Month for May. Gwynn hit .447 (46-for-103) in May with nine doubles, four homers and 20 RBIs with 18 runs scored. He had a .478 on-base percentage and .650 slugging percentage for a 1.129 OPS for May.

May 31, 2005 — The Padres defeat the Mets 8–4 at Petco Park to finish May with a 22–6 record, their best-single month record in franchise history. The win is also the Padres 11th straight at home, another franchise record.

May 31, 2005 — Closer Trevor Hoffman is named the National League Pitcher of the Month for May. He had 12 saves in 12 appearances with a 0.82 earned run average for the month. He allowed six hits and a walk with 13 strikeouts in 12 innings.

May 31, 2007 — Jake Peavy is named the National League Pitcher of the Month. Peavy was 4–0 in five starts in May with a 0.79 ERA with 39 strikeouts in 34 innings. He allowed 19 hits and seven walks with a 0.765 WHIP for the month.

May 31, 2010 — The Padres rout the Mets 18–6 to set a single-game scoring record at Petco Park. Third baseman Chase Headley has four of the Padres 19 hits. 29

May 31, 2013 — Jesus Guzman drives home Jedd Gyorko with a two-out, walk-off single to defeat Toronto 4–3 and end a 17-inning, four-hour and 58-minute marathon at Petco Park.

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Padres On Deck: Franmil Reyes has 2 HRs, 6 RBIs for AA-San Antonio RHP Andre Rienzo sharp as AAA-El Paso starter

By Bill Center

Big man Franmil Reyes had a big night for Double-A San Antonio Tuesday.

The 6-foot-5, 250-pound-plus right fielder was 3-for-3 with two homers, six RBIs, a stolen base and a walk in the Missions 11–5 win at Tulsa. The homers were the sixth and seventh of the season for Reyes, who is hitting .282 with 34 RBIs.

Meanwhile, right-hander Andre Rienzo allowed two hits and three walks with six strikeouts over five scoreless innings to lead Triple-A El Paso to a 6–3 win at Las Vegas. The win was the first of the season for Rienzo, who made his second start after 16 appearances out of the Chihuahuas’ bullpen. He has a 3.03 earned run on the season.

Right-handed pitcher Brett Kennedy (4–3, 4.31 ERA) picked up the win for San Antonio. He gave up two runs on three hits and a walk with seven strikeouts in five innings. He was also 1-for- 2 with an RBI as the Missions improve their Texas League South-leading record to 30–21.

Second baseman Luis Urías (.347) was 2-for-5 for the Missions with a double, a walk, two RBIs and a run scored. Nick Torres (.237) was 2-for-4 with a triple, a walk, a RBI and two runs scored. Center fielder Alberth Martinez (.280) was 1-for-4 with a double, a walk and two runs scored.

Right-hander Aroni Nina (0.00 ERA) followed Kennedy and walked two with a strikeout in a scoreless inning. Right-hander Cesar Vargas (2.91) allowed a hit and two walks with two strikeouts in two scoreless innings. Right-hander Trey Wingenter (1.89) gave up three earned runs on a hit and a walk with two strikeouts in two-thirds of an inning. Right-hander Eric Yardley (2.17) got the game’s final out.

Right-hander Rafael De Paula followed Rienzo and gave up three runs on two hits and a walk with two strikeouts in 1 2/3 innings in his debut with El Paso. Right-hander Jose Valdez (5.79 ERA) allowed a hit in 1 1/3 scoreless innings. Right-hander Phil Maton (3.38) allowed a hit with two strikeouts in a scoreless inning to get his 10th save for the 25–28 Chihuahuas.

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Right fielder Nick Buss (.380) was 3-for-4 with a RBI and two runs scored. Left fielder Jose Pirela (.329) was 2-for-5 with a double. Shortstop Dusty Coleman (.216) was 2-for-4 with a double, a RBI and a run scored. Third baseman Diego Goris (.280) was 1-for-4 with two RBIs. Second baseman (.233) was 1-for-3 with two walks, a RBI and a run scored.

Around the Farm:

ADVANCED SINGLE-A LAKE ELSINORE (25–27) — The Storm was off Tuesday.

