Photo credit: @SFGiants

By Joey Friedman
Sports Radio Service

In their first meeting of the season, the San Francisco Giants shutout the San Diego Padres by a score of 7-0 at Petco Park Thursday night on the backs of pitchers Chris Statton and Derek Law. Hunter Pence and Buster Posey would each collect two RBIs in the win. San Diego position players were held hitless tonight.

In the Giants’ half of the first, they mounted an attack with a Joe Panik walk, an Andrew McCutchen single, a Buster Posey walk, and an Evan Longoria fielder’s choice ground ball to San Diego shortstop Freddy Galvis on the first pitch which turned in a run as Longoria reached first when Galvis took the out at second in Posey. After Brandon Crawford walked to load the bases again, Hunter Pence pushed everybody up 90 feet with a broken-bat RBI bloop single to right.

San Diego’s sparkling defensive play came in the third inning when Gregor Blanco hit with runners on the corners, the Giants up 3-0 with one out and a 0-1 count. Blanco popped up a bunt in foul ground that held in the air just long enough for Padre catcher Austin Hedges to make a diving grab halfway to the backstop. He would throw to first to double off the runner Crawford and end the threat.

The only hit in the game for the Padres came from 34-year-old LHP Clayton Richard who pinch hit for starting pitcher Bryan Mitchell before Mitchell could get his first at-bat of the night. Through 289 career at-bats, Richard carried a .118 batting average. The line drive to right came off starting pitcher Chris Stratton of the Giants in the third inning.

The Giants’ next big inning came in the 6th when the Giants loaded the bases with two out. Andrew McCutchen grounded the ball to third baseman Christian Villanueva, who through the ball in the dirt to Gold Glove first baseman Eric Hosmer who could not dig it out. The ball bounced into the seats, sending McCutchen to second, scoring two. Before the inning was over, the next batter, Buster Posey, would hit a ball on the ground down the left field line, scoring two more, and sending Posey to second. The Giants would load the bases once again before Hunter Pence would fly out to right to end an inning in which the Giants scored four runs on four hits and an error, leaving three on base.

For the Giants, Chris Stratton would pitch seven innings of one-hit ball on 101 pitches. He walked three and struck out four. He would improve to a 1-1 record. Reliever Derek Law came in to finish the game in the eighth, going two innings and striking out a pair. No one could cross the plate tonight for San Diego.

Bryan Mitchell of the Padres got the tough loss after going for three innings of four-hit, five-walk, and two strikeout baseball. All three runs he allowed were earned. His record is now 0-2. Nice relieving appearances for Jordan Lyles and Robbie Erlin were belittled by the four unearned runs that Colten Brewer gave up due to the Villanueva error.

The Giants saw a multi-hit night from Longoria, Pence, and Blanco. Almost everyone who picked up a bat got a hit tonight with the exception of Brandon Belt (who went 0-2 with two walks), Nick Hundley (0-1 in a pinch-hitting role), and Chris Stratton (0-3).

What’s Next?
Ty Blach (1-1, 4.11 ERA) will be on the hill for the Giants in the second game of the series opposed by Tyson Ross (1-1, 5.25 ERA) of the Padres. They will be making their fourth and third starts, respectively at 7:10 pm PT tomorrow night.