Zach Eflin Struggles In Return To Rotation As Phillies' 4-Game Winning Streak Ends In Loss To Padres
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Dinelson Lamet pitched six solid innings, Ty France hit a tiebreaking single and the San Diego Padres cooled off the Philadelphia Phillies with a 5-3 victory Saturday night. Lamet (2-2) allowed three runs and six hits with six strikeouts and a walk.
The 27-year-old right-hander was making his eighth start since missing last season due to Tommy John surgery.
Eric Hosmer had three hits for the Padres, and Josh Naylor tied the game with a two-run double in the fourth.
J.T. Realmuto homered for the Phillies, who lost for the first time since former manager Charlie Manuel returned as hitting coach on Tuesday. Philadelphia dropped one game out of the second NL wild-card spot.
The Phillies had outscored opponents 30-12 while winning their previous four games, and they had batted .337 with 35 hits, seven homers and 25 RBIs in the three games since Manuel joined the staff.
But they managed just six hits against Lamet and three Padres relievers.
Kirby Yates pitched a scoreless ninth for his 34th save in 37 chances.
The Padres went in front with a pair of runs in the fifth off reliever Nick Pivetta (4-5).
Hosmer led off with his third single and scored on France's one-out single to right field. Luis Urias followed and made it 5-3 with another opposite-field RBI single to right.
San Diego tied the game with three runs in the fourth off Phillies starter Zach Eflin.
Pitching against the club that selected him in the first round of the 2012 draft, Eflin was sailing along with two outs in the fourth and Lamet at the plate. But the pitcher singled up the middle and Manuel Margot followed with an RBI single before Naylor's two-run double made it 3-all. Both RBI hits came with two strikes.
Eflin returned to the rotation for the first time since July 27 after being sent to the bullpen due to ineffectiveness. He replaced Jake Arrieta, who will have season-ending surgery to remove bone spurs in his pitching elbow later this month.
Eflin continued to struggle, allowing three runs and seven hits in 3 2/3 innings. The right-hander has a 10.09 ERA in his last seven starts dating to June 24.
Philadelphia got a pair of runs in the second on Scott Kingery's RBI double and Eflin's RBI single. And the Phillies went up 3-0 in the third on Realmuto's 415-foot drive to deep left. It was the 19th homer for the streaking Realmuto, who has homered in four of the last five contests and is batting .522 with four doubles, four homers and nine RBIs in his last six games.
Hosmer also stayed hot for San Diego and is hitting .524 in his last five games.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Phillies: Placed OF Roman Quinn on the 10-day IL with a right groin strain. Quinn was hurt trying to beat out a grounder in the eighth inning Friday night. . The 33-year-old Arrieta, who is 8-8 with a 4.64 ERA in 24 starts, has been trying to pitch through the injury for the last month. . Right-handed reliever David Robertson had Tommy John surgery Thursday. Robertson was signed to a two-year, $23 million contract in the offseason, but was able to pitch just 6 2/3 innings for the Phillies this year. In addition to being sidelined for the rest of this year, Robertson likely will miss all of the 2020 season.
UP NEXT
Padres LHP Joey Lucchesi (7-7, 4.25 ERA) will oppose Phillies LHP Jason Vargas (6-6, 4.03) in the rubber game of the three-game set Sunday afternoon.
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