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Padres Press Clips Tuesday, August 15, 2017 Article Source Author Page Spangenberg flexing his muscles in Padres win UT San Diego Sanders 2 First pitch: Kirby Yates rejoins Padres bullpen UT San Diego Sanders 4 Padres still feeling out their remade bullpen UT San Diego Sanders 6 Civic, business leaders back homeless tent idea UT San Diego Warth 9 Bats come alive late as Padres top Phillies MLB.com Cassavell/Zolecki 11 Hedges' bat starting to heat up in August MLB.com Ruiz 13 Lamet looks to continue second-half roll MLB.com Ruiz 14 Center: When I look at Green, I see leadership MLB.com Center 16 Spangenberg, Padres beat Phillies 7-4; Hoskins homers twice Fox Sports Staff 18 Pirela, Padres beat Phillies 7-4; Hoskins homers twice AP AP 20

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Spangenberg flexing his muscles in

Padres win Jeff Sanders

At a wiry 6 feet and 195 pounds, Cory Spangenberg is hardly the picture of a budding power threat. He’s

no slap-hitter, either.

The 26-year-old infielder hit his third homer in the last two days, capping an evening in which situational

hitting – for a change – got the Padres started toward in a 7-4 win Monday night over the Phillies to

begin a seven-game homestand.

“It's there; there's no doubt about it,” Padres manager Andy Green said. “We've seen it to the deepest

part of this ballpark. We've seen it to the opposite field. … I like what he's doing right now. He's squaring

up baseballs. He's swinging at the pitches you should be swinging at, he's taking a walk when you should

take a walk.

“The last couple of games have been off the charts outstanding.”

Monday’s especially.

In addition to the home run, his career-best 11th of the year, singled twice, walked and scored three runs.

More important, after Spangenberg’s fielding error at third allowed the Phillies to take a 3-2 lead in the

sixth, he walked to lead off the bottom half of the inning. Moments later, Spangenberg beat out the throw

to second base on Matt Szczur’s grounder to shortstop, setting up a four-run rally that went down like

this:

Austin Hedges’ run-scoring single to center, Asuaje’s sacrifice fly to center and Jose Pirela’s two-run

single to left.

“The biggest thing (Spangenberg) did,” Green said, “was fly into second base to beat that fielder's choice

to keep that inning extended to give us an opportunity to score all those runs. That's great base-running.

That's great hustle. He's done so many good things for us.”

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Spangenberg’s home run led off the seventh, the second in a row to exit the field left of center field. He

logged his second multi-homer effort of the season on Sunday – and third of his career – has hit in six

straight and is batting .333 over his last 27 games.

“I'm just trying to see my pitch,” Spangenberg said, “sit in a specific zone and not go out of that.”

Padres starter Travis Wood threw 92 pitches (56 strikes) in a laborious fourth start for his new team. He

allowed two runs on six hits and two walks, struck out three and exited after five innings after Manuel

Margot ran down a bases-loaded drive from rookie Rhys Hoskins to end the fifth. Hoskins hit his first

career homer in the fourth inning off Wood.

“The body finally feels like it's back in a starting role,” Wood said. “I don't get tired. The arm feels great. I

just have to piece everything together to quit having battles, quit having grinders. Just go out there and

pitch and do me.”

Hoskins added a second shot in the seventh inning off Craig Stammen after Jose Torres got the final out

of the sixth inning.

Kirby Yates threw a scoreless eighth in his return to the team and Brad Hand stranded two runners in the

ninth to save his 10th game

Phillies starter Jerad Eickhoff allowed two runs – one earned – on five hits and three walks in five

innings.

Hedges drove in the first run on a bases-loaded sacrifice fly in the second and the second scored when

Margot, also with the bases loaded, beat out an errant throw to first base to tie the game at 2-2.

Overly reliant on the home run this year, the Padres went 2-for-12 with runners in scoring position but

scratched across two runs on sacrifice flies and grinded to score fourth in the sixth to seize the lead for

good to open the homestand with a win.

The Padres are 37-36 since a 15-30 start.

“We played really well in LA,” Spangenberg said. “We didn't come out on top but we were still in every

one of those games. We've been grinding the last two months. l think we've been playing really well as a

team. One through nine, I think all of us don't give up as a team. I think we're competitive team and I like

where we're at right now.”

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First pitch: Kirby Yates rejoins Padres

bullpen Jeff Sanders

After a three-day stint on the family leave list, Kirby Yates is back in the Padres’ bullpen. His month-old

daughter Oaklee Malia is also out of the hospital and back home in Phoenix after an allergic reaction to

formula caused a scare last week.

