While the Marlins were only able to win one of their three games in Los Angeles against the Dodgers, three Southern Californians on the Marlins roster-- Christian Yelich, Reed Johnson and Giancarlo Stanton-- managed to put up great numbers at the plate in front of their home state fans.

The Miami Marlins just completed a three-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, posting a win on Wednesday night after losses on Monday and Tuesday. Three Southern California-born Marlins, Christian Yelich (Thousand Oaks), Reed Johnson (Riverside), and Giancarlo Stanton (Panorama City), all found success at the plate in front of their hometown fans.

In the first game of the series, Yelich went 2 for 3 with a solo home run. He described the feeling of rounding the bases in front of a Dodger Stadium crowd which he estimated contained about 150-200 people who were close to him as a "surreal feeling." After going hitless on Tuesday, Yelich rebounded on Wednesday, going 1 for 2 with an RBI on a sacrifice fly and 2 walks in a 13-3 rout of the Dodgers.

Reed Johnson, who grew up going to San Diego Padres games at Jack Murphy Stadium with his grandmother, also had a productive series against the Dodgers. On Monday night, in his lone at bat, he hit a pinch hit 2-run home run, his first homer as a Marlin. Like Yelich, he also was hitless on Tuesday, lining out in his one pinch hit at bat. As a starter on Wednesday, Johnson went 2-5 with yet another 2-run homer.

While he's known for launching monster home runs, Giancarlo Stanton actually found success at the plate against the Dodgers without leaving the yard. Instead, Stanton put together three multi-hit games in the series, including a 3-hit effort on Wednesday night, extending his career high and current Major League leading hitting streak to 16 games.

Northern California-based Marlin Casey McGehee (Soquel) will look to continue the streak of hometown success as the Marlins now head to San Francisco for a four-game series against the Giants.

If you didn't notice by the neutral FOX Sports 1 broadcasting, Cueto was throwing a complete game shutout. By the way, Cueto threw a complete game shutout.

To start off the day's double-header caused by the opposite weather we're having in San Diego right now; Johnny Cueto shut down the San Diego Padres through 9 innings. By the way, did you hear Johnny Cueto's shutout was the first to post such a low ERA in his first nine starts in like 100 years? If you didn't, that's probably because you weren't listening to the game. You would have been reminded after every strike.

Anyway, the Padres slipped back into their unproductive self, less-so than yesterdays low-scoring win. Ian Kennedy wasn't on it today, giving up 11 hits and 5 earned runs. But our offense that has been coined as "anemic" wasn't there to help the situation either. Eight strikeouts from the Friars kept this morning double-header start very simple.

EvilSammy's doggy Delilah represents all of our feelings after being
postponed a day of baseball to be treated to that nonsense.

Kennedy was left in through 6 innings regardless, with Roach to pick him up for the extra two. Most likely to avoid putting strain on the bullpen for the day. Hopefully this pays off and the Padres can adjust, having just flunked against one of the better pitchers in baseball right now. Regardless, there's more baseball to be played.

Our next game will start at 3:10 PM PST (the only timezone that matters). We'll see Tyson Ross brought in to throw against Jeff Francis, who was brought up from AAA-Louisville to fill in for the night game.

I blame everything on the heat.

TheThinGwynn harassed everybody with the most comments as usual.

Johnny Cueto dominated our Padres in game 1 of today's doubleheader as Ian Kennedy couldn't keep the Reds from crossing home plate. Hoping for better luck this afternoon as Tyson Ross gets set to close out the series in the nightcap rubber match.

Ross' last two starts have been brilliant. He's kept opponents to one run in seven innings each time. He also allowed one run in seven innings the last time he faced Cincinnati, in a victory at Great American Ballpark on August 10th of last year.

The Reds are sending Jeff Francis to the mound for the rubber game. Alfredo Simon was originally scheduled to start the series finale, but Cincy instead decided to push back his start and utilize their 26th man to allow an extra day of rest for Simon. Francis is 4-3 with a 3.33 ERA in eight starts this year at Triple-A Louisville. He's made 27 career starts against San Diego, going 7-14 with a 5.62 ERA.

The second game of the doubleheader is scheduled for 3:10 PDT. See if our Friars can get their first series victory on the road.

Here's another thread for another game. GO REDS WIN THE SERIES

Former Rockie Great Seth Smith is tearing the cover off the ball for the Padres; who saw that coming?

Remember that two week stretch when Seth Smith was a Colorado celebrity? Smith was the perfect embodiment of everything ridiculous, unlikely, and flat-out mind-blowing during the insane post-season rush of 2007. In his very first taste of Major League baseball Smith became a pinch-hitter extraordinaire, thrown into some of the highest leverage situations imaginable: late inning at bats where the game, and the Rockies' playoff hopes, hinged on his performance.

And perform he did: Smith received 8 plate appearances in September of 2007. He got a hit in five of them. He scored four runs, including a go-ahead run against the Padres in the famous game 163 (the Rockies would need three more go-ahead runs before the game was over). A kid no-one had ever heard of hit .625 in September of 2007 because it was September 2007 and the Rockies are apparently still in debt to the Baseball Gods for that.

