History shows fast start key to Padres' success

Bill Center, longtime sportswriter for U-T San Diego, is an employee of the Padres.
History shows that a good start is crucial to the Padres' success.
The last Padres team to get off to a fast start was the 2010 edition that won 90 games and missed out on a playoff spot on the final day of the season. San Diego was 15-8 after 23 games in 2010.
The Padres team that won the National League pennant in 1998 got off to a 14-3 start and were 21-9 after 30 games en route to a franchise-record 98-win season. The other Padres team to win the pennant got off to a 21-14 start in 1984.
But the recent Padres have annually stumbled out of the gate.
The Padres were 9-15 after 24 games last year and got off to a 7-15 start the previous season. The closest they've come to a solid start since 2010 was 11-12 in '15.
• Thursday marked the Padres' fourth straight loss on Opening Day. Overall, San Diego is 21-29 on Opening Day and 13-11 in season openers played at home. The Padres are now 25-25 in home openers since defeating Houston, 2-1, in the very first game of the franchise's history on Aug. 8, 1969, at San Diego Stadium.
• The Padres entered the 2018 season riding a streak of 127 straight wins at Petco Park when leading entering the ninth inning. The streak is the longest in the Major Leagues and dates back to July 2014.
• Third baseman Chase Headley drew a second-inning walk Thursday to become the first Padre to reach base in 2018. Left fielder Jose Pirela got the season's first hit with a fourth-inning single. Shortstop Freddy Galvis drove in the season's first run and had the first two-hit game of 2018. Matt Szczur stole the first base of the season and scored the first run as a pinch-runner.
• The Opening Day crowd of 44,649 was the ninth largest in the history of Petco Park, which was hosting its 15th home opener.
• Right-handed reliever Adam Cimber suffered the loss Thursday in his Major League debut. Cimber was the first Padre to make his Major League debut this season. Left-handed starter Joey Lucchesi will be the second to make his Major League debut Friday night when he starts the season's second game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Petco Park.