“She lost a lot of weight,” Yates said Monday afternoon. “She was in the hospital for four days trying to

put weight back on, but she’s home now. Everything is good. She’s on the right track. She’s still a little

light, but she’s putting on weight rapidly. She’s in good spirits.”

Yates learned of the reaction Thursday upon arriving in Los Angeles. After a phone call with his wife, he

headed directly home.

“I needed to go home,” Yates said. “I made that choice and I think it was the right choice. It’s always

tough to leave, especially when you’ve got a series like that (against the Dodgers), but family is

important.”

Yates was activated Monday and will move right back into his set-up role. To make room, right-

hander Jose Valdez was optioned back to Triple-A El Paso.

Valdez allowed a run in two innings on Sunday, his lone day of work as the call-up during Yates’ three-

day absence. The 26-year-old Dominican is has a 6.92 ERA in 13 innings over six stints in the majors this

season, including one before the Padres’ claimed him off waivers from the Angels.

Yates, also a waiver claim from the Angels this season, is 2-3 with a 3.55 ERA, 56 strikeouts and a 1.13

WHIP in 38 innings out of the Padres’ bullpen.

ON DECK | Phillies (43-72) at Padres (51-66)

Game 1: 7:10 p.m. Monday

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Phillies RHP Jerad Eickhoff (3-7, 4.45 ERA)

• The third-year pitcher’s WHIP is up to a career-high 1.46 in 20 starts (111 1/3 IP). His 44 walks

are also a career-high. Eickhoff struck out eight over five shutout innings to beat the Padres in

Philadelphia in July.

Padres LHP Travis Wood (2-4, 6.71 ERA)

• The 30-year-old his making his fourth start since arriving in a trade with the Royals. He has

allowed nine earned runs in 10 innings on the road after giving up two in six innings at Petco Park

in his Padres debut.

Up next

• Tuesday: Phillies RHP Mark Leiter Jr. (1-2, 4.08) vs. Padres RHP Dinelson Lamet (6-4, 5.00),

7:10 p.m.

• Wednesday: Phillies RHP Nick Pivetta (4-7, 6.090) vs. Padres LHP Clayton Richard (5-12, 5.14),

12:40 p.m.

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Padres still feeling out their remade

bullpen Jeff Sanders

The tie-dyed backpack, pink and baby blue, was sitting at Kyle McGrath’s Petco Park locker when he

returned from stretching on his first day in the majors.

Filled to the brim with both medical and practical supplies, from super glue for blisters to Band-Aids to

sunscreen to a vibrating therapy ball, it’s slightly heavier than the hot-pink shoulder bag — filled with

Snickers bars, beef jerky, peanuts and other various snacks — that Phil Maton carries to the bullpen each

day.

Both take turns lugging cases of water and Red Bull to the ’pen, as does Jose Torres, the most

experienced of the rookies in the Padres’ relief corps. Five others have popped onto the roster this year,

spreading the responsibilities dished out by the veterans in charge of the relievers’ center-field sanctuary.

“Well, they all carry something,” Craig Stammen, 34, said with a grin. “They share the load.”

It’s been substantial.

Only five teams have asked for more innings out of first-year relievers than the 1302/3 innings turned in

by the Padres’ rookies this year. As many as four have held spots in the bullpen at any one time, including

over the weekend as right-hander Jose Valdez came up from Triple-A as veteran Kirby Yates left the team

to tend to an allergic reaction that briefly put his 1-month-old daughter in the hospital.

That youth, as well as the initial steps of Carter Capps’ return from Tommy John surgery, have proven to

be a complicating factor in providing leads to All-Star left-hander Brad Hand, the de facto closer after the

Padres dealt Brandon Maurer and Ryan Buchter to the Royals a week before the trade deadline.

“It was easier decision-making with Ryan Buchter, Brandon Maurer and Brad Hand back there,” Padres

manager Andy Green said of a relief corps that has a 6.07 ERA since July 24. “That almost goes without

saying. At this point in time, you’re looking at portions of the lineup and trying to figure out who will

thrive best in those certain situations. It’s not always the exact same guy. Guys get opportunities. What

you want to do is give a guy an opportunity and have him take advantage of it.

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“Then you give him another one and another one and another one, and let him build some momentum.”

The Padres had it right after the trade. Hand recorded saves on three straight days. Yates added a fourth

in a row on July 29, tying the Padres’ season high.