In the ensuing years Smith had some part-time years with the Rockies, hitting pretty well but not great, defending alright, and being perfectly useful while not a star. He was eventually traded to Oakland for a reliever, and just like that, faded from the consciousness of Rockies fans. I would run across a box score or a highlight on MLB Network and think, "huh, I remember Seth Smith. I liked him." Then I might look at his stat line, and it would be so boringly average that I'd immediately forget what it was. That was Smith after 2007. Spectacularly average.

So what the hell has gotten into him this year?

Before the 2014 season the Padres traded for him, again for a reliever. A position player being traded for a reliever is the ultimate shrug of the shoulders regarding your ability. Relievers are like snacks snagged from the vending machine, and the players traded for them are like the quarters you scrounge for under the couch cushions. Low value currency to get low value meals.

But in this metaphor, Smith has turned out to be some ultra-rare 1930's specialty quarter that, instead of Washington's noggin, features FDR giving Hitler a wedgie. Because Smith has been exceptionally valuable this year. Troy Tulowitzki leads MLB in wRC+, we all know this, but guess who's second? It's not Mike Trout, Miguel Cabrera, Jose Bautista, Giancarlo Stanton or any of the other usual suspects. It's good-ol' Seth Smith.

Smith has a herculean .339/.427/.580 slash line--at Petco freaking Park-- which grades out to a 182 wRC+. That would have put him second only to Miguel Cabrera last season. His 1.5 WAR is more than a win better than any other position player on his team.

Therein lies the rub with this Padres team. It's like they're stacked with Seth Smiths (Seths Smith?), circa 2008-2013. Capable, but boringly, horrendously average. They have a couple good to great performers--Smith, Andrew Cashner, and, uh, how about Ian Kennedy?--but for the most part they are the definition of "whatever."

The Padres are 29th in batting WAR and 14th in Pitching WAR. Their blah 19-22 record perfectly reflects their abilities; they are the definition of a "three games below .500 team." If you're a good team, you should beat the Padres. Sure, you might run into Andrew Cashner and Ian Kennedy and drop a series. So they're a pesky team, but beatable.

Unless Seth Smith comes to bat in the late innings with the game close. Then you best beware.

Hitting Stats

Pitching Stats

Haha, Kevin Quackenbush.

Friday, May 16, 6:40 PM MDT: Eric Stults vs. Jorge De La Rosa

Saturday, May 17, 6:10 PM MDT: Robbie Erlin vs. Jordan Lyles

Sunday, May 18, 2:10 PM MDT: Andrew Cashner vs. Juan Nicasio

The B-squad's B-squad fell prey to the arm of Tyson Ross, and a makeshift pitching mashup got pounded.

The Joe Nuxhall Memorial Honorary Star of the Game

Kevin Quackenbush gets tonight's JNMHSotG, because that kind of name deserves every single ounce of recognition it can get.  The perfect Bottom of the 9th you pitched for your San Diego Padres was all well and good, Kevin Quackenbush, but know that you're taking home the most prized trophy in all the land not for your pitching, but because you're named Kevin Quackenbush, Kevin Quackenbush.

Honorable Mentions are due to:  Billy Hamilton, who walked once and stole a pair of bags; Chris Heisey, who a hit (a hit!) and a pair of walks; and Todd Frazier, who walked and singled, stretching his career-best hitting streak to 14 games.

Key Plays

• The Top of the 1st inning had an aura about it that suggested the second game of today's doubleheader may well go as swimmingly as the first.  Hamilton took a leadoff walk and promptly stole both 2B and 3B, and after Heisey walked behind him, Hamilton scored on a slow grounder hit to the SS by Brandon Phillips.  Unfortunately, that was the peak of the Reds' offensive evening.  Reds led, 1-0.
• Through the first 1.2 innings, Jeff Francis appeared to have channeled the stuff that led him to a Top 10 finish in the 2007 Cy Young Award voting.  He struck out three of the first five Padres he faced, but was then promptly touched up for a single by Cameron Maybin and a following laser-dinger from Rene Rivera.  Reds trailed, 2-1.
• The Padres added another run off Francis in the Top of the 3rd, as former Red Chris Denorfia doubled off the wall in RF before scoring on a single from Chase Headley.  Reds trailed, 3-1.
• Logan Ondrusek took over for Francis for the Top of the 6th and promptly did what Logan Ondrusek does:  allow baserunners.  Surprisingly, it wasn't allowing hits that was the problem this time (he's allowed 16.4 H/9 in 2014), it was allowing walks that got him (he's only allowed 1.9 BB/9 so far).  Whatever.  WHIP is WHIP is WHIP, and Logan's ghostriding his to the moon.  Dude walked the bases loaded before being pulled for Sean Marshall, and after a slapped single from former Red Yonder Alonso scored one, the jam was avoided.  Reds trailed, 4-1.
• Marshall got tapped for a solo dinger from Everth Cabrera in the Top of the 7th, and Alonso smoked the first dinger of his season off Sam LeCure in the Top of the 8th to wrap the scoring.  Reds lose, 6-1.

More from Red Reporter

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• Johnny Cueto magnificent again. CIN 5, SDP 0.
• Reds vs. Padres, Games 2/3: Preview/Prediction Thread
• Famers' Only: Lancaster Delenda Est
• Reds vs. Padres, Game 2: Preview/Prediction Thread

San Diego finally grabs their first road series win, splitting the double-header and leaving Cincinnati 2 for 3.

