Padres' franchise-record 7 HRs overpower Jays
TORONTO -- It was a record-setting day of firsts for the Padres at Rogers Centre on Saturday as they put up a season-high 19 runs, including multiple runs in seven of their nine innings at the plate.
The Padres’ seven home runs set a new franchise record, topping the previous high of six set in July 1998. From homers to multiple walks with the bases loaded, the Padres steamrolled the Blue Jays’ pitching staff from start to finish en route to their 19-4 win.
By the time the dust settled, Toronto catcher Luke Maile had taken the mound and Padres reliever Phil Maton, who stayed in to hit after San Diego gave up the designated hitter, had recorded his first MLB hit.
“Those are fun days. Those are good days, to score that many runs, to hit that many home runs,” manager Andy Green said after the win.
Both Wil Myers and Hunter Renfroe went deep twice, giving Myers his ninth and Renfroe his 14th home run on the season. Myers’ second of the game was the deepest ball hit all afternoon at 432 feet and it almost kissed the roof before soaring into the second deck in straightaway center.
“It’s fun to see Wil really swing it well. Everybody’s excited to see him get going,” Green said after the win. “Hunter’s been taking a lot of good swings. It was up and down the lineup all day, everybody taking good swings.”
Out of a crowded field of candidates, Austin Hedges had the biggest at-bat of the game with a mammoth grand slam to left field in the fourth inning that measured 426 feet. Hedges hadn’t homered in his last 18 games entering this series, but now has home runs in back to back games.
Speaking of going back to back, the Padres ranked in the middle of the pack when it comes to home runs entering Saturday, but they hadn’t gone back to back yet this year. That changed in the top of the second inning, when Myers and Ian Kinsler launched a pair of solo shots.
They did it again in the eighth inning when Eric Hosmer and Renfroe went back to back again. Myers’ second home run came two batters later, after Ty France beat out an infield single to make that dinger a two-run shot.
In the non-homer division, San Diego’s No. 9 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline, Josh Naylor moved up to bat second on Saturday afternoon and he immediately rewarded Green for the vote of confidence, ripping a loud double off the wall in center field in the top of the first inning for his first career MLB hit.
"What he did today, that’s just who Josh is. He rakes," said Saturday’s starter and fellow Canadian Cal Quantrill. "He made a fantastic play out in right field for me, so that was just a bonus. That was awesome. I’m so happy for him and I’m glad we were able to come here and do it."
The 408-foot double left Naylor’s bat at 108.5 mph and smacked off the wall halfway up in center. He also added a pair of singles, giving himself a 3-for-6 day with two RBIs.
Quantrill earns first win in front of friends and family
Quantrill owned the spotlight entering play on Saturday as he earned his first MLB win in Toronto -- where his father, Paul Quantrill, pitched for six seasons -- just over 60 miles from his family’s home in Port Hope, Ontario.
“It was definitely his best day in the big leagues so far,” Green said. “His stuff’s good, good enough to pitch here. We have a lot of confidence, as time moves on, that he’s going to be a big part of what we do. He’s going to pitch in big games for us.”
Nobody appreciated the offensive outburst more than Quantrill, who turned in six strong innings with three runs allowed on just two hits. The young right-hander walked two batters and struck out nine, giving him a new career high in his fourth start.
“It was awesome. It was fun. I know it’s a little easier when the team puts up 19 runs, but it was fantastic,” Quantrill said. “It was just everything I could have hoped for, minus a couple of pitches.”