Then the remade bullpen picked up a loss and/or blown save in four of the Padres’ losses during a 3-7

road trip, all of them hitting a snag at one point or another as Green felt out the best way to use his best

arm — Hand — in the most critical spot.

At times, it’s been an adventure.

Once, Green intentionally walked two batters before giving Hand the ball in the 10th. Another time, the

second-year manager called on Hand during the middle of a seventh-inning at-bat against Joey Votto.

Of course, given the construction of the Padres’ bullpen, when the phone rings — and for whom — isn’t

the concern it would be in other clubhouses.

“Unless you’re a big-time free agent and you know you’re going to get the ninth inning, I feel like

everybody is batting for a role,” Hand said. “You just have to go out there and pitch well, no matter what

the situation is. I don’t feel anybody’s role down there is more important than the others.

“We’re all down there together trying to pick each other up, trying to win a ballgame.”

Hand ultimately served up a grand slam and a home run as his streak of scoreless innings ended at 24

during that curious seventh-inning appearance in Cincinnati. Buddy Bauman took a loss in Pittsburgh on

a walk-off homer. Stammen was beat by Corey Seager over the weekend in Los Angeles. Yates suffered

two losses, the first of which was a six-run debacle in one-third of an inning to start the road trip.

Before the trip, the 30-year-old Yates — a waiver claim from the Angels in May — had fanned 43 batters

in his previous 26 innings (1.38 ERA).

“I just think it’s part of the season,” Yates said in Cincinnati. “It’s part of being in the bullpen over a long

season. You try to avoid stretches likes this, but sometimes it’s inevitable — it happens. You just put your

head down and keep grinding and pitch your way out of it. I feel fine.

“I’ll keep working. It will turn around.”

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Yates isn’t the only reliever, outside of Hand, looking to find his footing, one way or another.

Capps has allowed six runs over his first three appearances with a reconstructed elbow. McGrath is only

52/3 innings into his big league career. Torres’ ERA has crept from the low 4.00s to above 5.00 over his

last 15 appearances, and Maton’s has ballooned from 2.78 to 4.85 after he allowed five homers over four

straight appearances.

Two left the yard in Maton’s second outing in Cincinnati. The 24-year-old rookie allowed another on

Saturday but struck out two in a showing that Green considered a step in the right direction.

“I felt really good about the way he threw the baseball,” Green said of Maton, one of the organization’s

top 30 prospects entering the season. “Most people would look at the same line, see the solo homer, and

think it was the same thing. It wasn’t. The velo was up. The stuff was sharp. His attack was crisp. He gave

up a home run, and there’s going to be a lot of really good pitchers that go into L.A. and give up home

runs.”

Stammen, too, took his hiccup in Los Angeles in stride. As rocky as it’s been of late, he’s quick to point

out that this, by and large, is the same unit that fashioned a 2.34 ERA in the first eight games following

the Maurer/Buchter trade.

“We crushed it right away,” said Stammen, who has allowed one earned run in his last 13 innings. “It’s

just been this last week of giving up some home runs. It’s kind of how the baseball season goes.

“We’re kind of in a low valley and we have to get back up on a mountain top again.”

WHO’S LEFT?

With the Padres trading away Brandon Maurer and Ryan Buchter during a rebuilding year, Andy Green has asked rookies to turn in 130 2/3 innings, sixth-most in the majors. Here’s a look who’s in the bullpen today.

• LHP Brad Hand | 2-4, 2.23 ERA, 60.2 IP, 80 Ks, 17 BBs • *LHP Jose Torres | 6-3, 5.01 ERA, 55.2 IP, 51 Ks, 16 BBs • RHP Craig Stammen | 0-2, 3.71 ERA, 60.2 IP, 55 Ks, 22 BBs • RHP Kirby Yates | 2-3, 3.55 ERA, 38 IP, 56 Ks, 13 BBs • *RHP Phil Maton | 2-0, 4.85 ERA, 26 IP, 28 Is, 4 BBs • *LHP Kyle McGrath | 0-0, 3.18 ERA, 5.2 IP, 6 Ks, 2 BBs • RHP Carter Capps | 0-0, 20.25 ERA, 2.2 IP, 0 Ks, 2 BBs

*--Rookie

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Civic, business leaders back homeless

tent idea Gary Warth

More than 200 civic and business leaders have endorsed a plan to create a series of large industrial tents throughout the region to help get homeless people temporarily off the street.

