Even after scoring in just two of the 27 innings they played in Los Angeles over the weekend, the Padres believed the turning point was near.
“It starts with a guy getting a big hit and starting a rally,” Josh Bell said Sunday night. “And it will continue from there.”
They thought they had this big hit on Monday.
Almost everyone watching believed that Ha-Seong brought in Kim’s double Brandon Drury to level the game in the seventh inning. Or at least that it was too close to overturn home plate umpire Sean Barber’s safe call
But a retest requested by the Giants resulted in Drury being called out and the Padres still trailing 1-0, the result that saw them lose their fifth straight game.
Padres starter Blake Snell allowed a run in 5 2/3 innings. Three of the six hits he conceded came before he got an out in the fourth inning. Thairo Estrada’s sacrificial fly with loaded bases gave the Giants the lead. Snell loaded the bases with a walk before a strike and a dive stop by Drury at first base ended the inning.
Nick Martinez went 2 1/3 scoreless innings before Josh Hader put up a scoreless ninth.
The Padres have scored in just four of 45 innings since winning 9-1 on the first night that saw the three trade-deadline acquisitions (Bell, Juan Soto and Brandon Drury) make their Padres debuts. They haven’t scored in the last 23 innings.
Before Kim hit third base on the home throw in the seventh, it had been 16 innings since the Padres had a runner in goal position.
Drury’s single marked the fourth time they had a man first with an out on Monday.
The hit was also the last of the three Giants that starter Alex Wood (8-9, 4.17) allowed. Kim, the first batter facing reliever John Brebbia, pocketed a double in third. Left fielder Luis Gonzalez had just grabbed the ball near the wall when Drury closed in on the third, and coach Matt Williams waved Drury home. A pin-point bounced relay shot from shortstop Brandon Crawford and a quick tag from catcher Joey Bart still didn’t seem in time to smack Drury’s hand as she reached over the plate. But replay seemed to show Drury’s fingers lifted off the ground as Bart applied the tag to his forearm.
“I thought I had my fingertips in there, and then obviously we all saw the same thing on replay,” Drury said. “I just didn’t see anything to even upset it. It was undoubtedly a close game. But the call on the field was safe and I can’t believe they lifted that from what I saw.
After the overturned call was announced, thunderous boos rained down and the game was delayed for about a minute when two pieces of debris and a baseball were thrown onto the field.
Padres manager Bob Melvin opted for a more passive protest.
“I’m done with the replay,” he said, clearly annoyed. “I don’t know. I mean clear and convincing? I’m not sure. Certainly wasn’t going our way.”
Not much has happened lately.
“You go through phases like this, but it’s frustrating for everyone right now,” Melvin said. “There was really good energy on the coaching bench throughout the game. We always thought we had a good chance to score every time we met. We had one chance that was missed and we ended up losing again. It won’t stay like this forever. But I think everyone is frustrated.”