SAN DIEGO — The ball cleared the fence at Petco Park just as Shane Victorino stepped on first base Friday. The centerfielder smacked his hands together as an entire dugout laughed and relaxed all in one moment.
He had hit the second Phillies home run in seven games only after leaning into a pitch and protesting when umpire Dan Bellino did not award him first base. Then, when another pitch was at his feet, he pretended to be in pain. The result was just fine, though.
Luck arrived in a humorous way during the eighth inning of a 4-1 victory over the San Diego Padres. These Phillies have had few breaks, and this game — like many others in 2012 — resembled an offensive slap fight until the later innings. Five singles later, the Phillies had a lead in the seventh, and Victorino could provide an exclamation point an inning after that.
The Phillies are back at .500 but remain in a tie for last place. There was progress, however, even if it’s at the expense of baseball’s worst team — San Diego.
For much of the night, it looked as if another Cole Hamels start would fall by the wayside because of a lack of support. The lanky lefthander argued with the umpires and constantly pitched out of trouble in his hometown.
It was the bottom of Charlie Manuel’s lineup that delivered a win. Victorino and Ty Wigginton started the seventh with singles. Freddy Galvis was asked to bunt them over and dropped one in no man’s land for a single.
Padres manager Bud Black called upon righthander Andrew Cashner, who routinely lights up the Petco Park scoreboard with triple-digit velocities. He threw a first-pitch 99-m.p.h. fastball at the knees that backup catcher Brian Schneider bounced to right. The game was tied.
Two batters later, Cashner hit 100 and 99 on the radar gun with a strike and ball to Juan Pierre. He then threw an 88-m.p.h. slider that Pierre smacked to right for a two-run single and the game’s eventual winning hit. Pierre is hitting .316 in 38 at-bats and has firmly entrenched himself at the top of Manuel’s lineup.
With Hamels out of the game, the triumvirate of Jose Contreras, Chad Qualls, and Jonathan Papelbon [stats] secured a win. Contreras, making his first appearance in 307 days, issued a four-pitch walk to the first batter he faced. Then he induced a double-play ball and another grounder.
It was sweet for Hamels, who nearly lost his composure in a wacky outing. He was called for two balks, hit a batter, and pitched in tense situations for the majority of his six innings.
The second balk is what incensed Hamels. With Yonder Alonso on first and one out in the fourth, Hamels clearly stepped off the rubber. But Bob Davidson, the umpire they call "Balkin’" because of his affinity for balks, called one.
"No, I did not," Hamels yelled at Davidson. "I stepped off."
Davidson took exception and shouted back. Hamels stormed off the mound and Placido Polanco stepped between the umpire and pitcher to prevent any contact. Hamels bristled.
He was the first Phillies pitcher since Paul Quantrill in 1995 with two balks in one game. But the balks were nothing more than a nuisance, which raised Hamels’ pitch count.
San Diego cracked him in the fifth when Cameron Maybin, mired in a two-week slump and the league’s leader in strikeouts, tripled to the gap in right. The Phillies, despite their offensive anemia, were willing to concede the run and did when Jesus Guzman grounded to short. That snapped a streak of 21 scoreless innings by Phillies starting pitchers.
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