1969: Padres Explode for Eight Runs in Cincy
Wed, May 2, 2007
by Geoff Young
May 2, 1969, Cincinnati: Padres 8, Braves 3 (box score)
Making their first ever trip to Crosley Field, the Padres sent Clay Kirby to the mound against George Culver. The two teams traded runs in the first, with the Reds adding three more in the second on a Pete Rose sacrifice fly and a Bobby Tolan two-run home run.
Cincinnati held a 4-1 advantage into the fourth inning. Nate Colbert led off that frame with a grounder to third that Tony Perez couldn’t handle. After Cito Gaston and Ed Spiezio grounded out, Chris Cannizzaro singled to left. Bill Davis, batting for Kirby, then drew a walk. Leadoff man Jose Arcia was due up next, but Preston Gomez pulled him in favor of Al Ferrara, who made his manager look like a genius by hitting a grand slam that gave the Padres a 5-4 lead.
San Diego extended the lead to 8-4 in the seventh, on the strength of five straight singles. Johnny Podres, meanwhile, kept the Reds’ bats mostly dormant for four innings before turning the game over to Frank Reberger, who sealed the deal. Cincinnati did score a run in the eighth, but it was too little, too late. The Padres won their second consecutive game and pushed a half-game ahead of the Reds for fourth place in the NL West.
Elsewhere in the world: RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 set sail on her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York.
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