Column: Home sweet home? Padres happily keep winning on road

PHILADELPHIA — 

Take that, conventional wisdom. Hit the showers, frequent feeling. The Padres are not definitely into stale ol’ predictability when they pack baggage, hustle to the airport and start off participating in baseball absent from Petco Park.

So much this time, they are locating baseball contentment in unfamiliar places as opposing crowds grump and growl. Comfortable beds? Overrated. Silky commutes? Those people kinds of luxuries are for others missing video game-working day grit.

The Padres received yet another road collection Thursday — going to 5-1-1 on the season — with a 2- shutout of the Phillies at Citizens Financial institution Park.

“I know right after very last year, we’re certainly stressing the value of coming in all set to perform on the road,” explained catcher Austin Nola, who chipped in a single as each starter collected a strike. “How you perform on the highway normally dictates how perfectly you do shifting forward.

“If you can play properly on the street, you can string items together and get on a fantastic run.”

Take into consideration the Padres stringing and stringing some more.

It’s not just what the crew is performing from a get-decline viewpoint when the planes and buses beckon. It is how they executing it, moving to 14-7 on the road to greatest the household mark of 10-7.

The Padres entered the three-sport finale against the Battling Phils, Bryce Harper-a lot less but imposing offensively nevertheless, No. 3 in baseball for operate creation in road online games (5.25) and No. 24 in their own cozy confines.

Reason? Schmeason.

“That’s a difficult 1 to put a finger on,” performing manager Ryan Christenson stated. “I never know if I have an response for why we have played (better) or scored a lot more runs on the highway. Possibly it’s just one particular of those people issues.”

For now, this is not the clubhouse edition of The Riddle of the Sphinx. The Padres are not noodling it by means of or dissecting factors to have an understanding of the hows and whys of the sizzling start out when time zones shift.

Some of it is a strangle-lock defense. Some of it is timely hitting, somewhat than an abundance of it. Some of it is baserunning that proves extra enhanced and aggressive by the day.

A entire whole lot of it is commencing pitching, which has develop into the mightiest selection of post-nationwide anthem arms in baseball.

Against the Phillies in the rubber match, two runs have been plenty of. Which is due to the fact Yu Darvish stored the good quality commences rolling together by scattering 6 hits harmlessly throughout seven innings.

Darvish entered the recreation with a 1.37 Period and .145 batting common by opponents in San Diego and 7.91 Era and .313 clip when the travel alarm clock seems. A single dreadful highway recreation skews his numbers, but however.

“I believe San Diego is just much too fantastic,” Darvish mentioned as a result of interpreter Shingo Horie with a wry grin. “When you go to other areas, it is not as best as San Diego.”

Then Darvish identified as on explanation to pinch hit for humor.

“Me and (Nola) have been genuinely on the similar page and likely about attacking these hitters,” he claimed. “I really don’t assume I can give you a superior response on why we’re much better on the street. But what I can convey to you is that this specific staff, that we have this calendar year, I think there’s a really excellent bond in between us gamers.

“Maybe that has to do with how effectively we’re actively playing.”

When the offense is not cranking out highway operates, the mix of currently being solid in each and every other region has masked any operate-scoring deficiencies.

The Padres failed to transform their very first 3 hits Thursday into runs, but converted their next a few into two throughout the fourth inning. Jurickson Profar, Wil Myers and Robinson Cano sprayed singles to proper off starter Kyle Gibson with the last plating the initial operate.

Then Ha-seong Kim, relocated to No. 8 in the lineup soon after keeping down the 2-hole the earlier a few video games, lifted a sacrifice fly to left to score Myers.

The other issues, the defense, the conclusion-making, the hustle and a clutch four-out help you save by nearer Taylor Rogers for his MLB-main 15th help you save did the relaxation.

“If there’s a single issue you can issue to, there’s just a bunch of professionals in this clubhouse,” said Rogers, presenting a remedy as good as any. “Every video game is its individual different activity. We have received games late. We have received games early. … We don’t get way too significant or also lower.

“Resilience has merit. Participating in without our manager (Bob Melvin), playing without the need of (All-Star Fernando) Tatis (Jr.), winning on the highway.”

The Padres outscored the Phillies just 5-3 in three online games, but walked absent with the sequence anyway.

They’re the just-more than enough bunch. Just sufficient offense, as each individual starter recorded a strike but only Manny Machado experienced more than a person (2). Darvish opened up the video game by surrendering a broken-bat single to Rhys Hoskins even though hitting just 90-91 mph.

As the sport wore on, Darvish barely wore down. The gun consistently was hitting 96 on fastballs as he afterwards topped out at 97.

“I went in the bullpen (pregame) and it was not that very good, to be sincere with you,” Darvish claimed. “Came into the match and I felt a minor little bit sort of significant, for every se. As the recreation went on I was ready to decide on it up.”

Meanwhile, the Padres picked up another street earn and sequence.

Household sweet …

Oh, in no way thoughts.