Just like I said they would; the Padres managed to make their adjustments and (batting against a much less scary pitcher) tore up the Reds to end the entire day of baseball with a victory. With the combination of a killer performance from Tyson Ross and the oh-so inconsistent guest appearance of run support, the Pads played like we could only ever hope.

The Reds started early again, scoring in the bottom of the 1st with a lame little infield-RBI. That ended up being all they wanted to do for the remainder of the game, and were promptly shut out for 8 more frames. Rene Rivera answered very quickly in the second with a 2-out 2-run blast into the stands. He wasn't alone on the homer train; with Yonder Alonso and Everth Cabrera smacking one solo shot a piece into the soggy right and left field seats, both finally tallying their very first HR's of the season.

Rivera, Alonso, and Cabrera going yard, displaying their offensive potential we've been craving.

Chase Headley snuck in an RBI double in the third, and Alonso piled on a run in the 6th before his home run in the 8th. These are names that Padre fans almost used to dread seeing walk up to the plate in RISP situations, but have slowly started inducing something other than punch marks in the walls from the fans. In the past week Yonder has given us 9 hits and 3 RBI's, hitting for a .450 average. Meanwhile, Headley has thrown up 4 hits for 5 RBI's and a .235 average. It's something.

Alonso and Headley both peppering balls into the right spots, their pull-hitting isn't the only thing getting the job done.

But the Padres didn't need much when you've got Ross throwing for 7 innings, only giving up 3 hits and 1 earned run and striking out 8. Lines like that are almost getting monotonous, as opposing teams anticipate a low-scoring series any time the Padres pitching comes into town. What they don't expect a rag-tag group of hitters in droughts playing batting practice and collecting home runs.

Alonso smells something's up.

What a bunch of dorks.

The Friars have now won 6 of their last 10 games, putting us 2 games behind the smelly Dodgers and 7 games out of first. Our road record is creeping towards an even score, and we'll be heading back west to Colorado to truly test if our bats are ready to come back alive.

The game starts at 5:40 PM tomorrow, but I'll be at California Adventure all day.

I'll wear a Padres hat.

abara somehow managed to out-talk TheThinGwynn today, but TTG still racked up the most recs. Boosting numbers with fake accounts, anybody?

EvilSammy's other doggy was way more stoked about today's game.

Two of the five best pitchers in the NL in 2014 were in the news on Thursday for different reasons.

Giants starting pitcher Tim Hudson will not make his next scheduled start due to a hip strain, the team announced via Twitter on Thursday. Yusmeiro Petit will start on Friday in place of Hudson, whose condition isn't serious enough at this point to warrant a trip to the disabled list, according to CSN Bay Area's Andrew Baggarly.

Hudson pitched through the issue last Sunday against the Dodgers, allowing two runs on eight hits in six innings while walking a batter for the second consecutive game, the first time he'd done that all year. Skipping the 38-year-old right-hander's spot in the rotation is no small deal; Hudson is the best pitcher in the National League at limiting walks and owns a 2.09 ERA through 60⅓ innings of work.

Still, his replacement is no slouch. Petit has 26 strikeouts and has walked only seven batters in 26 innings of work and was brilliant in his other emergency-start situation, tossing six scoreless innings against the Padres on April 29.

The Giants are normally one of the more fortunate teams in the league as far as health of their starting pitchers is concerned, but they've dealt with a bit of bad luck in that area so far this season. Hudson is the second Giants pitcher to miss a start in the early going, joining Matt Cain, who recently spent a couple of weeks on the disabled list after cutting himself while making a sandwich.

Cueto makes history

Johnny Cueto struck out eight and allowed only three hits and two walks in a complete-game shutout against the Padres in the Reds' 5-0 victory on Wednesday in Game 1 of a doubleheader. Cueto became the first pitcher in 105 years to begin a season with nine consecutive starts in which he lasted seven or more innings while allowing two or fewer runs.

The last pitcher to open a campaign with eight starts of at least seven innings with two or fewer runs allowed was Harry Krause of the Philadelphia A's in 1909.

Cueto has three complete games already this season and is averaging eight innings per start. He has not allowed more than five hits in any of his outings and leads the NL in ERA, complete games, shutouts, WHIP and hits per nine innings.

Mets pitchers end hitless streak

Last Sept. 25, Daisuke Matsuzaka reached on an infield single in the seventh inning of the Mets' 1-0 win over the Reds. That was the last time a Mets pitcher got a hit ... until Thursday:

Jacob deGrom line single to center field. Snaps 0-for-64 drought for Mets pitchers, tied for second-longest in MLB history.

— Adam Rubin (@AdamRubinESPN) May 16, 2014

The hit was one of only three for the Mets' offense, which spoiled a solid performance from deGrom in his first big league start. The 25-year-old rookie allowed only a run on four hits while striking out six batters in seven innings in his team's 1-0 loss to the Yankees.

