SD 6, TEX 5: Solarte's slam helps stop skid

It's a good feeling when you snap a losing streak. Thankfully for the Padres, with the help of a scrappy 9th inning, a pre-ASG losing streak has been snapped. The pitching wasn't as sharp as its been in the past week, but that didn't matter, when the bats are doing what they're supposed to do.

James Shields was having a bit of a rough day, giving up 4 earned runs in 4 innings and issuing 4 walks. He struckout 5, but giving up 2 home runs as well would keep things neck and neck into the bullpen's time to play. The Padres did well to match it, though, with Rangers' starter Colby Lewis giving up 3 earned runs to Shields' 4, and the Friars finally picking on Texas' closer Shawn Tolleson, squeezing 3 more winnings runs out of him.

The run support came immediately from Matt Kemp, who added into his lower-than-we'd-like home run tally to 8 with a 2-run home run to match Mitch Morleand's solo shot. The Rangers followed up with a fielder's choice and a Prince Fielder's choice to make things 3-2. Elvis Andrus tacked into that, and with the score at 4-2, the Friars started fighting back in the 9th with a Melvin Upton Jr. RBI single.

Then, on a 1-1 count with 2 outs, Yangervis Solarte fires off his 5th home run with a 2-run go-ahead home run of his own. The Padres were in a familiar situation, up by one run at the end of the game, but this time it was Craig Kimbrel coming in to close things up. And close up he did, with a 1-2-3 inning on three strikeouts, in one of his least dramatic closes in quite a while.

Friars win, and by winning, they did not lose, and tomorrow Tyson Ross gets the chance to win out the series before the All Star break.

jodes swept the game thread with alllllllll the recs.