Peavy’s four-hitter leads Padres past Reds, 3-1

Published 4:40 am Monday, May 18, 2009

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Jake Peavy had one goal in mind after Saturday night’s 16-inning game: Pitch a complete game.

Peavy not only accomplished it, he was dominant in pitching a four-hitter to lead the San Diego Padres to a three-game sweep of the Cincinnati Reds with a 3-1 victory Sunday.

Peavy (3-5) gave the Padres’ bullpen a much needed rest after the club used eight pitchers in Saturday night’s 6-5 win. That one took 5 hours, 14 minutes, exactly three hours longer than Sunday afternoon.

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‘‘Jake never let up, never gave them the opportunity to gain any momentum,’’ manager Bud Black said. ‘‘He was in the zone with all his pitches.’’

Peavy was efficient, throwing 92 of 122 pitches for strikes.

‘‘They needed it,’’ Peavy said of his bullpen. ‘‘You always want to finish what you start. I appreciate Buddy giving me the opportunity. The boys are beat up.’’

Kevin Kouzmanoff provided most of the San Diego offense with two RBIs, including a leadoff homer in the eighth off Bronson Arroyo (5-3).

Peavy received a loud ovation when he took the mound in the ninth inning. Black visited him after a two-out single to Jerry Hairston Jr., and there were a smattering of boos followed by cheers when he left Peavy in the game.

‘‘I didn’t feel that he was taxed at any one time through the first eight innings,’’ Black said. ‘‘He had the game under control. I thought he was throwing the ball as well in the eighth as he was in the first.’’

Peavy won for the first time in six starts and ran his career mark against Cincinnati to 6-0 with a 2.28 ERA. It was his first complete game of the season and seventh of his career.

‘‘Once we got the lead, I was aggressive and mixed in some good breaking balls and some change-ups,’’ Peavy said. ‘‘Pitching with the lead is different. When you know that you have two runs on the board and they have to score three to beat you, it’s a different mindset.’’

After Chris Dickerson led off the game with a double, Peavy retired 17 straight batters before Dickerson’s solo homer with two outs in the sixth inning cut the lead to 2-1. Peavy also allowed a single to Ryan Hanigan in the eighth and Hairston’s single in the ninth.

Peavy struck out eight and did not walk a batter to win for the first time since a 2-1 victory April 16 at the New York Mets. His last complete game was April 5, 2008, against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

‘‘He was getting ahead in the count and he does a good job of hiding the ball,’’ Hairston said. ‘‘He’s their ace for a reason.’’

The teams needed only three total pitchers after combining for 15 in their game that ended early Sunday morning. The last time the Padres swept a three-game at home against the Reds was June 16-18, 2000.

San Diego won three straight games for just the second time this season. Coming into the series, the Padres had dropped six consecutive games and 19 of 23.

‘‘We went through a bad stretch,’’ Black said. ‘‘This was a good step in correcting how we’ve played.’’

Arroyo went seven innings and allowed all three runs on seven hits.

‘‘I got beat by a better performance,’’ Arroyo said. ‘‘I was struggling early with command. I was all over the place. I felt better as the game went along.’’

Kouzmanoff, who singled in a run in San Diego’s two-run first, knocked Arroyo out of the game with his eighth-inning homer that gave the Padres a 3-1 lead.

‘‘Jake pitched a great game keeping them to just one run and it’s our job to come up offensively and do our part,’’ Kouzmanoff said.

Kouzmanoff went 3 for 4 and is 9 for 13 in his career against Arroyo.

San Diego scored two runs in the first after Arroyo started the inning by walking Drew Macias and hitting Edgar Gonzalez. With two outs, Kouzmanoff singled in one run and Jody Gerut followed with a run-scoring single.

Arroyo walked the bases loaded in the fourth, but with two outs escaped the inning when Gold Glove second baseman Brandon Phillips made a diving catch of Adrian Gonzalez’s line drive.

Notes: The Reds are the only NL team against whom Peavy has not lost. San Diego is 9-1 in Peavy’s 11 career starts against Cincinnati. … Reds 1B Joey Votto sat out Sunday after leaving Saturday night’s game in the fourth inning due to mild dizziness. Votto, who is hitting .366, will be examined Monday in Cincinnati. Since May 7, he has missed five starts with the flu and left two games with dizziness.

