Bill Center, longtime sportswriter for U-T San Diego, is an employee of the Padres.
Not many players have hit a home run into the section of seats reached by rookie Padres outfielder Franmil Reyes Tuesday night.
Reyes' drive into the second-deck seats overlooking the Padres' bullpen in left-center traveled 442 feet. I'm told only two other homers have landed in that section. What made this shot from the 6-foot-5, 275-pound rookie more impressive were the conditions. The notorious marine layer was present.
But the distance of the blast is secondary in my book.
The situation takes precedent.
Padres manager Andy Green calls them "leverage" moments. I call them "pressure situations."
The Padres were trailing by a run with two out and a runner on against a pitcher who was allowing right-handed hitters a .122 (6-for-49) success rate.
And Reyes launched a bomb -- putting the Padres on top in a game they went on to win.
The home run was Reyes' second in as many games against the Marlins and his third in six games following a 2-for-17 start to his Major League career. He is 6-for-20 over those last six games with five RBIs. He has also drawn two walks.
NOTEBOOK:
• 1B Eric Hosmer was 3-for-4 Wednesday with a double and a RBI. It was his second, three hit-game of the season (first was on April 29) and his 18th multi-hit game on the season. The season record for doubles is 49 by Tony Gwynn in 1997. Hosmer has reached base in 16 of his last 17 games.
• OF Travis Jankowski was 1-for-4 with a run scored Tuesday. He opened the game with a single off Straily, marking the seventh time this season that he has opened a game with a hit as the lead-off hitter. He has seven of the Padres' eight game-opening hits of the season. He is hitting .321 out of the lead-off slot with a double, two triples, a homer and eight walks.
• C Raffy Lopez is hitting only .170 with 24 strikeouts in 53 at-bats over 17 games since being recalled from Triple-A El Paso on May 1. But he also has eight RBIs with two home runs and two sacrifice flies. He was 1-for-3 Tuesday night with two RBIs.
• LHP Robbie Erlin's 5 2/3-inning run of scoreless relief Monday afternoon against Miami was the longest run of scoreless innings by a Padres reliever since May 25, 2008.
• 3B Christian Villanueva had a two-RBI, pinch-hit single Tuesday night. He is 5-for-21 over his six games with two doubles, two home runs and seven RBIs.
• SS Freddy Galvis' five-game hitting streak (6-foir-21 with four doubles and a home run) ended Wednesday night with a 0-for-4.