Yates continues assault on Padres record book

Bill Center, longtime sportswriter for U-T San Diego, is an employee of the Padres.

Closer Kirby Yates tied one Padres record Tuesday night and extended another.

The right-handed split-finger specialist recorded his 26th save in 26 chances. The 26 saves ties the Padres record for most saves before the All-Star break set by Heath Bell in 2011. Hall of Famer Trevor Hoffman had 25 saves before the All-Star Game on three separate occasions.

Yates also didn’t allow a run for the 26th straight game in a save situation. That is the Padres record for runless saves to open the season. Trevor Hoffman opened the 1996 season with 23 straight scoreless saves.

In his 26 saves, Yates has given up 10 hits and issued six walks. His two strikeouts Tuesday night raised his total in save situations to 41.

So in addition to having a 0.00 earned run average in save situations, Yates has a 0.615 WHIP with a 4.1-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio while averaging 14.2 strikeouts per nine innings.

Yates now has 39 saves as a Padre, tying him for 10th with Craig Kimbrel on the Padres’ list of career leaders.

Worth noting

• 3B Manny Machado was 2-for-4 Tuesday night to extend his hitting streak to seven games. He has at least one extra-base hit in five of those games, with eight total. And he has multiple hits in five games during the streak -- going 15-for-30 (.500) with four doubles, four homers, eight RBIs and 12 runs scored. He has a .531 on-base percentage and a 1.033 slugging percentage for a 1.564 OPS during the streak. Over the past seven games, his batting average has climbed 30 points to .268.

• Francisco Mejía’s two-run homer Tuesday night comes at a time when fellow catcher Austin Hedges is again struggling with the bat. Since poking his head above the Mendoza Line at .202 on May 28, Hedges has gone 6-for-44 with one double and three RBIs while striking out 22 times and drawing three walks for a .136/.191/.182 slash line. His batting average has slipped back to .185.

• 1B Eric Hosmer was 0-for-4 Tuesday night, snapping his streak of reaching base in 24 straight starts. Ryan Klesko holds the Padres’ record for reaching base in consecutive games at 56.

• CF Manuel Margott is 3-for-5 in his last four games with two doubles, two steals and three runs scored.