Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Gyorko's blast leads Padres over Pirates

Rookie second baseman Jedd Gyorko’s three-run homer helps Friars top Bucs

Jedd Gyorko began the season at third base for an injured Chase Headley and then transitioned to second base upon Headley’s return, and everyone wondered how the rookie would handle it. Gyorko hadn’t played second base since his college days at West Virginia, and your prototypical third baseman is there for a reason, generally because of a lack of range.

And then, how does such a move affect the player’s hitting? Having to learn to pivot on the double play, shorten your throw to first base, field your position from an aspect of thinking rather than reacting, and learning to hit major league breaking balls all at the same time?

Nothing rattles Jedd. His three-run bomb in the top of the third inning sealed the deal for the Padres and they went on to beat the Pirates 5-2 on Tuesday.

After Gyorko got the Padres the three run lead, the Pirates got two off of Padres starter Eric Stults in the bottom of the third inning. But that was it for the Pirates offensively, as the Padres came back in the fourth inning for a run, and scored again in the seventh inning to ice the game.

Stults went five innings to get the win, then Tim Stauffer followed with two innings of perfect relief, followed by Nick Vincent in the eighth. Vincent is pitching himself into a possible role as future set-up man, and since closer Huston Street is on personal leave to attend to the death of his grandmother, current set-up man Luke Gregerson closed out the ninth inning for the save.

But this game belonged to Gyorko. Jedd was 3 for 5 and made some spectacular plays in the field. He is from West Virginia, attended the University of West Virginia, and had plenty of friends and family on hand to witness his outstanding performance since Pittsburgh is a short hour and a half drive from Jedd’s home town.

Honorable mention should go to Ronny Cedeno. Cedeno was signed in early August after being released by the Houston Astros and has filled in well since the 50-game suspension of starting shortstop Everth Cabrera.

Not only has Cedeno’s hitting improved under the tutorage of Padres hitting coaches Phil Plantier and Alonzo Powell, his fielding – although it was expected that Cedeno could fill the position defensively with adequate execution – has been much better than expected.

Cedeno went 3 for 4 and made some incredible defensive plays on Tuesday. Other notable offensive efforts include Tommy Medica (2 for 4) and Will Venable (2 for 5). These last games could be promising portents for the 2014 season if the Padres continue their fine run into the end of September.

If you’re the visual type and you want a good video recap of the game (including Gyorko’s home run), MLB.com encourages you to hit this link:

http://wapc.mlb.com/play?content_id=30710727&topic_id=8878764


Notes:

Kyle Blanks might have hurt himself again, falling flat while attempting to get to a ball hit toward the gap on Tuesday. Blanks stayed in for a couple of innings after the play, but Alexi Amarista came in to start the bottom of the sixth inning for Blanks, which isn’t usually considered as a defensive replacement and no double-switch was involved. You’ll know when we know.

Wednesday, the third game of the four-game series kicks off at 4:05 PM PDST. Tyson Ross (3-8, 3.29) will take the bump for the Padres while the Pirates will try to right their ship with Charlie Morton (7-4, 3.54) on the hill. Listen in on radio 1090 AM or catch the visuals on Fox Sports San Diego.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all

Previous article

The vicious cycle of Escondido's abandoned buildings

City staff blames owners for raising rents

Jedd Gyorko began the season at third base for an injured Chase Headley and then transitioned to second base upon Headley’s return, and everyone wondered how the rookie would handle it. Gyorko hadn’t played second base since his college days at West Virginia, and your prototypical third baseman is there for a reason, generally because of a lack of range.

And then, how does such a move affect the player’s hitting? Having to learn to pivot on the double play, shorten your throw to first base, field your position from an aspect of thinking rather than reacting, and learning to hit major league breaking balls all at the same time?

Nothing rattles Jedd. His three-run bomb in the top of the third inning sealed the deal for the Padres and they went on to beat the Pirates 5-2 on Tuesday.

After Gyorko got the Padres the three run lead, the Pirates got two off of Padres starter Eric Stults in the bottom of the third inning. But that was it for the Pirates offensively, as the Padres came back in the fourth inning for a run, and scored again in the seventh inning to ice the game.

Stults went five innings to get the win, then Tim Stauffer followed with two innings of perfect relief, followed by Nick Vincent in the eighth. Vincent is pitching himself into a possible role as future set-up man, and since closer Huston Street is on personal leave to attend to the death of his grandmother, current set-up man Luke Gregerson closed out the ninth inning for the save.

But this game belonged to Gyorko. Jedd was 3 for 5 and made some spectacular plays in the field. He is from West Virginia, attended the University of West Virginia, and had plenty of friends and family on hand to witness his outstanding performance since Pittsburgh is a short hour and a half drive from Jedd’s home town.

Honorable mention should go to Ronny Cedeno. Cedeno was signed in early August after being released by the Houston Astros and has filled in well since the 50-game suspension of starting shortstop Everth Cabrera.

Not only has Cedeno’s hitting improved under the tutorage of Padres hitting coaches Phil Plantier and Alonzo Powell, his fielding – although it was expected that Cedeno could fill the position defensively with adequate execution – has been much better than expected.

Cedeno went 3 for 4 and made some incredible defensive plays on Tuesday. Other notable offensive efforts include Tommy Medica (2 for 4) and Will Venable (2 for 5). These last games could be promising portents for the 2014 season if the Padres continue their fine run into the end of September.

If you’re the visual type and you want a good video recap of the game (including Gyorko’s home run), MLB.com encourages you to hit this link:

http://wapc.mlb.com/play?content_id=30710727&topic_id=8878764


Notes:

Kyle Blanks might have hurt himself again, falling flat while attempting to get to a ball hit toward the gap on Tuesday. Blanks stayed in for a couple of innings after the play, but Alexi Amarista came in to start the bottom of the sixth inning for Blanks, which isn’t usually considered as a defensive replacement and no double-switch was involved. You’ll know when we know.

Wednesday, the third game of the four-game series kicks off at 4:05 PM PDST. Tyson Ross (3-8, 3.29) will take the bump for the Padres while the Pirates will try to right their ship with Charlie Morton (7-4, 3.54) on the hill. Listen in on radio 1090 AM or catch the visuals on Fox Sports San Diego.

Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Padres run over Dodgers in Petco Park opener

Next Article

Padres beat Reds as Gyorko yanks another home run, 7-5

Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader