Results tagged ‘ Bell ’
Strong start
Tim Stauffer continued his dominance on the mound last night with 6.0 innings of shutout ball, picking up his sixth win of the season and fourth in his last five starts. The Padres improved to 11-9 on the year when he takes the mound. Stauffer lowered his team-leading ERA to 2.83, ranking eighth in the National League. Since June 7, he has gone 5-2 with a 1.33 ERA (8 ER/54.0 IP) in eight starts without allowing more than two runs in any of his outings.
As for the Padres, they started their seven-game trip with a win last night pulling even with the Dodgers in the standings. Heath Bell picked up his 27th save of the season in his 29th opportunity following an offensive attack that saw four Padres tally two-hit games (Venable, Maybin, Ludwick, Hudson).
Bell slides into All-Star game
Heath Bell retired the only batter he faced in last night’s All-Star game, getting Jhonny Peralta to pop out to second base in what we at the Padres feel was definitely the most important at-bat of the game. Head to MLB.com for video and a recap of Bell’s performance, found here.
That’s more like it
With a big Fourth of July win yesterday, the Padres continue to inch closer to the .500 mark. Each of the starting nine collected at least one hit in yesterday’s win, handing Tim Lincecum his seventh loss of the season. Yesterday was also interesting in that each of the Padres pitchers was credited with either a win (Richard), hold (Frieri, Spence, Qualls, Adams) or save (Bell). The four holds match the most by any team this season (14th time) and tie for the most ever in a single game by the Padres (6th time).
The Friars are 9-3 in their last 12 tilts and have not lost consecutive games since June 19-20. Over the current 12-game stretch, the Pads are posting a 2.68 ERA (31 ER/104.0 IP) and have held opponents to three or fewer runs in 10 of those contests (including two shutouts). The starting rotation has been credited with seven of the nine wins, recording a 2.57 ERA (20 ER/70.0 IP).
On the offensive side, Cameron Maybin (.341), Chase Headley (.368) and Will Venable (.323) are each hitting over .300 during the 12-game stretch.
After being optioned to Triple-A Tucson in late May, Venable has had a strong showing in his return to the Big Leagues. Since beening recalled on June 9, Venable is hitting .326 with a.385 OBP and .478 SLG (.863 OPS).
Looking back on Draft day
With the 2011 First-Year Player Draft approaching (June 6-8), we asked Padres player what they remember about being drafted and the excitement of hearing their your named called.
We’re going streaking!
The Pads did it again, winning 5-4 over the Braves last night and extending their winning streak to a season-high four games. Each of the four wins have come by one run (2-1, 5-4, 3-2, 5-4). It is the longest winning streak for the club since taking five straight 8/15-19/10.
Over the current win streak, Heath Bell has tied his career high by picking up four saves in four consecutive days. He also accomplished the feat 8/10-13/10. Bell is one shy of tying the club record for saves in consecutive days (Thanks to Channel 4′s Chyron Bob Wehrsdorfer for the research):
5 Saves
Mark Davis, 9/2-6/89
Rollie Fingers, 5/28-31/77 (two saves during doubleheader on 5/30)
4 Saves
Heath Bell, 5/28/11-current
Heath Bell, 8/10-13/10
Trevor Hoffman, 5/25-28/08
Trevor Hoffman, 7/5-8/06
Also of note, Mat Latos picked up another win with 6.0 innings of two-run ball last night. He has won two straight and three of his last four, lowering his ERA to 3.97 on the year.
Ryan Ludwick continues to pound the ball, collecting four hits last night. He is 9-for-14 over his last three games and finished the month of May hitting .314.
Rolling right along
The Padres took their third straight with an extra-inning 3-2 win over the Braves. Heath Bell picked up the save, his third in as many days. It is the third time in his career that he as picked up three saves in three days, also accomplishing the feat 4/16-18/09 and 8/10-13/10 (four straight).
Ryan Ludwick continues his tear at the plate, going 2-for-5 with two RBI yesterday. Over his last 17 games, dating back to 5/11, he is hitting .364 (24-for-66) with four home runs and 19 RBI, raising his average 63 points over that span. With 22 RBI in May, Ludwick ranks third in the National League. He is tied for eighth in the NL on the season with 34.
Photoday outtakes
A couple of the “best” shots from Spring Training photoday earlier this year. Keep in mind it starts at 6:45 a.m.
Home away from home
Padres players and staff talk about their favorite cities to visit when not playing at PETCO Park:
