Angels 5, Padres 3: Friars still winless in Cactus League play

Okay, so the bad news today is that the Padres lost again. The good news is that they didn’t lose by double digits, and they drew six walks, which is six more than they got against the Mariners over the weekend. San Diego pitchers, meanwhile, held the Angels to five runs on seven hits and three walks, with the two losing runs coming off non-roster invitee Jason Jester. Miguel Diaz (recently acquired from the Brewers via the Twins) gave up a pair of runs, while 2012 draft pick Walker Lockett got tagged with an unearned run thanks to an error by Erick Aybar.

But the story to watch, as much as one can predict these things after three games in February, is Austin Hedges. The hunk behind home plate tore up AAA pitching last year, and he’s now 4-for-5 in Cactus League play without a whiff to his name. And his vaunted defensive talents haven’t seemed to slump either, as he gunned down Kole Calhoun at first base in the bottom of the third.

The Padres are back in Peoria tomorrow as they host the division rival Giants at 12:10 PM.