Richards pitched six effective innings to lead the Miami Marlins to a 3-1 victory over the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday night.
”It’s great, it’s good to get that one out of the way,” Richards said. ”It’s been too long so it’s good to get it done.”
Richards (1-3) allowed two hits in his seventh major league start. The 25-year-old right-hander struck out two and walked three.
”He’s been a good story, he’s thrown the ball well,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. ”Obviously Pitcher of the Year last year in the minor leagues, really good reports on his makeup and how he works, competes, and pays attention so it’s good to see guys like that have success.”
Richards walked the first two batters of the game before settling in.
”I got a little too excited for the game, a little amped up and lost mechanics,” Richards said. ”I was able to settle down and keep going.”
Brandon Crawford’s groundout in the first inning drove in the only run for the Giants, who had just three hits.
”Three hits, that’s not going to work Clelin Ferrell Jersey ,” manager Bruce Bochy said. ”We had a hard time getting guys on base and just getting something going. That’s the ballgame.”
Kyle Barraclough pitched a perfect ninth for his fourth save in six chances. He has not allowed a run over his last 14 games and a career-best 13 2/3 innings.
JT Riddle had a two-run double for Miami, and Starlin Castro had two hits and knocked in a run.
”Just enough,” Mattingly said.
San Francisco right-hander Chris Stratton (7-4) worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the second inning, but ran into trouble in the third when he again loaded the bases. This time, Castro singled in Derek Dietrich and Riddle followed with a two-run double to right field.
”I let it get away from me there,” Stratton said. ”I thought I made some really good pitches. Give them credit.”
Stratton then retired his final 13 batters. He allowed four hits in seven innings.
RIDDLE’S BIG HIT
Riddle’s two-run double gave him his first multi-RBI game of the season and eighth of his career.
”(Stratton) left me a fastball over the middle of the plate after I had swung through two,” Riddle said. ”I was a little late on those so I was thinking he might come back with another one, he did, left it over the middle, and I put a pretty good swing on it.”
TRAINER’S ROOM
Giants: 1B Brandon Belt (appendix) is expected to join the team in Los Angeles later this week after making progress from emergency surgery on June 2. ”He soft-tossed in Arizona, threw, did quite a bit of baseball activities http://www.raidersauthorizedshops.com/authentic-josh-jacobs-jersey ,” Bochy said. ”Tomorrow he’ll take regular batting practice so that’s the big step. If he feels fine doing that, then we’re getting close on him.”
UP NEXT
Giants: LHP Andrew Suarez (2-4, 5.06 ERA) will start the third game of the series on Wednesday in his hometown for the first time in front of a number of family members and friends.
Marlins: LHP Caleb Smith (5-6, 3.70) is 5-4 with a 2.70 ERA over his last nine starts.
Zack Godley followed one of his worst outings of the season with perhaps his best. Perfect timing for Arizona, too.
Godley pitched six effective innings in his 10th win, helping the Diamondbacks beat the San Diego Padres 3-1 on Friday night.
Arizona improved to 2-6 on its 10-game homestand and regained sole possession of first place in the NL West from the Los Angeles Dodgers, who lost 3-2 to the Angels.
Godley (10-6) allowed one run and four hits while improving to 5-1 in his last six starts. He was rocked for seven runs in four innings in a loss to San Francisco in his last outing.
”The way this game works you kind of have to let it go and move on,” Godley said. ”Baseball is a short-memory sport.”
Asked what was working, he said: ”my curve and my defense.”
Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said Godley’s command was ”as good as I can remember.”
”There’s been a couple of games so far this year where he has had outings like that,” Lovullo said. ”But today’s was one of the better ones that I’ve seen in a long time.”
Steven Souza Jr. drove in two runs with a single and fielder’s choice in his second game back from the disabled list. Souza has played in just 17 games this season due to a right pectoral injury.
Joey Lucchesi (4-4) retired 14 in a row before Arizona scored twice in the sixth. Lucchesi went 5 1/3 innings, allowing two runs and three hits with two strikeouts, one walk and two hit batters.
He grazed A.J. Pollock with a pitch with the bases loaded to bring in the tying run.
Nick Ahmed doubled Johnathan Abram Jersey , singled and scored twice for the Diamondbacks. Brad Boxberger threw a perfect ninth for his 21st save in 25 tries.
The Padres have lost 14 of 18.
Lucchesi’s first big league hit helped the Padres take the lead in the third. The rookie singled to left, advanced to third on Travis Jankowski’s long single to the right-field corner and scored when Carlos Asuaji grounded out.
The Diamondbacks threatened in the first when David Peralta was hit by a pitch and Paul Goldschmidt lashed a ground-rule double that bounced into the Arizona bullpen. But they came up empty when Pollock grounded out and Souza struck out looking.
Arizona didn’t get another baserunner until Godley drew a leadoff walk in the sixth. The Diamondbacks loaded the bases with one-out singles by Ahmed and Goldschmidt and Lucchesi hit Pollock to bring in the tying run.
That was it for Lucchesi. Reliever Adam Cimber bobbled Souza’s slow grounder and still got the out at first, but Ahmed scored and the Diamondbacks led 2-1.
”He threw the ball well,” Padres manager Andy Green said of Lucchesi. ”We didn’t do too much for him offensively. You get to that sixth inning, his pitch count is low. You want to see him attack that inning. The thing that hurts him is the walk to Godley. Outside of that I think it was a very good day for him.”
Ahmed led off the eighth with a double and scored on Souza’s two-out single.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Padres: RHP Phil Hughes (right rhomboid strain) was reinstated from the 10-day disabled list and RHP Kirby Yates returned from paternity leave. RHPs Kazuhisa Makita and Robert Stock were optioned to Triple-A El Paso.
Diamondbacks: RHP Randall Delgado (strained left oblique) was reinstated from the 60-day DL. RHP Fernando Salas was designated for assignment.
NOT SIGNING
California high school shortstop Matt McLain, Arizona’s first-round pick and the 25th overall player taken in the draft, informed the Diamondbacks he will not sign with them and will instead enroll at UCLA. The Diamondbacks will get a compensatory pick, the 27th overall, next year.
UP NEXT
Arizona LHP Robbie Ray (3-1. 4.89 ERA) makes his third start since returning from the disabled list and San Diego counters with RHP Tyler Ross (5-6, 3.89 ERA) on Saturday night in the third game of the four-game series.