Thursday scores

Reds 5, Padres 0
Padres 6, Reds 1
Twins 4, Red Sox 3 (10 innings)
Brewers 4, Pirates 3
Cardinals 5, Cubs 3
Blue Jays 4, Indians 2
Yankees 1, Mets 0
Orioles 2, Royals 1
Angels 6, Rays 5
Giants 6, Marlins 4

Miami Marlins starter Jose Fernandez has decided to undergo Tommy John surgery on Friday in Los Angeles. Fernandez received news of a "significant tear" on Tuesday.

After discussing every possibility with the Marlins organization and his family in Miami, starter Jose Fernandez will undergo Tommy John surgery Friday in Los Angeles. Jon Heyman of CBS Sports first reported Fernandez's decision.

Marlins star Jose Fernandez scheduled to have tommy john surgery tomorrow morning in LA. http://t.co/vPLyZTJn0j

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) May 15, 2014

Fernandez first found out that he had a "significant tear" on Tuesday. With the help of Miami's front office and his family, Fernandez came to the conclusion that season-ending Tommy John surgery would be the best option to get him back on a mound as quickly as possible. The recovery time for Tommy John is 12-18 months.

President of Baseball Operations Michael Hill described the surgery as "inevitable," but Fernandez first wanted to weigh all of his options and determine if extended rehab could be a viable solution. The reigning National League Rookie of The Year got multiple opinions before deciding to have the procedure on the West Coast.

Fernandez, 4-2 with a 2.44 ERA, felt pain in his last start against the Padres in San Diego, and went for an MRI, when the tear was discovered.

Noted surgeon Neal ElAttrache will perform the surgery.

Since aside from the tear Fernandez's arm appears to be "pristine," he should be able to be successful coming off of a lengthy rehab assignment.

The National League Pitcher of the Month for the month of April, Fernandez anchored the Marlins' rotation and was dominant in almost every start. It was essential that Fernandez make a quick decision in order to get him back on the mound as soon as possible.

Anthony DeSclafani made his major league debut Wednesday in place of Fernandez, and Miami signed veteran left-hander Randy Wolf to ensure the starting rotation remains strong despite losing its leader.

"Like all of us, we're fans of the game," Hill said. "So we appreciate and respect the game, and have a passion. When you see somebody who embodies that passion, you want to root for him. Jose enjoys what he's doing -- not just every fifth day, but every day he was at the ballpark, he had fun with his teammates. Now he's going to have to do it in a different capacity for the next 12 or so months."

The Padres changed things up for the 2013 draft.

For the 2013 draft Josh Byrnes and his staff were settled in. Director of scouting Jaron Madison left to join the Chicago Cubs, but his replacement, Billy Gasparino, came from within the Padres organization. So the turnover was kept to a minimum, especially compared to the previous year. Perhaps the new staff, with a full year under their belts to implement their scouting protocols, had a different way of doing things or perhaps the staff realized they need to change course a bit because the 2013 draft was very different from the previous 2. The previous two seemed to focus  a lot on high upside pitching and would dabble with some position players that were athletic, but lacking in power. The 2013 draft seemed to flip the script.

With the Padres' first pick, the 13th overall, the team selected a genuine certified slugger. They took Mississippi State star Hunter Renfroe. Renfroe isn't the most complete hitter, but he knows how to give the ball a ride. He also isn't a speedy athletic CF like the Padres had been draft, but itstead was a rocket armed right field prospect. The team's minor league system sorely needed a talented hitter like Renfroe so his acquisition was a sight for sore eyes. He should rank as one of the Padres' top prospects for the next couple years.

The Padres would continue to add to their hitting prospect portfolio by drafting Arizona HS 3B Dustin Peterson in the 2nd round. Peterson's brother was a first rounder in the same draft out of college, but the Padres were happy enough to get his younger brother who they could develop on their own. Peterson did play SS in high school, but again this isn't a player who is more of an athlete than an actual hitter. Peterson is athletic, but his bat is the real deal and should develop nicely. In the 3rd round the Padres took another HS hitter in CF Jordan Paroubeck. Paroubeck's career with the Padres has been spent rehabbing so far, but scouts like the potential his bat brings as well.

The rest of the draft is difficult to talk about since the amount of professional baseball they have played so far is limited. It is worth noting that the club didn't entirely resist pitching. In the 3rd round they got Hofstra RHP Bryan Verbitsky who has the stuff to be a starter, but is working through control issues. In the 6th round University of Kentucky RHP Trevor Gott was selected by the Padres who have used him almost exclusively as a closer. He is currently finishing off games for Lake Elsinore and could be on a fast track. 8th rounder Adrian De Horta starts for Fort Wayne even though he is one of the youngest players from the 2013 draft. 9th rounder Adam Cimber, like Gott, is pitching relief for the Storm and doing well. 16th rounder Payton Baskette, 29th rounder Kyle Lloyd and 38th rounder Pete Kelich are all in the TinCaps' starting rotation with De Horta.

Finally, there are a couple of other promising hitters to note. 5th rounder Josh Van Meter has gotten love from scouts for his glove and some like his bat enough that they think it'll play some in the majors some day. 7th rounder Jake Bauers struggled to find the pop in his bat last season, but this year is a key contributor to the TinCaps' lineup. 22nd rounder Chase Jensen is also getting playing time for the TinCaps. Most of the other players from this draft are still working on their skills in instructional league back in Peoria. We will know more about all of them at the end of the season when they have played for the Eugene Emeralds or join another team.