SINGLE-A FORT WAYNE (18–34) — Bowling Green 12, TIN CAPS 9 — CF Jack Suwinski (.209) was 2-for-4 with a home run, a walk, two runs scored and two RBIs. 1B Brad Zunica (.200) was 2-for-4 with a RBI and a run scored. DH G.K. Young .246) was 1-for-5 with a homer and three RBIs. 3B Hudson Potts (.246) was 1-for-5 with a RBI and a run scored. 2B Eguy Rosario (.221) had a double and two runs scored in four at-bats. LF Rod Boykin (.215) was 1- for-4 with a RBI and a run scored. Starting RHP Adrian De Horta (7.36 ERA) allowed three runs on three hits and four walks with three strikeouts in 3 2/3 innings. LHP Will Headean (1– 3, 5.89) gave up six runs on five hits and two walks with three strikeouts in 2 2/3 innings to take the loss. RHP Blake Rogers allowed an unearned run on a hit and a walk with two strikeouts in two-thirds of an inning. RHP Austin Smith (7.29) allowed two runs on two hits and three walks with a strikeout in two innings.

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That time the Padres drafted Brendan McKay Jeff Sanders Any draft class is littered with more misses than hits. It’s the nature of the game.

Some prospects out-play their slot. Even more will flop. A few will slip through a club’s fingers, some of them with much longer odds of signing than others.

That was certainly the case when the Padres drafted Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel in the 28th round in 2014 as a shortstop, a PR stunt that was at best a blind-folded shot into a dark stormy night, and Stanford-committed catcher Bryce Carter with the 40thpick that year.

In between, those picks the Padres selected a high school left-hander from Beaver Falls, Pa., with the 34th overall selection. They were willing to offer him third-round money on the higher end of that round’s $400,000-$1 million range. They believed they had a chance to get him into their talent-starved system.

In the end, Brendan McKay chose a full ride at Louisville. Today, the 21-year-old two-way phenom is a contender to go No. 1 overall in this month’s amateur draft and is likely a long-shot to slip to the Padres at No. 3.

“We did a great job of identifying Brendan maybe a little bit before the industry got going on him,” said former Padres scouting director Billy Gasparino, now with the Dodgers. “We liked the body, the arm action, the delivery and the . We felt like there was more to come. We tried hard. We had several guys cross-check him. We made a pretty sizeable offer. To the family’s credit, they were very good to deal with.

“They just really wanted him to go to school and it’s worked out great for them.”

The “we” Gasparino is speaking about was Tom Burns, then an area scout with the Padres, and current scouting director Mark Conner, San Diego’s regional cross-checker at the time.

They led the way in getting several looks at McKay, a pitcher-first in their mind in the spring of 2014. With 17 homers in the box and 124 strikeouts in 91 innings on the mound as a junior at Louisville, the 6-foot-1 McKay has since become one of college baseball’s most intriguing two- way prospects in recent memory.

“We thought he’d develop into a first-rounder, without question,” Conner said recently. “Based on his skill-set then, he’s gotten stronger. He’s added some velocity on the mound. We saw him more as a pitcher at the time, but he definitely had a good swing like he has now. Not a long has changed except for the natural strength progression and the consistency of him barreling up a baseball as a hitter and adding velocity.”

So what would it have taken to get McKay back then?

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Probably $1 million, one source said.

The Padres could have done it, too, with a little manipulation of their $6.1 million bonus pool.

As the Nationals can attest, they hit on NC State’s Trea Turner for $2.9 million and lured outfielder Michael Gettys away from the University of Georgia with a $1.3 million signing bonus, leaving the Padres with a little less than $1.9 million to play with for their next eight selections.

That works out to about $230,000 a pick if the Padres play the board straight (draftees after the first 10 rounds don’t count against bonus pool unless they sign for more than $100,000).

Few teams do.

In fact, the Padres discussed a scenario in which they saved money on lower-ceiling college seniors in rounds six through 10 to get McKay a seven-figure bonus, a source said, only to have a high-ranking official outside baseball ops nix a strategy that would have left almost all of the Padres’ eggs in the top of their draft basket.

That left the Padres’ offer well short of McKay’s reported asking price when the Padres had him on the phone in the third round that year.

