Richard Baffles the A’s, Padres Hold On For Victory

The Padres were able to avoid the sweep at the hands of the Oakland A’s, behind the left arm of Clayton Richard. Richard’s stellar performance allowed the Padres to escape Oak-town with a 2-1 win. It was Clayton’s best start of the year, and the Padres scraped together enough runs to win.

The Padres got on the board in the third, on an RBI fielder’s choice by Will Venable. Everth Cabrera led the inning off with a single, and advanced all the way to third on a sacrifice bunt by Alexi Amarista. On the play, A’s pitcher Bartolo Colon attempted to make the play, and threw the ball into right field for a two-base error. He left the game with an injury to his side.

Meanwhile, Richard was at his best, winning his second consecutive start on the road. He pitched 7.2 innings of shutout ball, allowing just five hits. Richard departed with two outs in the 8th, after allowing a single to Jonny Gomes.

The Padres pushed across a pivotal in the ninth, when Logan Forsythe scored on a wild pitch. Forsythe entered the game as a pinch-runner for Carlos Quentin, who lead off the inning with a double.

Huston Street came on in the ninth, and struggled to preserve the win. Street allowed an RBI single to Coco Crisp, and it pushed the tying run to third. However, Street was able to get Jemile Weeks to strike out to preserve the win for the Padres. The Padres actually had a winning record on the road trip, at 5-4. The Padres will return home tomorrow, to battle the Texas Rangers in a three-game set.