SAN DIEGO — Looking for a low point in this dreadful Phillies season?
This might have been it.
The Phillies were swept in a three-game series by the San Diego Padres, owners of baseball's worst offense. The Padres completed the sweep with a 3-0 win on Wednesday afternoon.
Padres starter Clayton Richard entered the game leading the majors in hits allowed (188), opponents' batting average (.323) and opponents' on-base percentage (.376), and yet the Phillies were shut out on three hits by the veteran lefty.
The Phillies were outscored 18-8 in the series. They went 1-5 against the Padres this season.
The Phillies have the worst record in the majors at 43-75. They are on pace for 103 losses. They are 19-44 on the road.
MLB
Starting pitching report
Rookie Nick Pivetta had one of those games where his potential shined, but so did his inexperience and inconsistency.
He came out of the gate throwing a bunch of curveballs and had good success with the pitch. Eight of his first nine outs were strikeouts and all but one of them ended with a curveball. He ended up with a career-high 11 strikeouts, but failed to get an out in the sixth inning. In all, he allowed five hits and three runs in his five innings of work. He walked three, committed a balk and was on the mound for five stolen bases (see story).
Following the game's final out, Pivetta was optioned to Triple A Lehigh Valley. He is likely to return to pitch in Tuesday's doubleheader against Miami. The Phils will use Pivetta's roster spot to add a position player while Odubel Herrera recuperates from a hamstring issue.
Richard walked one and struck out six in his first shutout since 2012. He is 6-12.
Bullpen report
Edubray Ramos and Adam Morgan cleaned it up for the Phillies.
No bullpen necessary for the Padres.
At the plate
The Phillies had a runner on second base three times and never advanced from there.
Wil Myers got the Padres on the board with an RBI single against Pivetta with two outs in the fourth. It drove home Carlos Asuaje, who had led off the frame with a double. Myers swiped home on a double steal for the Padres' second run in that inning. Hunter Renfroe's RBI single in the sixth made it a 3-0 game.
The Padres had just seven hits.
Health check
Herrera did not play for a second straight day because of a sore left hamstring. Manager Pete Mackanin hopes to have Herrera in San Francisco (see story).
Up next
The Phillies move on to San Francisco for a four-game series beginning on Thursday night. Here are the pitching matchups:
Thursday night — RHP Aaron Nola (9-7, 3.02) vs. RHP Jeff Samardzija (7-12, 4.74)
Friday night — RHP Zach Eflin (1-4, 5.76) vs. LHP Matt Moore (3-12, 5.71)
Saturday night — Jerad Eickhoff (3-7, 4.33) vs. LHP Ty Blach (8-8, 4.37)
Sunday afternoon — RHP Mark Leiter (1-3, 4.38) vs. Madison Bumgarner (3-5, 2.99)