“These serious-minded San Diego leaders have come together to carefully review San Diego’s homeless

problem and have explored multiple concepts, plans, and ideas concerning potential short-term and

long-term strategies,” proponents Peter Seidler and Dan Shea said in a joint statement Monday.

Seidler, the San Diego Padres managing partner, and Shea, a chain restaurant operator and partner at

Paradigm Investment Group, LLC., have proposed using a series of industrial tents that hold 250 people

each as a temporary way to safely shelter homeless people who otherwise would sleep in canyons, under

tarps and tents on sidewalks or other places.

This year’s annual count in January found 9,116 homeless people in San Diego County, an increase of 3

percent over five year. The count included 5,621 unsheltered people, an increase of 14 percent from last

year, and 3,495 in shelters, a decrease of 6 percent.

The plan has not yet gone before the San Diego City Council or any of its committees, or the county Board

of Supervisors, and the list of endorsements does not have many elected officials.

It does include some, including Rep. Scott Peters, D-San Diego, and county Supervisor Ron Roberts,

chair of the San Diego County Regional Task Force on the Homeless. San Marcos Mayor Jim Desmond

and former Encinitas City Council member Lou Aspell also are on board.

Among the more well-known names on the list is famed sports announcer Dick Enberg, former San Diego

Chargers kicker Rolf Benirschke, developer and philanthropist Malin Burnham, former San Diego City

Manager Jack McGrory and hotel developer Douglas Manchester, who is the former owner and publisher

of The San Diego Union-Tribune and currently the nominee to become the U.S. ambassador to the

Bahamas.

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People already working to help the homeless and in support of the plan include Father Joe’s Villages

President and CEO Deacon Jim Vargas and former CEO and president of the San Diego Rescue Mission

Herb Johnson.

Supporters with a significant presence in downtown San Diego, where a large homeless population is on

the street, include Downtown San Diego Partnership CEO Kris Michell and Keith Jones, managing

principal and partner of ACE Parking.

Also on board are David Cohn of the Cohn Restaurant Group and developer Mike Madigan.

Among the names missing from the list are Mayor Kevin Faulconer, San Diego Housing Commission

President and CEO Rick Gentry, Regional Task Force on the Homeless CEO Gordon Walker and San

Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Jerry Sanders.

While there has not been specific support for the tent plan from elected officials, there has been general

support for the idea of adding more beds to get people off the street.

In July, Faulconer said through a spokesman that he appreciated the work of Seidler and Shea, and that

he is committed to finding a site for temporary beds.

The City Council’s Select Committee on Homelessness has discussed using the practice field at

Qualcomm Stadium and Golden Hall as sites to temporarily house the homeless, but has not discussed

the tent proposal.

Shea and Seidler have stressed that the plan is not meant to deter from the city’s committee to a housing-

first approach, or a plan to find permanent supportive housing as a long-term solution to homelessness.

Rather, they say the tents are needed to get people off the street temporarily but immediately, potentially

saving lives while long-term permanent housing solutions are sought.

“While housing first is our long-term focus, we have proposed a plan to begin to address this human

tragedy now and provide an important ‘bridge’ to housing first,” Seidler and Shea said in their statement.

“It is a results-oriented, fact-based plan to take the most vulnerable of the population off the streets

(first) in an organized manner and to begin providing basic, fundamentally sound health and social

service assessments.”

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San Diego once used tents similar to the ones proposed by Seidler and Shea to shelter the homeless

during winter months, but those were abandoned about three years ago.

The new proposal would be to operate the tents year-round in various locations and with support

services.

Bats come alive late as Padres top Phillies

By AJ Cassavell and Todd Zolecki / MLB.com

SAN DIEGO -- Rhys Hoskins introduced himself to the baseball world with a pair of loud home runs on Monday

at Petco Park, but the Padres' methodical sixth-inning rally spoiled a big night for the Phillies' sixth-ranked

prospect.

Jose Pirela's two-run single capped a four-run sixth, sending San Diego to a series-opening 7-4 victory. Cory

Spangenberg, who went 3-for-3, tacked on an insurance run in the seventh with his third homer in the past two

games.

"[His power] is there," said Padres manager Andy Green. "There's no doubt. We've seen it repetitively now. We've

seen it to the deepest part of this ballpark. We've seen it to the opposite field."

Hoskins put the Phillies on top in the fourth inning with his first career big league blast -- a 110 mph missile off the

facing of the second deck in left field. (The visiting dugout would greet him with a prolonged version of the silent

treatment.) For an encore, he smashed a seventh-inning shot 401 feet into the left-center field seats.