It is difficult to compare this draft to the previous ones because of a major rule change. Teams could no longer collect supplemental 1st round picks by letting free agents go, so the Padres could not load up on higher upside players early in the draft like they did in 2011 and 2012. Instead most of the franchise's farm system stocking of higher upside players could only come from the first couple of picks. In that regard, it seems the Padres did quite well. So far.

Here is the rest of the drafted Padres from 2013:

Having lost five of their last six away from home, the Rockies return to Coors Field looking for a win in the series opener against the Padres.

The bad news for the Rockies is they've lost three games in a row for the first time this season. The good news for them is that they return to Coors Field tonight where they are 13-5 and their offense has run through opposing pitching staffs like a hot knife through butter.

The pitcher with the task of facing the Rockies formidable home offense tonight is Padres letfy Eric Stults. So far this season, Stults has a 5.03 ERA in eight starts and 39 1/3 innings, allowing eight home runs. He has a 4.14 ERA in his career against the Rockies to go with a 5.34 career mark at Coors Field. Earlier this season, he gave up four runs (three earned) on nine hits against the Rockies in five innings at Petco Park.

With the southpaw on the mound, Drew Stubbs gets the start in center field and will bat second. Stubbs has a .910 OPS against lefties this season and an .802 OPS against them in his career. He will be joined in the outfield by Charlie Blackmon and Carlos Gonzalez, with all of the Rockies regular starters in the lineup in the infield.

The Rockies will send a lefty of their own to the mound in Opening Day starter Jorge De La Rosa. After a rough start to the season, De La Rosa has righted the ship with a 2.70 ERA in 30 innings over his last five starts, not allowing more than three runs in any of the five games. In five starts against  the Padres since the start of 2013, he has a 3.10 ERA.

Padres manager Bud Black has overloaded his lineup with right-handed bats against the left-handed De La Rosa tonight, with the first seven hitters in the Padres lineup either righties or switch hitters. That means that Seth Smith, who has been by far the Padres best hitter this season, will be on the bench tonight.

Lineups:

Series opener with the Rockies at 5:40 pm PT. Here's tonight's lineup: pic.twitter.com/UctItlZ7Gi

— San Diego Padres (@Padres) May 16, 2014

Here’s how the #Rockies will line up in their return to Coors Field tonight: pic.twitter.com/pIBlp4O8vR

— Colorado Rockies (@Rockies) May 16, 2014

Our Padres left Cincinnati with their first road series win of the season. Tonight they'll take the field at Coors to try to keep the momentum going on the moon.

Eric Stults will start things off for San Diego, coming off his first win in four starts. The lefty went six innings against Miami last Saturday, limiting the Marlins to two runs. He's had some recent trouble against his former team, however. In his last two starts against Colorado he's racked up a 7.45 ERA while not recording a decision in either outing. The most recent of those starts was just over a month ago on April 14th when the Rockies came to Petco Park. He surrendered four runs on nine hits through five innings. Tonight Stults will be facing a Rockies team that's currently boasting a league-leading .353 batting average while scoring 33 homers and 138 total runs at home.

Putching opposite Stultsy will be fellow southpaw Jorge De La Rosa, who has excelled this season thanks to some generous run support in his outings. Over his last four starts the Rockies have combined for 29 runs, with De La Rosa posting a 2.63 ERA. He pitched against the Padres in San Diego on April 16th, giving up three runs in six innings, but taking the loss. The left-hander had to miss his last start due to back spasms, so this will be his first time out since May 7th.

The NL West matchup is set to begin tonight at 5:40 PDT.

Rockies pitcher Jorge De La Rosa pitched a seven-inning gem at Coors Field, flirting with a no-hitter until the 7th inning.

Colorado Rockies pitcher Jorge De La Rosa was working on the second no-hitter ever in Coors Field before San Diego Padres outfielder Chris Denorfia broke it up with a triple on a poorly-played flyball in the top of the 7th inning. Thankfully for Colorado fans, the Rockies still won, 3-1.

In one of De La Rosa's best games as a major-leaguer, the Mexican-born pitcher threw 89 pitches with five strikeouts in seven innings. Before giving up the hit, De La Rosa had faced the minimum number of batters, with only Carlos Quentin reaching base in the second inning on a walk. Quentin was then taken out on a fielders' choice, and the man left in his place, Cameron Maybin, was caught stealing to end the inning.

Although he threw three more strikeouts, De La Rosa was matched for most of the game by Padres pitcher Eric Stults, who pitched a solid six innings while scattering six hits and allowing one run. Considering how much offense has been generated in Coors Field so far this season -- Baseball Reference has Coors' park factor at an astonishing 117 -- both pitchers managing to perform so far above expectations would be remarkable by itself.

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But, unlike most pitchers, the confines of Coors Field have been friendly to De La Rosa. According to Fangraphs, the 33-year-old posted a 2.76 ERA in Denver last season. And while he's been less successful this season, his home splits have still managed to be over a full run better than on the road.

It was also a crucial divisional game, even this early in the season. Both teams find themselves looking up at the division-leading San Francisco Giants, but the Rockies have ridden a dominant offense -- they are leading the league by 17 runs, with 233 so far this season -- to at least within striking range of the 27-15 squad.

