(MENAFN- Gulf Times) Jhoulys Chacin brought the majors' second-lowest home ERA into his start Thursday against the Washington Nationals. On the surface, what ensued did little to affect his reputation as a force in downtown San Diego.
But the right-hander was not his typical, sturdy self at Petco Park. The miracle of an untidy pitching line — five-plus innings, three hits, four walks, two hit batters — was that Chacin allowed only one run.
Because the Padres manufactured minimal offense themselves, a single swing in the top of the eighth registered as especially devastating. Ryan Zimmerman's home run off Kirby Yates proved decisive as the Nationals claimed a 2-1 decision in the series opener.
The Padres were fortunate to have tying opportunities over the final two innings.
Chacin walked the Nationals' first two batters of the game, prompting a visit from pitching coach Darren Balsley. A double play and a strikeout followed.
But the right-hander's imprecision resurfaced. After pitching around a pair of singles in the second, he did himself no favours in the third.
A leadoff double by Howie Kendrick preceded a sacrifice by Wilmer Difo. Chacin hit a batter, then walked one, loading the bases. Adam Lind lifted a sacrifice fly to left, giving the Nationals a 1-0 lead. Chacin clipped yet another batter. Balsley went to the mound a second time.
The conference appeared to have the desired effect. Chacin retired the next seven batters, including four straight via strikeout. But he already had expended considerable energy.
In the sixth, Chacin issued a leadoff walk with his 104th and final pitch.
Former Nationals reliever Craig Stammen took over before inducing a lineout and a double play. He retired the side in the seventh.
The Padres had tied the game in the bottom of the third — Manuel Margot, who doubled, scored on a single by Jose Pirela — but the score remained deadlocked into the eighth.
Former San Diego starter Edwin Jackson had much to do with that, scattering eight hits over seven innings. While he was on the mound, the Padres went 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position.
In the eighth, Yates, a waiver-wire revelation, continued a trend of making hitters look silly. Three went down waving at strike three. But with two outs, the reliever made a costly mistake.
Catcher Austin Hedges motioned for a 1-1 fastball up in the zone. The pitch arrived thigh-high. Zimmerman pounded a 414-foot drive into the right-field seats.
The Nationals' first hit since Kendrick's third-inning double would be enough. The Padres stranded a runner in the eighth. In the bottom of the ninth, Sean Doolittle retired all three batters he faced, including Hedges, who saw a near-homer go foul.
RESULTS
San Francisco 5 Philadelphia 4
Washington 2 San Diego 1
Texas 9 Chicago White Sox 8
Minnesota 4 Cleveland 2
NY Yankees 7 NY Mets 5
St. Louis 11 Pittsburgh 7
Toronto 5 Tampa Bay 3
Atlanta 10 Colorado 4
Cincinnati 13 Chicago Cubs 10
Arizona 4 Houston 0
Cleveland 9 Minnesota 3
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