Cole Hamels shines as Philadelphia Phillies defeat San Diego Padres 2-0 – MLB Update
Cole Hamels played a significant part in helping the Philadelphia Phillies defeat the San Diego Padres 2-0 at Petco Park, San Diego on Friday, April 22.
Hamels was given a standing ovation as he walked off the field after pitching his eighth inning against the scoreless Padres. This was the Phillies second win against the team which has been shut-out six times already. That is the highest number of shut-outs
in Major League Baseball this season. For the Phillies, this was the second shut-out they handed to the Padres.
Roy Oswalt was the key player in their last encounter that along with three other relievers produced a 3-0 win for Philadelphia. The Phillies have been collecting a lot of victories, thanks to their pitching staff and fortunately they seem to be giving one
flawless performance after another.
"No matter when you face them, you are going to be in for it," San Diego manager Bud Black said. "You have to be on your game to score runs against these guys. Runs are hard to come by."
Hamels managed to throw 126 pitches, as with a runner perched on first base, he was successful in retiring Jorge Cantu who was the final out in the eighth inning.
"I like pitching in any ballpark," Hamels said who was the World Series Most Valuable Player in 2008. "Truly, I pitch well in small ballparks, big ballparks, good weather, bad weather. It's just coming out and trying to get the team. It's not necessarily
how big the ballpark is, it's who you're facing. I've been able to do well against certain teams, and the Padres are on that list."
With two outs in the third inning, Ryan Howard backed up Hamels by belting a two run triple against Clayton Richard. In total, Hamels was successful in striking-out eight players and ended up walking three. The ninth inning was the first save for Ryan Madson.
It will be interesting to see how the Phillies can carry their winning momentum into their next game. The Padres put in a good performance, but it was not enough to contain the Phillies’ offence.
Tags: