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Daniel Hudson was in top form on Saturday night as the Arizona Diamondbacks walloped the San Diego Padres 6-0 thanks to his powerful performance.
The starting pitcher scored his third, straight victory by striking out six batters in seven innings and blanking his opponents n effortless fashion.
Too bad Hudson can’t play every day, as Arizona could’ve use his gifted arm to avoid defeats to the Padres on Friday and Sunday, which caused the Diamondbacks to lose the weekend series.
Good pitching would’ve saved the D-Backs during Friday’s 4-3 extra-innings loss, as Armando Galarraga continued to struggle on mound. The journeyman pitcher was pulled in the fourth inning after allowing three runs and walking six. Ordinarily, such errors could easily be offset with some plentiful runs by his teammates, but Arizona was also coming up short in that department during the game, drumming up only one hit out of 10 at-bats.
The Snakes stayed scoreless until the ninth inning, when errors by Padres closer Heath Bell permitted Arizona to tie the game. Ryan Roberts and Juan Miranda were both walked, followed by a Gerardo Parra RBI double to score a run. A grounder from Kelly Johnson and a fielding error by San Diego baseman Brad Hawpe allowed two runs to cross home plate.
The game puttered on into the eleventh inning until Chase Headley’s bases-loaded walkoff RBI scored Chris Denorfia for the game-winning run.
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And while Friday’s game wasn’t determined until extra innings, Sunday’s contest was pretty much decided in the first frame for all intents and purposes. Jorge Cantu delivered a crushing three-run homer at the beginning of yesterday’s game to lift the Padres to a 4-3 win. Denorfia had already been plated by a Jason Bartlett double to put one run on the scoreboard for San Diego when Cantu sent a 1-2 inside fastball from Joe Saunders deep into the left field seats at PETCO Park.
Arizona scored three runs over the course of the game (including a Xavier Nady sacrifice fly that scored Justin Upton) but couldn’t overcome the deficit.
There’s no rest for the weary as the Diamondbacks head to the west coast for a couple of series against California teams. They’ll battle the San Francisco Giant starting on Tuesday evening at AT&T Park, followed by a three-game stint at Chavez Ravine versus the Los Angeles Dodgers. Tomorrow night’s game features a match-up between Ian Kennedy (3-1, 3.80) and the ailing Tim Lincecum (2.47, 3-3). First pitch is at 7:15 p.m. TV: Fox Sports Arizona. Radio: KTAR 620-AM. For more info, visit www.diamondbacks.com.