"I think it's something that, obviously, you dream about," Hoskins said. "You dream about getting here. But you

dream about hitting a home run here. I don't know. I don't really remember it, to be completely honest."

It wasn't enough for the slumping Phils, who have lost four of their last five. Starter Jerad Eickhoff had to grind

through five innings, allowing two runs. He exited with a 3-2 lead, but Ricardo Pinto allowed four in the sixth, and

the Padres 'pen made it hold up.

"It wasn't exactly how you draw it up," Eickhoff said. "I got the first hitter out in the first inning and that was it.

That was frustrating, and not being able to go deep in the game knowing these bullpen guys have been kind of

taxed a little bit. For me that was the most frustrating thing."

Kirby Yates returned from the family leave list to pitch a perfect eighth inning, and Brad Hand, whose ERA

dropped to 2.19, escaped some trouble in the ninth to seal the victory. He's pitched scoreless ball in 25 of his last 26

outings.

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MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

Fielder's choice: Spangenberg opened the sixth with a walk, before Matt Szczur hit a slow chopper to short,

where Freddy Galvis would've had an easy out at first. He went to second instead, where Spangenberg slid safely

ahead of the throw. The play opened the floodgates. Hedges followed with a game-tying single, and Carlos

Asuaje gave the Padres the lead later in the frame with a sacrifice fly.

"One through nine, all of us don't give up until the end of the game," Spangenberg said. "We're a competitive team.

I like where we're at right now."

Game-tying Odubel: Odubel Herrera extended his big league-best hitting streak to 17 games with a double in the

third. It is the Phillies' longest since Raul Ibanez's 18-game hitting streak in 2010. It tied the game at 1 and could

have given the Phillies the lead, if not for a perfectly executed relay and tag by the Padres. Asuaje's throw from

second was on the money, and Hedges only barely applied the swipe tag to the back of Galvis' head.

QUOTABLE

"Well, I was running back to the dugout and Tom [Joseph] was walking up and he kind of stone-colded me. I

immediately knew it was coming. I started laughing. I went into the fake handshakes. That was fun. Something I'll

remember." - Hoskins, on getting the silent treatment following his fourth-inning homer

SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS

Spangenberg already has more home runs in the second half of the season (six) than he did in the entire first half

(five). He's merely keeping up with a career trend. Spangenberg is a notorious second-half hitter. He's batting

.306/.370/.507 in games played after the All-Star break, compared with a .251/.297/.355 career mark in the first

half.

WHAT'S NEXT

Phillies: Phillies right-hander Mark Leiter Jr. (1-2, 4.08 ERA) starts the second game of the three-game series

against the Padres on Tuesday night at Petco Park. Leiter replaces Vince Velasquez, who is on the disabled list

with a middle finger injury. Leiter got the nod because he pitched well in long relief in his last two appearances,

striking out 16 and allowing one run in 9 1/3 innings.

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Padres: Since the Padres asked Dinelson Lamet to increase his slider usage last month, the rookie right-hander has

been excellent, posting a 2.31 ERA over his past four outings. Lamet will start the middle game Tuesday night

against Philadelphia with first pitch slated for 7:10 p.m. PT.

Hedges' bat starting to heat up in August

By Nathan Ruiz / MLB.com

SAN DIEGO -- After his game-tying single in the middle of the Padres' sixth-inning rally Monday, Austin

Hedges looked at third base coach Glenn Hoffman, pointed eight fingers upward and wiggled them.

"That's a Hoffy thing," Hedges said. "Anytime something good happens."

Plenty of good happened for Hedges and the Padres on Monday night, as San Diego struck for four runs in the sixth

inning of its 7-4 victory against the Phillies at Petco Park. Hedges, too, found success after ending the Padres' 10-

game road trip in an 0-for-13 rut.

After his first-inning sacrifice fly propelled San Diego to a 1-0 lead Monday, Hedges singled up the middle in the

fourth as the Padres rallied to tie the game at 2.

With runners on first and second in the sixth and his team once more down a run, he did so again, as his sinking

liner popped out of center fielder Odubel Herrera's glove and allowed Cory Spangenberg to race home.

The 2-for-3 performance was Hedges' fourth multi-hit game of August, matching the total he put together in June

and July combined.

"Just coming off that L.A. series, wasn't feeling as good as I was before that," Hedges said. "... I wasn't even really

feeling that great today at the plate, to be honest, but I just trusted the process, trusted my approach and put good

swings on pitches I wanted to hit."

