Rea pitches 4 perfect innings in return to San Antonio

Bill Center, longtime sportswriter for U-T San Diego, is an employee of the Padres.

Right-handed starter Colin Rea came off the disabled list with Double-A San Antonio on Saturday night and threw four perfect innings in the Missions 4-1 win over Corpus Christi.

Rea, 24, had been on the disabled list since May 18 with back spasms. He retired all 12 hitters he faced with five strikeouts. He threw 46 pitches with 32 going for strikes. The outing lowered Rea's earned run average to 1.29.

"My back feels fine and the rest of my body feels strong," said Rea. "I just wanted to feel right and have my mechanics feel good and have the rest of my body just kind of stay in control," said the 6-foot-5, 220-pounder who was the Padres 12th-round pick in the 2011 draft.

"I was really focusing on throwing strikes and getting ahead in the count. I was happy with the way the ball was coming out.

Right-hander Stephen Kohlscheen (1-0, 4.91 ERA) followed Rea and allowed a run on two hits with a strikeout over three innings to get the win for the 27-33 Missions. Right-hander Michael Dimock (2.25 ERA) had a strikeout in a perfect inning. Right-hander Tayron Guerrero (2.70 ERA) issued two walks with a strikeout in a hitless inning to get his fourth save.

Left fielder Alberth Martinez (.269) was 2-for-3 with two RBIs. Third baseman Duanel Jones (.333) had a double in four at-bats for a RBI and a run scored.

To activate Rea, the Missions released right-handed pitcher Luis De La Cruz.

The Padres added a minor league pitcher Saturday. They acquired left-hander Brad Wieck, 23, from the Mets to complete the spring training trade that sent left-handed reliever Alex Torres to the Mets. The Padres also got right-handed reliever Cory Mazzoni in the trade. Wieck will join low Single-A Fort Wayne.

In one other piece of pitching news, Padres left-hander Cory Luebke started for Single-A Lake Elsinore and worked a perfect inning (getting three ground outs) in his first outing on the mound since 2012. Luebke had "Tommy John" elbow reconstruction surgeries in 2012 and 2014. He threw 14 pitches with eight strikes.

Around the farm

TRIPLE-A EL PASO (30-32): CHIHUAHUAS 8, Sacramento 7 (11 innings) - SS Ramiro Pena (.330) drove in the winning run with a walk-off single in the 11th. It was the fourth hit in the game for Pena, who was 4-for-6 with two runs scored in addition to the game-winning RBI. 3B Brett Wallace (.300) was 2-for-4 with his sixth homer and two runs scored. 2B Jedd Gyorko (.125) hit a two-run homer in his second start for the Chihuahuas since being optioned by the Padres. C Rocky Gale (.318) was 3-for-4 with a double and two RBIs. 1B Tommy Medica (.249) was 2-for-4 with a double. Starting RHP Daniel McCutchen (5.00 ERA) allowed four runs (three earned) on five hits with four strikeouts in four innings. RHP Marcos Mateo (2-0, 2.00 ERA) allowed a hit and a walk with three strikeouts in three scoreless innings to get the win.

HIGH SINGLE-A LAKE ELSINORE (27-35): Lancaster 13, STORM 7 - RHP Kyle Lloyd (3-4, 5.31 ERA) followed Luebke and allowed 10 runs (nine earned) on 12 hits in 3 1/3 innings. LF Donavan Tate (.255) was 3-for-4 with a double, a RBI and three runs scored, although he also committed two throwing errors. DH (SS) Jose Rondon (.300) was 2-for-5 with two RBIs. C Ryan Miller (.324) was 2-for-5 with a double and a RBI. SS River Stevens (.301) was 2-for-4. 3B Gabriel Quintana (.251) was 2-for-5.

LOW SINGLE-A FORT WAYNE (26-34: The TinCaps game against Clinton at Fort Wayne was rained out and will be made up as part of a doubleheader Sunday with two seven-inning games.

DOMINICAN SUMMER LEAGUE PADRES (8-5): Orioles 8, PADRES 3 - RF Luis Asuncion (.222) was 2-for-3 with a two-run homer. Starting RHP Joel Linares (3.46 ERA) allowed two runs on two hits and three walks with six strikeouts in four innings. RHP Pedro Beltran (0-1, 5.87 ERA) allowed five runs (four earned) on five hits and three walks with two strikeouts in 2 2/3 innings to take the loss.