SAN DIEGO — Cory Luebke has become the San Diego Padres’ stopper, twice ending four-game losing streaks for a team that has stumbled badly out of the gate.
On Saturday night, it was a big one.
Luebke outpitched Roy Halladay and San Diego beat Philadelphia 5-1, snapping the Phillies’ 13-game winning streak at Petco Park.
Luebke (2-1) held the Phillies to two hits in eight innings, struck out five and walked two.
“I think both nights the hitters went out and got on the other starter early,” Luebke said. “For the guys to go out and get some early runs on Halladay, there’s something to say for that. I knew it was going to be one of those games where there’s always a situation where the game can swing. In a game like that, it can be anything small. The guys went out and put up some runs early and took a little pressure off me.”
In his previous start, Luebke won at Colorado to end a four-game Padres losing streak.
The Padres hadn’t beaten the Phillies in their downtown ballpark since Aug. 16, 2008. The Phillies’ 13-game winning streak at Petco had been the longest active for any visiting club at any particular ballpark, and their longest winning streak at any ballpark in club history.
The Phillies, who took the first two of this four-game series, had swept the Padres in San Diego each of the last three seasons. Overall, the Phillies are 24-5 at Petco Park since it opened in 2004.
Huston Street pitched the ninth in a non-save situation, allowing Ty Wigginton’s RBI double with two outs.
Halladay (3-1) walked the bases loaded with one out in the second before Orlando Hudson’s grounder to second brought in Yonder Alonso.
Based on information given to the Padres, it was the first time in Halladay’s career that he’d walked three straight batters, according to research by the Elias Sports Bureau. It was the eighth time he walked three in an inning.
“It’s not ideal and it cost me a run,” Halladay said. “Definitely frustrating. I felt like we were right there. There weren’t three-, four-pitch walks. A couple of close pitches, a couple of balls fouled. I didn’t feel like completely lost my release point. It’s just one of those things. I just didn’t put the ball where I wanted.”
“He was making good pitches. We were just laying off of them,” Alonso said. “We made the good adjustments.”
Halladay had walked only four total in his first three starts.
Halladay allowed three straight hits with two outs in the third, including Alonso’s opposite-field double to left that brought in Chase Headley, aboard on a single.
Alonso was thrilled that he had a walk and double against Halladay.
“He’s one of the best pitchers in history and he’s a guy that I can probably talk to my kids one day and say I had a double off of him, with an RBI, and I had a walk, and he was battling and I felt like I was grinding some at-bats with him. It was a lot of fun today,” Alonso said.
Halladay went seven, allowing two runs and five hits, striking out five and walking four.
San Diego added three runs in the eighth against Michael Stutes. Jason Bartlett hit an RBI double and scored on a triple by Hudson, who scored on pinch-hitter Jesus Guzman’s single.
NOTES: The Phillies placed Cliff Lee on the 15-day disabled list, three days after he strained a muscle in his left side in the 10th inning of his gem at San Francisco. Lee, who got a no-decision in the 1-0, 11-inning loss, strained his left oblique. The lefty had been scheduled to pitch Monday night at Arizona. Right-hander Kyle Kendrick is now scheduled to make that start. … To take Lee’s spot on the roster, the Phillies recalled lefty Joe Savery from Triple-A Lehigh Valley. … This series concludes Sunday when RHP Joe Blanton (1-2, 4.26) is scheduled to start for the Phillies against RHP Anthony Bass (0-2, 3.38). … Padres interim CEO Tom Garfinkel said on the local TV broadcast that the team is studying whether to bring in the fences at spacious Petco Park. Jeff Moorad, who resigned as CEO last month, said after last season that he was “strongly opposed” to bringing in Petco’s fences.
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