The second no-hitter in Coors Field history would have been nice, though.

Jorge De La Rosa took a no-hitter into the seventh inning and the offense did just enough to get the Rockies a 3-1 win over the Padres at Coors Field.

No, this game was not at Petco Park, despite what the 3-1 final in the Rockies' favor would have you believe.

Jorge De La Rosa had his best start of the season and won his fifth straight game, allowing just a hit and a walk in seven strong innings with six strikeouts. Of his 89 pitches, 58 were strikes. De La Rosa had a 9.69 ERA in his first three starts of the season, but has posted an ERA of just 2.19 to go with a 1.11 WHIP in his last six outings.

The only baserunner De La Rosa allowed in the first six innings was a leadoff walk to Carlos Quentin in the top of the second, but thanks to a fielders' choice and caught stealing later in the inning, he faced the minimum through six. A triple from Chris Denorfia to lead off the seventh broke up De La Rosa's no-hit bid, but the Rockies hurler got the last laugh, stranding Denorfia on third.

For a while, Padres starter Eric Stults matched De La Rosa pitch for pitch, retiring the first 10 Rockies he faced before a one-out double by Drew Stubbs in the fourth. The Rockies then broke the scoreless tie in the fifth when De La Rosa reached on an error by Padres second baseman Jedd Gyorko, allowing Jordan Pacheco to score.

The Rockies extended the lead against Stults in the bottom of the second thanks to a single from Charlie Blackmon that scored DJ LeMahieu, giving Blackmon 30 RBIs on the season.

The Rockies added another insurance run in the eighth with singles from Troy Tulowitzki, Justin Morneau and Pacheco. There was also some controversy in the inning when home plate umpire Seth Buckminster rung up Nolan Arenado on a pitch that  was somewhere down around his ankles and proceeded to toss the Rockies third baseman out of the game when he took issue with the call.

LaTroy Hawkins gave up a run in the ninth, but held on to earn his 10th save of the season and first since April 29.

The Rockies will look to get the series win tomorrow as Jordan Lyles takes on Robbie Erlin. First pitch is at 6:10 p.m. Mountain Time.

Source: FanGraphs

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The Padres trended another low-scoring loss, displaying patterns that we wish didn't exist.

Coming off a hot series with the Reds, and an improving road record; the San Diego Padres fail to take advantage of everything that Coors Field has to offer. Meanwhile, a measly three runs is all it takes for the Rockies to consider themselves the winner of today's match to kick off the three game series in Colorado.

Both Eric Stults and Jorge De La Rosa seemed to match each other inning-for-inning. But a few sloppy plays ended up being the Friars' demise tonight. Stults threw six innings giving up only six hits, and only 1 of his 2 runs were earned when Gyorko wasn't able to field a lazy grounder into deep 2B/1B territory to end the inning before the run could cross the plate.

Again in the 8th, a slippery ball didn't allow Cabrera to flash his usual SS flare. His error ended up tossing another point onto the board for the Rockies. A few miscues and another late-night attempt to take the game back was what tied the Padres down for their 23rd loss of the season. Our losses seem to rhyme; with low scoring games always signed by a 9th inning rally that fizzles out before we can take back any leads.

Chase Headley scored our only RBI today, and as unfortunate as today's loss was; tomorrow we're not going to have it any easier. With Robbie Erlin throwing against Jordan Lyles; the Friars are going to have to start adopting the road antics we displayed in Cincinnati, or else we'll be gettng iced out in the mountains this weekend.

Today was an extremely slow Friday at GLB. I was up at California Adventure and it was hot as heck.

Regardless, TheThinGwynn still somehow managed to get a rec. This is starting to get ridiculous.

usapadres showed up to carry the thread, today, along with jodes and TTG.

Pitching matchups, lineups and more within!

The Rockies have yet to lose a series at Coors Field this season. In fact, they haven't split one, either; Colorado has played six series at home and has won each one of them.

In order to make it seven wins in as many series, the Rockies will need another good outing from Jordan Lyles, who has been the team's best pitcher this season. Lyles enters the game with a 2.66 ERA/3.54 FIP through 50⅔ innings spanning eight starts. He's been particularly stingy at Coors Field, posting a 1.25 ERA in 21⅔ innings.

The Padres had a hard time doing much of anything off of Jorge De La Rosa on Friday, so they're switching things up a bit tonight. Chris Denorfia and Yasmani Grandal are in for the slumping Carlos Quentin and Nick Hundley, respectively, while Cameron Maybin will sit in favor of Will Venable after an 0-for-4 performance in the series opener.

In other Padres news, Andrew Cashner, who was supposed to start on Sunday, was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Saturday as a result of right elbow soreness. Donn Roach will take Cashner's spot in the rotation while Kevin Quackenbush is back with the Padres after his fourth instance of being recalled/optioned in the last nine days, according to Rockies Roster's Greg Stanwood.

Here's the how to watch/listen info for tonight's game:

TV: ROOT Sports/MLB.tv
Radio: 850 KOA/MLB.com
Follow on Gameday

Are our worst fears coming true?

So this happened.

#Padres place Andrew Cashner on the 15-day DL with soreness in right elbow. Will know more when clubhouse opens. No word on Sunday starter.

