News
Cavalry comes late as Friars edge Brewers
Padres win with four-run rally in seventh to take series
By Corey Brock / MLB.com
08/13/09 1:00 AM ET
MILWAUKEE -- No matter what happened Wednesday, Heath Bell was going to stick to one plan, one approach and one completely linear way of thinking.And, as it turned out, one pitch as well.
"Let's roll with the hard stuff," Bell said.
Facing Milwaukee's Mike Cameron with two outs in the ninth inning and the tying run at third base, Bell, the Padres' All-Star closer, thought back to a similar situation against the same hitter just 12 days ago.
But instead of feeding Cameron a few benders, the high-risk, high-reward curveball, Bell opted to go in a different direction, which is why the Padres were able to hang on for a 6-5 victory over the Brewers before a crowd of 38,753 at Miller Park.
Whereas on Aug. 1, when Bell bounced back from a 3-1 deficit in the count with two big curveballs to strike out Cameron in a 4-2 victory, Bell opted to rely more on pure heat on Wednesday, feeding Cameron eight consecutive fastballs.
The last one ended up in the glove of third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff, a towering pop out that allowed the Padres to win for the 11th time in their past 15 games as Bell pumped his fist into his glove, savoring his 29th save of the season.
"Last week, I threw him a lot of benders [curveballs] and I think that he was looking at it, 'Where's that bender?' I think he was looking for a curveball," Bell said. "That's why I went all hard stuff."
Bell locked down the save after allowing a two-out double to Prince Fielder earlier in the inning. Rookie Alcides Escobar then pinch-run for Fielder, stole second base and moved to third when catcher Nick Hundley's throw ended up in center field.
"That put a little stress on us," Padres manager Bud Black said.
But nothing Bell couldn't get out of, though the biggest save of the night for the Padres (49-66) might have come from their offense, which turned a 3-2 deficit into 6-2 lead in the seventh inning with four runs.
No, it wasn't quite the explosion of Tuesday when the Padres set both season highs in runs (13) and hits (22), but it was substantial -- especially for a team that's struggled with scoring with runners in scoring position.
"To have those innings, you've got to keep the line moving," Black said. "Whether it's a walk or a hit, we're sustaining innings. When Eck and Henry [David Eckstein and Henry Blanco] got back [from the disabled list], we seemed to play better."
During this blissful 15-game stretch, the Padres have scored five or more runs in seven victories. On Wednesday, Kouzmanoff had three hits and an important RBI single off Milwaukee reliever Todd Coffey in the sixth inning that tied the score at 2.
"The team didn't lose this tonight, I lost it," Coffey said. "I blew it twice. I had a runner at third [in the sixth inning] and the guy gets a hit and ties the game. Then the team comes back out there, hits the ball and gives us the lead again, and I give up three runs [in the seventh]. That's unacceptable. I cannot do that. Tonight's loss is on me."
The Padres had six hits with runners in scoring position. Adrian Gonzalez, who set a club record for hits (six) in a nine-inning game on Tuesday, had two doubles. Will Venable drove in two runs.
"We've got a collection of guys putting good at-bats together," Padres left fielder Chase Headley said. "That's what we weren't doing earlier in the year. You're seeing a lot of guys up there with confidence."
San Diego starting pitcher Kevin Correia allowed three runs in six innings and didn't get a decision, though he did come up with his 15th quality start of the season. He allowed a pair of two-strike singles to Jason Kendall and Cameron that led to runs, but little else.
"I felt pretty comfortable with all my pitches. I felt my command was better than the past couple of starts," Correia said. "You go up and down that lineup and those are good hitters. It's tough to navigate through them, even when you have two strikes."
Corey Brock is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
