SAN DIEGO -- Maybe it’s something with the date, May 27, that is an omen for Pirate first basemen.
Exactly one year prior, Will Craig made his infamous rundown to home rather than touching the bag, resulting in the lowlight of that year’s season. While Josh VanMeter’s miscue at first Friday at PETCO Park may not be as jaw-dropping, it did cost the Pirates the game, losing to the Padres, 4-3.
With a runner on first and one out in the sixth inning, Padres first baseman Eric Hosmer bounced a ball softly up the third baseline, creating a tough angle for catcher Tyler Heineman to throw onto first. Heineman did manage to barehand the ball cleanly and throw a strike to the bag, but VanMeter was out of position and did not touch the bag before Hosmer reached first, even though the throw clearly beat him:
That gave the Padres’ new life, and later in the inning, Luke Voit hit a three-run home run off of Wil Crowe to tie the game at three.
VanMeter, the club’s super utility player, was only at first base because of a pair of injuries. Before the game, the Pirates officially announced that regular first baseman Yoshi Tsutsugo was placed on the injured list with a lumbar muscle strain. Mid-game, starting first baseman Michael Chavis was pinch-hit for in the top of the inning after experiencing forearm discomfort.
VanMeter had played four games at first base – including two starts – over the previous two seasons.
Two innings later, the Padres would complete the comeback with a Wil Myers’ broken bat bloop off Duane Underwood Jr.
The Pirates built themselves an early lead when Bryan Reynolds pounced on a high Sean Manaea fastball for a first inning homer, and Diego Castillo expanded it to three with a two-run fourth inning double, but they would only record one more hit after Castillo’s double: A ground ball single in the sixth for Tucupita Marcano, who was pinch-hitting for Chavis and was promoted back to the majors before the game.
José Quintana allowed two unearned runs over 5 ⅔ innings, striking out four with two walks and four hits on his ledger.
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
• Live file
• Standings
• Statistics
• Schedule
• Scoreboard
THE HIGHLIGHTS
THE INJURIES
• 10-day injured list: RHP Heath Hembree (calf), OF Jake Marisnick (thumb), 1B Yoshi Tsutsugo (lumbar muscle strain), Daniel Vogelbach (hamstring)
• 60-day injured list: OF Greg Allen (hamstring), RHP Blake Cederlind (UCL), RHP Nick Mears (elbow surgery), Kevin Newman (groin), Roberto Pérez (hamstring, out for season)
THE LINEUPS
Shelton's card:
1. Rodolfo Castro, 3B
2. Bryan Reynolds, CF
3. Michael Chavis, 1B
4. Ben Gamel, DH
5. Josh VanMeter, 2B
6. Diego Castillo, SS
7. Calvin Mitchell, RF
8. Tyler Heineman, C
9. Jack Suwinski, LF
And for Bon Melvin's Padres:
1. Jurickson Profar, LF
2. Manny Machado, 3B
3. Eric Hosmer, 1B
4. Wil Myers, RF
5. Luke Void, DH
6. Jake Cronenworth, 2B
7. Ha-Seong Kim, SS
8. Jorge Alfaro, C
9. Jos´Azocar, CF
THE SCHEDULE
The Pirates and Padres will meet again Saturday, with first pitch coming at 10:10 p.m. Eastern. Joe Musgrove (5-0, 1.90) will take on his former club, and the Pirates will counter with JT Brubaker (0-4, 4.64). I've got you covered.
THE CONTENT
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