Not to be understated was his work behind the plate. With the game deadlocked and the bases loaded in the fifth,

Hedges and left-hander Travis Wood met on the mound several times while Rhys Hoskins, who hit his first Major

League homer an inning earlier and would hit his second two innings later, stood in the box.

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After several discussions, Wood and Hedges got Hoskins to fly out to center on a cutter, ending the threat and

preserving the tie. Wood, acquired a week before last month's Trade Deadline, was making only his third start with

Hedges as his catcher, but he's quickly learned to appreciate the 24-year-old's efforts.

"He puts in a lot of work and time to know his pitcher, know how the game plan's going to go," Wood said. "Hats

off to him for doing his homework."

Manager Andy Green also valued Hedges' impact on both sides of the game.

"The first thing I think about with him is what he does behind the plate and how he gets the pitchers through the

game," Green said. "He does that very, very well. It's nice to see him hit the ball into center field a couple times. He

had good at-bats all day long. I'm excited to see that from him."

Lamet looks to continue second-half roll

By Nathan Ruiz / MLB.com

Rookie right-hander Dinelson Lamet will try to extend the longest run of success in his career when he and the

Padres face Mark Leiter Jr. and the Phillies on Tuesday at Petco Park.

Lamet has allowed six earned runs across 23 1/3 innings in his past four starts while not giving up any home runs.

That's good for a 2.31 ERA, his lowest in any four-start stretch this season. That success is tied to increased slider

usage. He's thrown it 42.5 percent of the time in his past four starts, up from 36 percent in his first nine outings. In

Lamet's past two starts, he's thrown his slider more than he had in any of his previous 11 starts.

That might not be the key to the success against Philadelphia, though. The Phillies have the fourth-highest average

against sliders of any team in the National League at .221. Opponents are batting .126 against Lamet's slider, the

fifth-lowest of any pitcher who has thrown at least 100 sliders.

Like Lamet, Leiter has experienced success of late. He'll make his fourth start in 20 appearances, pitching in place

of the injured Vince Velasquez (right middle finger). In his past two relief outings, Leiter struck out 16 in 9 1/3

innings, allowing only one run.

Odubel Herrera had two hits on Monday against the Padres, extending his career-best hitting streak to 17 games this

season.

Things to know about this game:

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• Since the All-Star break, Lamet has held opponents to three hits, all singles, in 50 at-bats with two strikes. His

.060 two-strike batting average and slugging percentage against are both the lowest of any starter in the second half.

• Leiter has generated a 55.2 percent miss rate with two strikes in the second half, highest of any reliever who's

thrown at 25 two-strike pitches. More often than not, he's gone to his breaking stuff in those situations, having

thrown offspeed pitches 72.3 percent of the time with two strikes since the All-Star break.

• Padres reliever Kirby Yates returned from the family leave list before Monday's game. Right-hander Jose Valdez

was optioned to Triple-A El Paso

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Center: When I look at Green, I see leadership Padres astutely extended manager's contract

By Bill Center / San Diego Padres

For almost two seasons, I've had a chance to watch Andy Green lead.

I am impressed. I was happy to see the Padres extend his managerial contract through the 2021 season. Was I

surprised? Not in the slightest.

I've been professionally watching baseball managers for five decades and associated directly with some since 1983.

I've been around great managers and some dodgy ones.

Long ago, I reached the conclusion that borderline Major League ballplayers often make the best managers. One,

they've sat and watched a lot of games from the dugout -- and learned. Two, they know what the last guy on the

bench feels.

Enter Green.

Although he seldom talks about himself, he can joke about his .200 career batting average -- knowing how hard he

worked to get it. And while getting it, he learned a lot about the game and the players -- good and bad -- playing it.

Green has not been dealt close to the best of hands thus far with the Padres. But his players go hard on his behalf,

even when behind in games where they are outclassed.

That shows me something. He has their backs and they have his. And the Padres are improving.

Green the manager is equal parts passionate, knowledgeable and caring -- inside and outside the clubhouse.

Earlier this week, for example, Green broke with convention when he brought closer Brad Hand into a game in

Cincinnati well ahead of a save situation and in the middle of a count. The result didn't go well, and Green was

second-guessed in questions during his postgame news conference.

Instead of blowing up -- which I'm sure the likes of Dick Williams and Jack McKeon would have done -- Green

went meticulously point-by-point through his thought process with the media. I watched it from afar on television.

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But I learned something about how the man addresses criticism and how he has the inner strength to work outside

the box in stressful situations.

