Alfaro hits first Major League home-run in loss to Padres

Rebecca Serad

August 16 2017

114 mph off the bat and 415 feet.@_JorgeAlfaro11's first home run was CRUSHED! pic.twitter.com/HWnlUTj6I0

— Phillies (@Phillies) August 16, 2017

By: Rebecca Serad, Sports Talk Philly Staff

Final: San Diego Padres 8, Philadelphia Phillies 4 ❖ Attendance: 23,368

SAN DIEGO — The Philadelphia Phillies (43-74) came into tonight's game aiming for a win to tie the series against the San Diego Padres (53-66) at one game apiece. That was not the case. In fact, the loss guaranteed the first season series loss to the Padres since 2006. Mark Leiter Jr. had a spot start in place of the injured Vince Velasquez. He allowed eight runs, but only four were earned. Poor defense behind Leiter in the fifth inning led to the game being put out of reach. Relievers Jesen Therrien and Hoby Milner combined for three scoreless innings.

For the most part, the Phillies' bats were quiet. Jorge Alfaro hit his first Big League homer in the fifth inning. According to Statcast, via the television broadcasters, the exit velocity on the home-run was 114 MPH. That's the highest exit velocity for a Phillies hit this season. Rhys Hoskins homered again tonight; he now has three homers in the last two games. It seems that he's getting into a groove and will help rejuvenate the underperforming offense.

WP: Dinelson Lamet (7-4, 4.78 ERA) ❖ LP: Mark Leiter Jr. (1-3, 4.38 ERA)

Hub: Game Summary ❖ Starting Pitchers ❖ At the Plate ❖ Bullpen ❖ What's Next

Game Summary

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
PHI	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	2	4	6	2
SD	3	0	0	1	4	0	0	0	X	8	8	0

The Padres' bats struck first in tonight's game. With one out, Carlos Asuaje walked. After a fly out by Jose Pirela, shortstop Yangervis Solarte doubled to left field. It was the first real misplay in left field by Rhys Hoskins. Asuaje scored on the play. Wil Myers walked to put runners on first and second with two outs for Cory Spangenberg. He doubled to right-center field to score Solarte and Myers. Hector Sanchez grounded out to end the inning.

The Padres added onto their lead in the fourth inning. Spangenberg led off the inning with a homer to dead-center field. Two outs later, Padres starter Dinelson Lamet singled to right field. Phils center fielder Nick Williams made a diving catch for the final out.

The Phillies finally got their first hit in the fifth, and it proved to be an important one. With one out, Maikel Franco was hit by a pitch on his left hand. The 94 mph fastball knocked him down immediately, but Franco ended up staying in the game. One out later, Jorge Alfaro stepped to the plate and hit his first Major League home-run. The line drive over the center field wall marked Alfaro as the sixth Phillie to hit their first Major League homer in 2017. The two-run shot cut the Padres' lead in half. Starter Mark Leiter Jr. struck out to end the inning, but the Phils were back in the game.

The Padres got those runs back in the bottom of the fifth. Asuaje led off the inning with a single. One out later, Solarte walked to put runners on first and second for Myers. He reached base on a fielding error by Franco to load the bases. Spangenberg hit a ground ball to second baseman Cesar Hernandez. The Phils attempted to pull off the double play, but Spangenberg's speed allowed him to be safe, putting runners on first and third. During the at-bat of Sanchez, Spangenberg stole second base. Alfaro's throw went off the glove of Freddy Galvis, which allowed Solarte to score from third. Sanchez hit a two-run homer to right field to give the Padres a 8-2 lead. Hunter Renfroe grounded out for the final out.

The Phillies attempted a late inning comeback. Nick Williams led off the top of the ninth with a single to right field. Rhys Hoskins followed with a home-run to left field. This is his third homer in the last two games. The next three Phillies were retired in order to end the game. Ultimately, this was a case of too little, too late.

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