— Corey Brock (@FollowThePadres) May 17, 2014

I'm not sure who was the first reporter/writer to break the news, nor am I sure who was the first fan to speculate about a possible Tommy John surgery. I just know that all of a sudden this afternoon around 1:00-ish, my Twitter timeline exploded with typed-out cries of anguish and lamentation from the Padres social media community.

I could hear in the distance through the open windows in my room the sounds of sad quacks coming from the pond a couple blocks away from my house.

Everyone has assumed the worst, and with good reason, but I'm trying to remain positive and faith-keepy.  For instance, I almost immediately saw this as an opportunity for my forever-favorite Padre, Tim Stauffer. I conjectured the possibility of Stauff picking up the spot start in tomorrow's series finale, and maybe even for the remainder of Cash's DL stint, however long (but hopefully short) it ends up being. Unfortunately, Corey Brock dashed that hope fairly quickly.

Roach will start Sunday for the #Padres. First big league start.

— Corey Brock (@FollowThePadres) May 17, 2014

Still looking at this as a positive, this will be an amazing opportunity for the young Donn Roach, and it'll be fun for Padres fans to see the future of the club on the mound tomorrow. And even more encouraging:

Cashner said he's encouraged that he has no pain in ligament area and that this is just inflammation. Again, MRI on Monday. #Padres

— Corey Brock (@FollowThePadres) May 17, 2014

I know it's easy to be skeptical about a player trying to remain positive about an injury. Hopefully Cash's feelings are accurate and the MRI will show nothing too serious.

Anyway, feel free to vent in the comments and let's all just try to be here for each other. KTF, babies.

While optimistic about his prognosis, Padres ace Andrew Cashner has been placed on the 15-day DL with elbow inflammation after informing the team on Friday about the issue.

San Diego Padres' ace Andrew Cashner was placed on the 15-day DL on Saturday because of inflammation in the elbow area, according to MLB.com's Corey Brock. Cashner is just the latest in an increasingly long line of young pitchers that have been put on the shelf with an elbow injury.

The decision came after Cashner told his manager, Bud Black, about soreness in his right elbow on Friday. However, unlike many others who have went down this season with elbow issues -- like Marlins' phenom Jose Fernandez, Braves' pitcher Kris Medlen and Rangers' southpaw Martin Perez -- the feeling around the team is cautiously optimistic. And that positivity starts with Cashner himself.

"I think it just has some inflammation in it," Cashner told reporters. "Hopefully it's not more than 15 days. I think there was some extra soreness this time, but I'm not worried at all about my ligament. I have been cutting my fastball loose with no pain."

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The organization also seems more upbeat about the injury than would be expected. In his statements to the press, general manager Josh Byrnes made it appear that the MRI scheduled for Monday was more of a precautionary measure, saying "we felt it was the right thing to do. We're cautiously optimistic that rest will knock this out."

While Cashner says he was hesitant to bring the soreness to the team's attention -- saying ""I think it's one of the toughest decisions I've had to make ... because I've been doing so well" -- he ultimately felt it was "smarter to take a step back now instead of keep pushing forward."

Black supported his ace's perspective and shares his disposition regarding a potential diagnosis, telling reporters, "I like the fact that Cash is optimistic about this. As a player, you know when something is wrong. He feels pretty good about his situation and with a little bit of rest he'll be fine."

Considering the rash of recent elbow injuries to seemingly every prominent pitcher under the age of the 30, the team better hope it's more than wishful thinking on Cashner's part.

The Rockies offense put up 14 hits on Saturday, but an abnormal amount of double plays and lack of timely hitting proved too much to overcome a rare poor start from Jordan Lyles.

The Rockies' offense put up a valiant effort, but walks and an inability to finish off innings doomed the pitching staff in the team's 8-5 loss to the Padres on Saturday at Coors Field.

Jordan Lyles, who entered the game with a 1.25 ERA at home this season, allowed a career-high six walks in 3⅔ innings en route to his worst performance of the season. Lyles surrendered six earned runs on five hits -- including a homer -- and threw only half of his 92 pitches for strikes. He looked shaky from the start, allowing three walks and hitting a batter in the Padres' two-run first inning. Troy Tulowitzki got a run back for the Rockies in the bottom half of the frame with a towering solo home run, but Lyles surrendered four more runs before being lifted in favor of Tommy Kahnle in the fourth.

Lyles seemed to be going to his hands a lot more than usual, perhaps indicating that he wasn't getting much of a grip on the ball. But Rockies manager Walt Weiss said after the game that nothing was physically wrong with his pitcher.

"He didn't have anything bothering him," quipped Weiss. "He had a hard time getting feel and struggled with throwing strikes."

Kahnle and Matt Belisle kept San Diego off the board for the next three innings, giving the Rockies' offense a chance to chip away at a 6-1 deficit. Carlos Gonzalez plated a run in the fourth with a well-hit sacrifice fly and Jordan Pacheco followed with a run-scoring single an inning later.

Now down 6-3, the Rockies had runners on first and second with nobody out after DJ LeMahieu reached on a bunt single, and Weiss called upon Charlie Culberson to pinch hit in a situation that might have called for a bunt -- and certainly one in which past Colorado teams have implemented small-ball strategy. Culberson wound up swinging away and bouncing into a double play (that became a theme), effectively ending the Rockies' chances at getting even closer.

