Estrada sets strikeout record in Padres win
Jurickson Profar homered and reliever Jeremiah Estrada extended his club-record strikeout streak to 13 straight batters, the most in the expansion era, for the San Diego Padres, who beat the Miami Marlins, 4-0, on Tuesday (Wednesday in Manila) for their third straight win.
Estrada achieved his milestone by striking out the side in the ninth. He celebrated by pounding his chest and glove, and blowing a kiss to the sky.
A few minutes later, he got a Gatorade shower from his teammates. Knuckleballer Matt Waldron pitched seven impressive innings — his longest stint in the majors — for the win.
The Padres’ win streak follows five straight home losses, including a three-game sweep at the hands of the Colorado Rockies, who have the NL’s second-worst record, and two games in which they were overpowered by the New York Yankees, who have the AL’s best record. The Marlins have the NL’s worst record.
The Padres are just 13-18 at home. Profar continues to have a great season after signing a $1-million, one-year deal to return to the Padres.
He went deep against Jesús Luzardo with one out in the first and Fernando Tatis Jr. aboard on a single, with the ball sailing over the outstretched glove of leaping center fielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. It was his eighth homer.
The Padres hit three straight singles with one out in the fifth, with Profar’s base hit bringing in Luis Arraez, who was traded from Miami to San Diego on May 4. Donovan Solano had three hits, including an RBI double in the eighth.
Waldron (3-5) held the Marlins to six hits while striking out eight and walking none. Luzardo (2-4) allowed seven hits in six innings. He struck out four and walked two.
The Padres held a moment of silence for Bill Walton, the basketball Hall of Famer and San Diego-area native who died of cancer on Monday at 71.
The big screen showed a picture of a smiling Walton in a Padres jersey with his arms upraised and a baseball in his right hand before he threw a ceremonial first pitch in 2012, with a background of a psychedelic image that was a nod to his love for the Grateful Dead.