Brendan Rodgers, Charlie Blackmon homer to help Rockies beat Padres 7-3

Ha-Seong Kim and Xander Bogaerts homered for the Padres. Jackson Merrill had a pair of hits, including a one-out triple in the sixth, but the Rockies stranded him by turning the third of their four double plays in the game. “With an off day (Thursday), you know you wanted to come out swinging,” Rodgers said. “Everyone had a good rest. It was good to get up early on a team like that, that’s hot. It felt good to get those four in the first and we chipped away for a few more and held on to that lead.”

Quantrill (8-8) allowed three runs on six hits while striking out five and walking two in his first start in 12 days. Rockies relievers Angel Chivilli, Lucas Gilbreath, Tyler Kinley and Victor Vodnik combined to pitch four scoreless innings.

“I made some bad pitches in the first and second but I think we settled in pretty good after that,” said Quantrill, who skipped a start on the recommendation of team trainers due to an episode of forearm tightness.

“Kind of just mixed it up enough. I didn’t rely too heavily on the splitter or the fastball, which was a nice change of pace. Probably won’t be the best start ever but we’ve talked about the importance of winning at home. That’s a team that’s really hot right now. We beat them, so overall, I think it’s a good day.”

For San Diego, Matt Waldron (7-10) allowed seven runs on nine hits in 5 2/3 innings.

Waldron came in having won both of his previous starts against Colorado this season but found himself in trouble from the start. He walked Charlie Blackmon to start the first and Ezequiel Tovar followed with a single. One out later, Ryan McMahon singled to drive in Colorado’s first run and Rodgers then drove a 77-mph knuckleball deep into the left field bleachers for his 10th homer of the season to give the Rockies a 4-0 lead.

“That first inning was tough,” Waldron said. “It hurts to let my teammates down, especially so early, and just give the momentum away. But I’ve got to wear it. I’ll get real with whatever work I need to do to give myself the best chance to perform out there and win again.”

Kim connected for his 11th homer, a two-run drive off Quantrill in the top of the second, before Blackmon answered with a two-run shot off Waldron in the bottom of the third to rebuild the Colorado advantage to 6-2.

The Padres added a run on Bogaerts’ home run to start the fourth and Beck’s third single of the night scored Michael Toglia, aboard with a double, in the sixth.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Padres: OF Fernando Tatis Jr., sidelined since mid-June with a right femoral stress reaction, is steadily improving but there’s still no timetable for his return. “He’s definitely getting there,” manager Mike Shildt said. “We still want some healing to take place before we ramp up. Once he ramps up, he’ll be getting ready pretty quickly, I would imagine.”

ROSTER SHAKEUP

In the latest sign the Rockies remain committed to a youth movement, the team released veteran catcher Elías Díaz and selected the contract of rookie catcher Drew Romo from Triple-A Albuquerque. Díaz, 33, was the Rockies’ regular catcher for most of the last five years and went to the All-Star game last season, earning the MVP award after homering to win the game for the NL. Romo was the 35th overall selection in the 2020 draft and ranked the No. 9 prospect in baseball by MLB.com.

UP NEXT

Padres RHP Dylan Cease (11-9, 3.41 ERA) will be seeking a fourth straight winning decision when he takes the mound Saturday night against Colorado, which is slated to counter with Kyle Freeland (3-4, 5.75 ERA).

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