I could be wrong, but I think Green knows how to manage people, his team and the game.

I think the Padres got it right in extending Green. Hopefully, it will work for a long, long time.

NOTE WORTHY

• The Padres' bullpen was pretty well beaten up during the just-concluded 3-7 road trip to Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and

Los Angeles. Padres relievers worked 30 1/3 innings in the 10 games, allowing 32 runs on 35 hits and 19 walks

with 21 strikeouts. That's a 9.50 earned run average.

• Manuel Margot finished the road trip on a four-game hitting streak, going 6-for-17 with a double, three solo

homers and four runs scored.

• Cory Spangenberg is 7-for-20 in a five-game hitting streak with a double, a triple, two homers, five RBIs and

three runs scored.

• Several middle infielders are struggling. Dusty Coleman is 1-for-11 in his last four games with seven strikeouts.

Allen Córdoba is 5-for-59 (0.85) since June 13 with 19 strikeouts.

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Spangenberg, Padres beat Phillies 7-4; Hoskins homers twice (Aug 14, 2017) FOX Sports

SAN DIEGO (AP) Cory Spangenberg had an impressive game in the San Diego Padres’ 7-4 victory against the Philadelphia Phillies on Monday night, with three hits, including a homer, and three runs scored.

His most important contribution, though, might have been racing to second base to beat the throw from shortstop Freddy Galvis on Matt Szczur’s grounder in the sixth inning. Spangenberg then scored the tying run on Austin Hedges’ single during a four-run rally that gave San Diego the lead for good.

”I think the biggest thing he did was fly into second base to beat that fielder’s choice and keep that inning extended,” manager Andy Green said. ”It was great hustle.”

It came a half inning after Spangenberg, the third baseman, committed a fielding error trying to backhand a grounder that allowed the Phillies to take a 3-2 lead.

”He’s done so many good things for us, with so much energy and consistently good play. That’s selfless team baseball. He got the job done, got to second base,” Green said.

”You always want to try to beat out the throw at second so you have runners on first and second,” Spangenberg said. ”It just happened to be a big part of the game.”

Jose Pirela, Austin Hedges and Carlos Asuaje each had two hits for the Padres, and Hedges also drove in two runs.

Philadelphia rookie Rhys Hoskins hit his first two major league home runs, a leadoff shot in the fourth off starter Travis Wood and a solo shot in the seventh off Craig Stammen. Hoskins made his debut Thursday after his contract was selected from Triple-A Lehigh Valley. He got his first hit and RBI on Sunday against the New York Mets.

He got the silent treatment from teammates after his first homer, before they mobbed him in one corner of the dugout.

”I was running back to the dugout and Tom (Tommy Joseph, the next batter) was walking up and he kind of stone-colded me, and I immediately knew it was coming, started laughing, and went into the fake handshakes. It was fun, it’s something I’ll remember,” Hoskins said.

He got both of the balls.

”I was definitely hoping for at least the first one, but the fact we were able to get both of them was pretty cool,” Hoskins said.

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”It’s something that, obviously you dream about. You dream about getting here, then you dream about hitting a home run here. I don’t really remember it to be completely honest. I think it hit me as soon as I got in the dugout.”

Hoskins’ home runs went 402 and 400 feet, respectively.

”There was no doubt about both of them,” manager Pete Mackanin said. ”We’ve got to string our hits together in one inning. We had some other chances to win, to score runs and we didn’t capitalize.”

The teams swapped the lead three times, with the Padres going ahead for good in the sixth on three hits and two walks off Ricardo Pinto (1-1). With the Phillies leading 3-2, Hedges hit an RBI single and Asuaje had a sacrifice fly to give San Diego the lead. Pirela followed with a two-run single.

Jose Torres (7-3) got the last out of the sixth and Brad Hand pitched the ninth for his 10th save.

Hedges also hit a sacrifice fly in the second, and the Padres scored on a throwing error by third baseman Maikel Franco in the fourth.

With runners on first and third and two outs in the third, Philadelphia’s Odubel Herrera doubled in one run before Galvis was thrown out trying to score from first.

Both starters went five innings. Wood allowed two runs and six hits while striking out three and walking two. He got out of a bases-loaded jam in the fifth to keep the score tied at 2.

Philadelphia’s Jerad Eickhoff gave up two runs, one earned, struck out five and walked three. He retired the leadoff batter in an inning only once.