Sunday’s Game

Padres 5, Reds 3

Cincinnati San Diego

ab r h bi ab r h bi

Dickrsn cf 4 1 2 1 Macias cf 2 1 1 0

HrstnJr 3b 4 0 1 0 EGnzlz 2b 2 1 0 0

Bruce rf 4 0 0 0 Eckstn 2b 0 0 0 0

Phillips 2b 3 0 0 0 AdGnzl 1b 4 0 0 0

L.Nix lf 3 0 0 0 Headly lf 4 0 1 0

ARosls 1b 3 0 0 0 Kzmnff 3b 4 1 3 2

Hanign c 3 0 1 0 Gerut rf 4 0 1 1

Janish ss 3 0 0 0 JoWilsn ss 4 0 0 0

Arroyo p 2 0 0 0 Blanco c 3 0 0 0

Herrer p 0 0 0 0 Peavy p 3 0 0 0

Tavers ph 1 0 0 0

Totals 30 1 4 1 Totals 30 3 6 3

Cincinnati 000 001 000 — 1

San Diego 200 000 01x — 3

DP—San Diego 1. LOB—Cincinnati 2, San Diego 8. 2B—Dickerson (2), Macias (2). HR—Dickerson (2), Kouzmanoff (2).

IP H R ER BB SO

Cincinnati

Arroyo L,5-3 7 6 3 3 4 4

Herrera 1 0 0 0 0 0

San Diego

Peavy W,3-5 9 4 1 1 0 8

Arroyo pitched to 1 batter in the 8th. HBP—by Arroyo (E.Gonzalez). Umpires—Home, Brian Runge; First, Bill Miller; Second, Derryl Cousins; Third, Jim Joyce. T—2:14. A—21,123 (42,691).

Saturday’s Game

Padres 6, Reds 5, 16 innings

Cincinnati San Diego

ab r h bi ab r h bi

Tavers cf 7 0 0 0 Giles rf 5 1 1 1

HrstnJr 3b 7 1 1 0 Eckstn 2b 7 1 1 0

Votto 1b 2 0 0 0 AdGnzl 1b 7 1 1 0

ARosls 1b 4 1 1 0 Hairstn lf 7 1 3 0

Phillips 2b 6 0 1 1 Gerut cf 7 0 0 2

Bruce rf 7 1 1 2 Kzmnff 3b 5 0 1 0

RHrndz c 5 1 2 0 Hundly c 6 1 2 1

L.Nix lf 6 1 2 2 CBurke ss 3 0 0 0

AlGnzlz ss 6 0 0 0 Headly ph 0 0 0 0

Volquez p 2 0 0 0 JoWilsn ss 2 0 0 0

Lincoln p 1 0 0 0 Geer p 1 0 0 0

Rhodes p 0 0 0 0 Thtchr p 0 0 0 0

Wethrs p 0 0 0 0 GBurke p 0 0 0 0

Herrer p 0 0 0 0 EGnzlz ph 1 1 1 1

Dickrsn ph 0 0 0 0 Merdth p 0 0 0 0

Burton p 0 0 0 0 Macias ph 0 0 0 1

DMcDn ph 1 0 0 0 Bell p 0 0 0 0

Owings p 1 0 0 0 Mujica p 0 0 0 0

Blanco ph 1 0 0 0

Grgrsn p 0 0 0 0

Correia ph 1 0 0 0

Perdm p 1 0 0 0

Totals 55 5 8 5 Totals 54 6 10 6

Cincinnati 000 001 000 — 1

San Diego 200 000 01x — 3

Two outs when winning run scored.

E—Jo.Wilson (3). DP—San Diego 1. LOB—Cincinnati 9, San Diego 17. 2B—Hairston Jr. (7), L.Nix (10), Eckstein (10), Hairston (9). HR—Bruce (11), L.Nix (3), Giles (2), Hundley (2), E.Gonzalez (3). CS—Phillips (3). S—Jo.Wilson, Geer. SF—Gerut.

IP H R ER BB SO

Cincinnati

Volquez 5 2-3 4 2 2 3 2

Lincoln H,1 2-3 1 1 1 0 1

Rhodes H,7 2-3 0 1 1 1 0

Weathers BS, 1-1 2-3 1 1 1 3 0

Herrera 1-3 0 0 0 0 1

Burton 2 1 0 0 2 2

Owings L,3-4 5 2-3 3 1 1 3 5

San Diego

Geer 5 2-3 5 5 5 2 2

Thatcher 1-3 0 0 0 0 1

G.Burke 1 0 0 0 0 1

Meredith 1 1 0 0 0 0

Bell 1 0 0 0 2 1

Mujica 1 0 0 0 0 1

Gregerson 3 2 0 0 2 3

Perdomo W,1-0 3 0 0 0 1 1

Rhodes pitched to 1 batter in the 8th. HBP—by Burton (Kouzmanoff). Umpires—Home, Jim Joyce; First, Brian Runge; Second, Bill Miller; Third, Derryl Cousins. T—5:14. A—31,001 (42,691).