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Padres close out road trip with finale against Red Sox

Jun 22, 2011 - 2:32 PM (Sports Network) - Fresh off a sorely needed victory, the San Diego Padres will close out what's been a very challenging road trip with this afternoon's finale of a three-game series with the powerful Boston Red Sox from Fenway Park.

San Diego did get its current nine-game trek off to a strong start, registering a 3-1 win at Colorado on June 13, but then proceeded to lose six straight times that included a 14-5 rout at the hands of the Red Sox in Monday's opener of this set. The Padres were able to bounce back strongly last night, however, and ended their slide with a hard-fought 5-4 triumph.

With the contest tied at 4-4, Chase Headley led off the seventh inning for San Diego with a single off Red Sox reliever Dan Wheeler and took third on Jesus Guzman's ground-rule double two batters later. After Orlando Hudson was intentionally walk, former Boston farmhand Anthony Rizzo hit a broken-bat grounder to first that brought home Headley with the go-ahead run.

Rizzo was one of three top-level prospects the Red Sox sent to San Diego this past winter in exchange for All-Star first baseman Adrian Gonzalez.

The Padres then protected their one-run edge with outstanding work out of the bullpen, as winning pitcher Chad Qualls, Mike Adams and Heath Bell combined for 3 1/3 scoreless innings of work.

San Diego had a 4-1 lead after 2 1/2 innings, but the Red Sox scored single runs in the third, fourth and sixth frames to draw even. Gonzalez knocked in the tying run with a two-out single off Qualls in the sixth.

"Our guys hung in there," said Padres manager Bud Black. "Our guys keep playing, we don't get down. That's sort of the nature of our club."

Kevin Youkilis went 4-for-5 with an RBI double for Boston, which lost for only the third time in its last 17 games. The Red Sox haven't been dealt consecutive defeats since a four-game skid from May 29-June 1.

Boston will attempt to rebound this afternoon and add to the misery of Padres scheduled starter Clayton Richard, who'll be entering the finale seeking to end a string of five consecutive losing decisions.

Richard has lost all four of his June starts and hasn't notched a victory since May 16 at Arizona. The left-hander owns an unwanted 2-9 record on the season, tied for the most losses in the majors, and the Padres have gone a troubling 3-12 in the games in which he's pitched this year.

The 27-year-old has often been the victim of bad luck, as he yielded just three runs over a 14-inning span in back-to-back setbacks to Colorado and Washington on June 6 and 11, games in which the Padres scored only a single run combined. Richard wasn't sharp his last time out, though, surrendering six runs (five earned) and 10 hits through five innings to fall to Minnesota last Friday.

Richard has opposed the Red Sox once previously, a one-inning relief stint while with the White Sox in 2008. He permitted one run and two hits in that short outing.

While Richard has often been plagued by a lack of run support, his mound opponent this afternoon has usually benefited by playing behind Boston's major league-leading offense.

The Red Sox have scored six or more runs in each of John Lackey's five wins in 2011, which helps explain the veteran righty's .500 record despite a poor 7.02 earned run average in 10 starts. During his current three-start winning streak, Boston has amassed a a total of 32 runs.

Lackey has pitched better as of late, however, and did last eight innings while striking out five without a walk in Friday's 10-4 decision over Milwaukee. In his previous start, the one-time All-Star racked up eight strikeouts over six innings in a 16-4 rout at Toronto on June 11.

The 32-year-old has never previously faced the Padres over his 10-year tenure in the majors and sports a 3-2 record and a 7.22 ERA in five Fenway Park starts this season.

Boston is 7-4 in 11 all-time meetings with San Diego and took two of three games from the Friars in the Padres' only other visit to Fenway Park, which took place in 2004.