Rockies pile up 18 hits in rout of Padres
DENVER -- Tom Murphy had his first three Major League hits, including a home run, and Nolan Arenado had two hits and knocked in two runs Saturday night, as the Rockies got off to a fast start on their way to a 10-2 victory over the Padres at Coors Field.
Arenado knocked in runs Nos. 113 and 114 with RBI singles in the first two innings off Padres pitcher Robbie Erlin, who was making his first big league start of the season. Erlin allowed seven runs on nine hits in three-plus innings.
Colorado pitcher Yohan Flande left after 2 2/3 innings when he was struck on the left knee by a line drive. He was diagnosed with a contusion of the left patellar tendon. Reliever Christian Bergman followed by allowing one run in 3 1/3 innings to get the victory. He even got a hit and walked.
• Flande takes liner to knee, exits game
"That's what he's been real good at, coming in in those types of situations and putting up zeros," Rockies manager Walt Weiss said of Bergman. "That was big for us. You lose your starter that early in the game, that's usually a tough situation. But Bergy came in and settled things down."
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
It mattered to Murphy: Murphy, the Rockies catcher, notched his first career hit and RBI, capping a four-run first-inning rally with a run-scoring, two-out single to left. The first five Rockies to the plate reached base on four singles and a walk before DJ LeMahieu grounded into a double play. Murphy's single plated Carlos Gonzalez from third to give the Rockies a 4-0 lead. Murphy connected for his second hit in the fifth inning, driving a leadoff homer over the center-field fence, and also singled in the eighth. More >
Video: SD@COL: Murphy launches first career homer
"That's something I'll never forget for sure," Murphy said of the homer. "He threw me three sliders in a row. The third one I sat on it and he just left it up with 0-2. I thought off the bat it was [going out]. I knew I hit it pretty well."
Video: SD@COL: Padres bullpen searches bushes for home run
Where there's a Wil: Wil Myers had his second multi-hit game in as many nights, as he had a double and two singles. It was his third multi-hit game since coming off the disabled list on Sept. 4. His double in the third inning off Flande was his 13th of the season, one shy of what he had last season with the Rays.
Rock-solid relief: Bergman set the tone for a big night from the Rockies' bullpen, stifling the Padres with men on second and third, then throwing three more innings of one-run ball. He was followed by Gonzalez Germen, Simon Castro, and Jason Gurka, and the four relievers combined for 6 1/3 innings and allowed one run on three hits a walk while striking out 10.
Video: SD@COL: Rockies bullpen combines for 10 strikeouts
"For the most part the success of the bullpen parallels our success here as of late," Weiss said. "Our bullpen is really showing up well here lately. It's an extremely young bullpen, so it's good to see those guys perform."
Leaning right: It's no secret that Padres' shortstop Jedd Gyorko is a pull hitter. His first 14 home runs of the season have either gone to left field or straight-away-center field. But his home run to right field in the sixth inning was his first opposite-field shot. He has hit 13 of his 15 home runs since July 3.
"He's close to taking another step. That ability to hit the ball to all fields even with power will set him apart a little bit," said Padres interim manager Pat Murphy. "That was a nice thing to see. He's a great competitor and has a great mind for the game."
QUOTABLE
"A bright spot for us today was seeing Casey get out there and pitch and throwing that breaking ball the way he did. It was impressive. He's still not where he used to be but I think he's approaching it. I think he's gaining confidence." -- Murphy on Casey Kelly pitching in the big leagues for the first time since 2012. Kelly allowed one run over two innings of relief.
"I was kind of upset I didn't get the bunts down. After that I knew I was slashing. I just wanted to make sure I did something productive. I wanted to stay inside the ball and put the ball in play. I just went up the middle. Myers was saying at first that's the best at-bat he's seen from a pitcher. I was telling him I was hitting them off my thumb. Whatever gets it done." -- Bergman on his fourth inning single after fouling off six pitches. It was his second career hit, and his first since June 9, 2014, snapping an 0-for-26 hitless streak
SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS
It was another slow start for the Padres. They allowed four runs in the first inning and have been outscored, 97-84, in the first frame this season. That's more runs than they've allowed in any other inning this season.
LONG ROAD BACK
Kelly allowed one run in two innings of relief for the Padres, his first appearance in the big leagues since Sept. 27, 2012. He missed all of 2013 after having Tommy John surgery and was limited to 20 1/3 innings a year ago in the Minor Leagues. He spent this past season with Double-A San Antonio, regaining his lost innings while rebuilding his endurance.
"It was good to get back out there and get the adrenaline throwing and get some work in. I don't think about my elbow at all [anymore] … it's just about executing my pitch," Kelly said.
WHAT'S NEXT
Padres: James Shields (12-6, 3.80) gets the start in the final game of the series against the Rockies at 1:10 p.m. PT. Shields has a 4.44 ERA in 16 road starts this season. This will be his fifth start of the season against the Rockies. He's 3-0 with a 5.24 ERA in those starts.
Rockies: Kyle Kendrick is 2-0 with a 3.86 ERA in three starts since returning from the DL (right-shoulder inflammation), and in his last two starts he won back-to-back games for the first time this season. Kendrick has struggled to adapt to Coors Field, posting a 2-5 record with a 6.91 ERA over 11 home starts in his first season with the Rockies.
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