He declined, the Padres lobbed a Hail Mary for him in the 34th round (because you never know, right?) and the rest of rounds three through 10 played out like this:

 3rd | RHP Zech Lemond (Rice, $600,000)  4th | OF Nick Torres (Cal Poly, $406,700)  5th | OF Auston Bousfield (Mississippi, $200,000)  6th | C Zach Risedorf (high school, $175,000)  7th | RHP Ryan Butler (Charlotte, $186,900)  8th | RHP Mitch Watrous (Utah, $120,000)  9th | SS Nick Vilter (UC Riverside, $150,000)  10th | LHP Thomas Dorminy (Faulkner, $60,000)

Hindsight, right?

“I think it's always hard to predict on the front end this kind of rise,” Gasparino said of McKay. “We thought he'd be very good in college – we could say become a first-round pick – but to have the kind of career he’s had at Louisville and be the top pick he's going to be, we didn't see that one.

“He just took it to a whole other gear. He's got outstanding makeup to succeed in whatever he does.”

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Perdomo tames left-handed batters in latest start Dennis Lin

Luis Perdomo was forced to confront a familiar problem Wednesday. Five of the first six players in the Chicago Cubs’ lineup would bat from the left side.

Perdomo, the Padres’ second-year right-hander, had been unable to solve left-handed hitters this season. He entered his latest start having allowed a .370 average, .439 on-base percentage and .562 slugging percentage against those opponents.

In the Padres’ 2-1, sweep-sealing victory, Perdomo stymied the Cubs, yielding only one run over seven innings. Most important, Chicago’s lefty bats went 0-for-14 against the 24-year-old.

“For me, it was just keeping my two-seam (fastball) down against lefties and getting my four- seam up,” Perdomo said through an interpreter. “It was something I had worked on in the ‘pen, and it went well.”

Perdomo’s intent was apparent early in the game. Against the first batter in the top of the second, he aimed a 1-0 fastball inside. He missed his target, instead plunking Cubs Anthony Rizzo in the leg.

Rizzo would come around to score Chicago’s only run of the afternoon.

“I thought he mixed really well,” Padres manager Andy Green said of Perdomo. “It was the change-up, the slider, the fastball to both sides. He pitched up and in at times. You never want to try to hit Anthony Rizzo, but we’re at least trying to establish the inside part of the plate to lefties. That’s big for him, that’s something he hasn’t done very successfully this year, and I thought that kept them off leaning out over and hitting balls to left field.”

Said Perdomo: “I think that helped open things up. I was able to get in there and establish that pitch.”

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Officially, Perdomo remains without a win in 2017 — he left Wednesday’s game with the score tied at 1-1 — but either way, his showing against a potent lineup qualified as a victory. His seven innings represented a season high.

“It felt really good,” he said. “I feel like I already have more confidence.”

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Padres Sweep World Series Champions San Diego gets great pitching, late run to beat Cubs By Derek Togerson The Padres had a miserable month of May … right up until the last week.

San Diego finished the second month of the season with their longest winning streak of the season and a sweep of the defending World Series champion Chicago Cubs. The Padres put the cap on their 3-game set with a 2-1 win on Wednesday afternoon.

The Cubs got on the board in the 2nd inning when Javier Baez hit a fielder’s choice to bring in Anthony Rizzo. That was the only run the afternoon for the Cubs. San Diego starter Luis Perdomo made arguably his best start of the year, allowing just three hits over 7.0 innings. In the 3-game set Padres pitchers allowed just five total runs.

One of the Padres runs came on a ball that flew out of the ballpark. The other came on a ball that didn’t even leave the infield.

In the bottom of the 2nd Ryan Schimpf launched his 14th homer of the year to right field off former Cy Young Award winner Jake Arrieta. After that the two teams traded goose eggs for five innings.

San Diego finally broke through in the 8th inning. With one out rookie outfielder Franchy Cordero ripped a triple to the gap in right-centerfield with one out. The Cubs played the infield in and Yangervis Solarte hit a ground ball to 2nd base. Cordero broke on contact and slid in just under the throw to score the winning run.

Brandon Maurer threw the 9th inning for the save and the sweep and the Friars' first 4-game winning streak of the season. By the way, the last time the Padres swept the reigning champs was April 26-28 of 2013 when they took all three games from the Giants at Petco Park.

The Padres get a day off on Thursday then open a 3-game set at home against the Rockies on Friday.

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