Padres 6, Pirates 2
SAN DIEGO -- Derek Norris, who struck out in his first four at-bats, hit a two-out, walk-off grand slam Friday night to give the San Diego Padres a 6-2 win over the Pirates at Petco Park -- ending Pittsburgh's seven-game winning streak.
It was the Padres first walk-off win of the season.
Padres second baseman Jedd Gyorko drew a walk from Pirates right-handed reliever Rob Scahill to open the ninth. Center fielder Abraham Almonte bunted to Scahill, who fielded the ball but threw wild to first, allowing Gyorko to reach third and Almonte second with no one out.
Scahill walked third baseman Cory Spangenberg to load the bases with none out.
But the Pirates, deploying a six-man infield, got two straight forceouts at home before Norris hit his fourth homer of the season to left-center off Scahill.
Closer Craig Kimbrel (1-1) got the win while Scahill (1-3) suffered the loss.
The Pirates took a 2-0 lead in a strange third inning when left-handed-hitting first baseman Pedro Alvarez beat the defensive shift, grounding a two-out, bases-loaded single through the spot normally manned by the Padres shortstop.
The Pirates were denied a run earlier in the inning when right fielder Gregory Polanco was called out at the plate while trying to score on a wild pitch.
Polanco opened the third with a single and moved to third on a single by second baseman Neil Walker.
With one out, left fielder Starling Marte struck out on a low breaking ball from Padres starter James Shields, which rolled behind Norris. As Marte raced to first, Polanco broke for the plate and was tagged out by Shields, who was covering the plate. The call was upheld on an appeal from the Pirates.
After Marte stole second, third baseman Jung Ho Kang was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Alvarez then hit a sharp grounder to the left of second beyond the only Padres infielder (third baseman Will Middlebrooks) on the left side, scoring Walker and Marte.
Shields worked his way out of jams in the first, second and sixth innings to keep the game close.
But Liriano, who had 12 strikeouts over six innings in his previous start against the Mets, dominated the Padres, retiring the side in order in three of the first six innings while San Diego put only three runners in scoring position.
NOTES: Thursday night's Pirates-Padres game was carried live on television in South Korea, meaning Pirates INF Jung Ho Kang's countrymen had a chance to see him hit a three-run homer shortly after 8 a.m. local time Friday morning. The feed from Root Sports in Pittsburgh was the first live telecast of a major league game in South Korea. ... Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said the club is working to help improve 1B Pedro Alvarez's defense. ... Padres 1B Yonder Alonso began the second stage of his rehab assignment with Triple-A El Paso Friday night. ... Padres RHP Brandon Morrow came out of Thursday's three-inning simulated game with no problems and will likely start a rehab assignment Tuesday.