Dose of Venom: D-backs grant Gibson’s birthday wish in rout of Padres
May 29, 2014, 6:18 AM | Updated: 6:19 am
Arizona Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson had one wish for his 57th birthday.
“I think a win would be a really good gift,” he said prior to the series finale against the San Diego Padres. “That would be really good. That’s what we’re after.”
Wish granted, Gibby.
His club exploded for 12 runs and pounded 17 hits in a 12-6 victory over the San Diego Padres in front of 22,233 at Chase Field on Wednesday.
The game was over early.
The Diamondbacks scored eight times on eight hits in the first inning, sending 11 men to the plate to chase starter Tim Stauffer after just 37 pitches. The nearly 40-minute performance saw the team set the franchise mark for most first-inning runs and tie the franchise mark for most hits in an inning.
“They say hitting is contagious,” outfielder A.J. Pollock said. “Guys in scoring position — t didn’t matter what it was, we were just hot.”
Later, Martin Prado and Paul Goldschmidt each added two-run home runs. Goldschmidt’s blast hit the linescore on the video board, measuring 470 feet according to ESPN Stats & Info.
“It only counts as one, but it’s better than nothing,” he said.
Enjoying all the run support once again was Chase Anderson. Remember, he was on the mound when the Diamondbacks scored a franchise-record 18 runs against the Dodgers.
“It’s a pitcher’s dream right there,” he said after throwing five innings to become the first Diamondbacks rookie to win his first three starts. “Guys made plays behind me tonight. The offense put those runs up so I mean it definitely makes it a lot easier to go there and just relax and pitch your game. Kudos to the offense tonight, they did a great job.”
With the victory, the Diamondbacks won their second straight series and sixth in their last eight series overall since May 2.
THE GOOD
Pollock and Gerardo Parra combined for four hits, three RBI and three runs scored in the first inning. They each singled in their first at-bat and doubled in their second at-bat, becoming the first Diamondbacks to record two hits in an inning since Martin Prado on May 17 against the Dodgers.
Speaking of Prado, after finishing 2-for-5, he is now batting .339 with 14 RBIs in his last 17 games. He also made a handful of tough plays in the field, including diving towards the line to keep Cameron Maybin’s ground ball from traveling into left field in the second inning. The web gem saved a run.
Back to Pollock, he’s certainly enjoyed his time at Chase Field lately. He’s now hit safely in 11 of his last 14 home games at a .436 clip with five home runs and 11 RBIs.
Chris Owings recorded his first career four-hit game, all singles, and reached base safely in all five plate appearances, including a walk in the fourth inning.
Paul Goldschmidt flashed the leather in the first inning. He scooped up a sharply hit ground ball by Chase Headley to start an inning-ending 3-6-1 double play, the Diamondbacks 12th in their past eight games.
THE BAD
Aaron Hill did not partake in the Diamondbacks offensive explosion. He was the lone position player to not record a hit, finishing 0-for-5 with two strikeouts.
Two batters and seven pitches into the Diamondbacks half of the first inning, Gibson challenged a foul ball call on a Parra slicing line drive that hit near the leftfield line. The play stood after a review of 1:41, dropping Gibson to 2-5 on challenges this season.
For all the good he accomplished at the plate and in the field, Prado was his own worst enemy on several occasions. He was charged with fielding errors in the second and fifth innings, his ninth and 10th of the season, the most of any Diamondbacks player and one shy of his season total from all of last year.
Prado also ran into an out. He ended a 13-pitch at-bat, during which he fouled a ball off his left leg, with a bouncer back to pitcher Alex Torres, who overthrew first, enabling Prado to reach base safely and take second, but then he decided to try for third and was thrown out for the first out of the sixth inning.
STAT OF THE GAME
8: The number of runs and hits the Diamondbacks recorded in the first inning, setting season-highs in both categories
HE SAID IT
“We know we’ve been playing better. We got a long way to go, a lot of adjustments still to make, but it’s been nice to play better lately,” Goldschmidt said.
NOTED
The Diamondbacks batted a combined .688 (11-for-16) with 10 runs scored in the first two innings, and then slumped to a combined .250 (6-for-24) with two runs scored in the final six innings
Pollock and Parra became only the second pair of Diamondbacks teammates with two hits in the same inning, joining Shawn Green and Eric Byrnes on July 8, 2006 at the Colorado Rockies (ninth inning)
Nick Evans, the former St. Mary’s High alum called up from Triple-A Reno earlier in the day, made his Diamondbacks debut replacing Goldschmidt in the eighth inning
Cliff Pennington was scratched from the original lineup because of a sore left hand after jamming his thumb the night before; he was available off the bench
UP NEXT
The Diamondbacks welcome the Cincinnati Reds to town.
It’s a four-game series with Josh Collmenter set to start the opener on Thursday. His first pitch is scheduled for 6:40 with pregame coverage beginning 30 minutes earlier on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM.
Collmenter (3-2, 3.91) has won each of his last two starts and is undefeated over his last six starts, going 3-0 with a 3.60 ERA (14 ER in 35.0 IP). He’ll be opposed by left-hander Tony Cingrani (2-4, 4.06), who has lost the past two times he’s stepped on the mound.
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