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Diamondbacks fall to Padres, 5-1
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Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Doug Slaten, left, falls to the ground after trying to tag out San Diego Padres's Brian Giles at third in the eighth inning of a baseball game Friday, July 4, 2008, in Phoenix. Giles was safe at third following an error by Diamondbacks Conor Jackson.
The Associated Press
No grand finale in this one. A second straight late-inning deficit couldn’t be overcome as the Diamondbacks fell 5-1 to the Padres in front of a sellout crowd of 49,110 on Independence Day at Chase Field.
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The Diamondbacks rallied from five runs down on Thursday to beat Milwaukee, but could muster no such rally against San Diego.
“It sure didn’t didn’t look like we were rolling off the emotion of (Thursday),” Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin said.
The loss drops Arizona to under .500 again (43-44) and narrows the division lead to a half-game over the Dodgers. It also saps any positive feelings after the remarkable comeback the day before.
“We fail to sustain any momentum,” starter Dan Haren said. “We win a huge game (Thursday) and we’re dead (Friday). The inability to sustain momentum has really been it for us. Everybody thinks that will be the game to turn us around, but it hasn’t been the case so far.”
Cha Seung Baek threw six shutout innings, no-hitting the Diamondbacks for 5 2/3 before a double by Stephen Drew. Justin Upton followed with a single, but Drew was thrown out at home by Chase Headley.
Baek struggled mightily in his previous two starts, but handcuffed the Diamondbacks all night.
“He knows what he’s doing, this ain’t his first rodeo,” Orlando Hudson said. “He did a hell of a job tonight.”
Haren continued his impressive run on the mound, allowing two earned runs in seven innings, but the offense never gave him support and a leaky bullpen let the game get out of hand late.
Haren drops to 8-5 despite an ERA of 2.83 that ranks among the National League leaders.
“We just don’t give him much run support,” Melvin said.
Turning point: Chase Headley threw Stephen Drew out at home to preserve a 2-0 sixth inning lead.
Stat of the game: Mark Reynolds struck out twice on Friday and has whiffed 102 times this season. He is on pace to strike out 190 times this season, nine short of the single-season record held by Ryan Howard.
Unsung hero: Orlando Hudson went 1-for-3 with a double and the lone run scored for Arizona.
Watch out: Justin Upton and Chris Young nearly collided chasing down a fly ball in the seventh. Upton made the catch, but their legs entangled and Young was sent sprawling to the ground, landing next to the right field wall.
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