Gore, Padres struggle early in 7-5 exhibition loss to Rockies

Top pitching prospect Mackenzie Gore made his spring debut on Wednesday, finishing with a mixed bag of a performance with four strikeouts and two runs allowed through two innings of work. The Padres also got a pair of two-RBI performances from right fielders Patrick Kivlehan and Josh Mears but they couldn’t overcome a late push by the Rockies as they fell 7-5 in Wednesday’s spring exhibition.

Most of the San Diego starters got the day off as Jake Cronenworth, Tommy Pham, and Austin Nola were the only ones seeing the field today. While Cron finished 2-of-2, Pham and Nola combined to go 0-4 on the day.

Offensive, the Padres were led by the aforementioned Kivlehan and Mears, as well as Victor Caratini who recorded one of the team’s five RBIs.

Right-hander Reiss Knehr finished out the final inning on the mound by striking out three-straight to end the game.

San Diego (4-6) will be right back art Peoria Stadium tomorrow for a game against the Indians (6-5) at 12:10 p.m.