"We're down three and we're trying to go for a big inning right there, not really trying to get one run," Weiss explained, adding that the team was a little short-handed as a result of Brandon Barnes' bout with food poisoning. It was a good call by Weiss to have Culberson swing away but an unfavorable result.

Still, the Rockies weren't done. Gonzalez came through in a big way in his next at-bat in the sixth, crushing a double to center field that scored Drew Stubbs and Troy Tulowitzki, who combined for six hits.

Colorado had a chance for more in that inning, but Jordan Pacheco grounded into a double play with runners on first and second to end the threat. That was a familiar theme for the Rockies on Saturday; the team grounded into five twin-killings, tying a single-game franchise record.

Even with a pile of once-promising but now-dead rallies, the Rox found themselves down by only one run entering the seventh. That didn't last for long.

After two quick outs, Chris Martin served up a two-strike single to Yasmani Grandal, setting the stage for a pinch-hit, two-run home run from the oft-injured but dangerous Carlos Quentin. Colorado got base hits from Stubbs and Charlie Blackmon with two outs in the bottom half of the inning, but Tulowitzki's line shot to third base was snagged by a diving Chase Headley, thwarting yet another Rockies rally.

Gonzalez doubled again to lead off the eighth against Padres reliever Joaquin Benoit, but Nolan Arenado and Justin Morneau whiffed on pitches in the dirt and Jordan Pacheco lined out to center, stranding CarGo in scoring position.

Colorado went down in order the following inning, giving former Rockie Huston Street his 13th save of the season.

Lyles' poor performance and the unhealthy amount of double plays were the story of the game, but there were some positives for the Rockies on Saturday. Tulowitzki got his batting average back to an even .400 by scorching the ball every time he stepped to the plate and Gonzalez clobbered a pair of doubles and looked like his old self at the plate, taking pitches on the outer half to the opposite field and doing so with authority. Rex Brothers also had his best outing in quite some time, striking out a pair of batters in a scoreless eighth inning.

Those things will have to continue to go right on Sunday, and the Rockies will have to get much better pitching, in order for the team to avoid losing a series at home for the first time in 2014. The task was made exponentially easier when the Padres placed Andrew Cashner, who was supposed to start the series finale, on the 15-day disabled list with an elbow injury.

Source: FanGraphs

Following the previous game in no way whatsoever, the Padres bring the bats and walk away with a win.

The San Diego Padres are the only Major League Baseball team to have won a baseball game in Denver, Colorado on May 17th, 2014. Put it in the history books, folks. A "rocky" start from Robbie Erlin was saved by the lineup today, as they took advantage of all that Coors Field has to offer.

The Padres were outhit today 14 to 10, but they made it hurt a whole lot more when they did; outscoring their mountain-dwelling division neighbors to the north 8 to 5. Erlin was able to last 5 innings, giving up 9 of those hits and 4 of those earned runs. Meanwhile, Jordan Lyles was lit up for three poor little innings allowing 6 earned runs in only 5 hits. His bullpen tried to carry that weight; but the Friars were able to tack on two more before the night was over.

It all started in the top of the first with a 1-out walk from Everth Cabrera, followed by a Seth Smith walk. After the leadoff strikeout from Chris Denorfia and then a strikeout from Chase Headley following Smith's at-bat, recent batting hero Yonder Alonso smacked a hard double oppo into left field to drive Cabrera and Smith in. Alonso has been batting .300 the past week, with 6 hits and 4 RBI's.

Yonder Alonso throwing some power opposite field, continuing a pretty steady streak of doubles.

The Padres weren't quite done with the whole two-run-per-inning thing they had going on. Yasmani Grandal ribbied Alonso in (after ANOTHER double from the first baseman), and then Robbie Erlin showed him up, deciding he wanted in on the action; slicing up a pitch to drive Will Venable home.

Padres pitchers always get the job done, sometimes on offense. Erlin plates Venable with a base hit, extended to a double by CarGo's off-line throw.

Carlos Gonzales and Jordan Pacheco would end up answering with one run a piece in the 4th and 5th, and then another two from CarGo in the 6th. But the Padres still had that two-run-per-inning quota to fill and Carlos Quentin guest starred tonight as a pinch hitter to try to pad the Pads lead that was cut to 6-5. He delivered with a HR to knock him and Grandal in just before Rockies fans could get their 7th inning stretch going on.

Quentin treats the bat like it's an idiot after using it to hulk-smash an unexpecting baseball into deep left.

San Diego never lost their cool, and in turn never lost the lead. Despite another lackluster performance from Jedd Gyorko, our boys just will not seem to stop teasing us with the true appearance of offensive capability. Also, keeping the Rockies contained and trailing all night further highlighted the dominance of our bullpen, and we can look forward into another road series win tomorrow if we can keep up this good stuffs.

We'll get to see Donn Roach in the starting pitcher role tomorrow against Juan Nicasio.

Today's game thread saw a little more action. Friar Fever put GLB on his back with the most comments, but there were no shiny shiny stars leading with recs.

Just kidding, it was TheThinGwynn again. Is there somebody I can report him to?