”It wasn’t exactly how you draw it up. I got the first hitter out in the first inning and that was it,” Eickhoff said. ”It was continuously just a going in grind mode after the first inning. So, that was frustrating, and not being able to go deep into the game, knowing these bullpen guys have kind of been taxed a little bit, that was for me the most frustrating thing.”

UP NEXT

Phillies: RHP Mark Leiter Jr. (1-2, 4.08 ERA) is scheduled to make his fourth start and 20th appearance.

Padres: Rookie RHP Dinelson Lamet (6-4, 5.00) has won three of his last four starts since July 23 and is 3-1 in five home starts.

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Pirela, Padres beat Phillies 7-4; Hoskins homers twice AP SAN DIEGO -- Cory Spangenberg had an impressive game in the San Diego Padres' 7-4 victory against

the Philadelphia Phillies on Monday night, with three hits, including a homer, and three runs scored.

His most important contribution, though, might have been racing to second base to beat the throw from

shortstop Freddy Galvis on Matt Szczur's grounder in the sixth inning. Spangenberg then scored the tying

run on Austin Hedges' single during a four-run rally that gave San Diego the lead for good.

"I think the biggest thing he did was fly into second base to beat that fielder's choice and keep that inning

extended," manager Andy Green said. "It was great hustle."

It came a half inning after Spangenberg, the third baseman, committed a fielding error trying to

backhand a grounder that allowed the Phillies to take a 3-2 lead.

"He's done so many good things for us, with so much energy and consistently good play. That's selfless

team baseball. He got the job done, got to second base," Green said.

"You always want to try to beat out the throw at second so you have runners on first and second,"

Spangenberg said. "It just happened to be a big part of the game."

Jose Pirela, Austin Hedges and Carlos Asuaje each had two hits for the Padres, and Hedges also drove in

two runs.

Philadelphia rookie Rhys Hoskins hit his first two major league home runs, a leadoff shot in the fourth off

starter Travis Wood and a solo shot in the seventh off Craig Stammen. Hoskins made his debut Thursday

after his contract was selected from Triple-A Lehigh Valley. He got his first hit and RBI on Sunday

against the New York Mets.

He got the silent treatment from teammates after his first homer, before they mobbed him in one corner

of the dugout.

"I was running back to the dugout and Tom (Tommy Joseph, the next batter) was walking up and he kind

of stone-colded me, and I immediately knew it was coming, started laughing, and went into the fake

handshakes. It was fun, it's something I'll remember," Hoskins said.

He got both of the balls.

"I was definitely hoping for at least the first one, but the fact we were able to get both of them was pretty

cool," Hoskins said.

21

"It's something that, obviously you dream about. You dream about getting here, then you dream about

hitting a home run here. I don't really remember it to be completely honest. I think it hit me as soon as I

got in the dugout."

Hoskins' home runs went 402 and 400 feet, respectively.

"There was no doubt about both of them," manager Pete Mackanin said. "We've got to string our hits

together in one inning. We had some other chances to win, to score runs and we didn't capitalize."

The teams swapped the lead three times, with the Padres going ahead for good in the sixth on three hits

and two walks off Ricardo Pinto (1-1). With the Phillies leading 3-2, Hedges hit an RBI single and Asuaje

had a sacrifice fly to give San Diego the lead. Pirela followed with a two-run single.

Jose Torres (7-3) got the last out of the sixth and Brad Hand pitched the ninth for his 10th save.

Hedges also hit a sacrifice fly in the second, and the Padres scored on a throwing error by third

baseman Maikel Franco in the fourth.

With runners on first and third and two outs in the third, Philadelphia's Odubel Herrera doubled in one

run before Galvis was thrown out trying to score from first.

Both starters went five innings. Wood allowed two runs and six hits while striking out three and walking

two. He got out of a bases-loaded jam in the fifth to keep the score tied at 2.

Philadelphia's Jerad Eickhoff gave up two runs, one earned, struck out five and walked three. He retired

the leadoff batter in an inning only once.

"It wasn't exactly how you draw it up. I got the first hitter out in the first inning and that was it," Eickhoff

said. "It was continuously just a going in grind mode after the first inning. So, that was frustrating, and

not being able to go deep into the game, knowing these bullpen guys have kind of been taxed a little bit,

that was for me the most frustrating thing."

UP NEXT

Phillies: RHP Mark Leiter Jr. (1-2, 4.08 ERA) is scheduled to make his fourth start and 20th appearance.

Padres: Rookie RHP Dinelson Lamet (6-4, 5.00) has won three of his last four starts since July 23 and is 3-

1 in five home starts.