PHOENIX β Nabil Crismatt's experience in a big league bullpen has taught him to be ready to pitch from the moment the first inning starts.
He had to be ready even earlier on Sunday.
Crismatt pitched three scoreless innings in an emergency start, Jurickson Profar hit a grand slam and the San Diego Padres used a big second inning to win their third straight game, beating the Arizona Diamondbacks 10-5.
βMy mentality is to be ready to go at any moment,β Crismatt said. βWhen they told me I was in the game, I liked that moment and I love to go out there and compete.β
Crismatt and catcher Jorge Alfaro formed the first Colombian-born starting battery in major league history.
The Padres sent 10 hitters to the plate in the second and the first seven reached base, starting with Jake Cronenworth on an error by second baseman Ketel Marte. Luke Voit and Wil Myers followed with walks and then Profar hammered a hanging slider from left-hander Caleb Smith into the left-center seats.
It's been a good start for Profar, who also homered on Friday. He helped the Padres win three of four in the series.
Jorge Alfaro followed Profar with a shot to center and the Padres had a 5-0 lead they wouldn't come close to relinquishing. They were helped by a sloppy D-backs team that made two costly errors, including Marte's that started the second-inning rally.
βThree unearned runs to me is unacceptable,β Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said. βThat game should have been a lot closer than it was.β
Crismatt was the emergency starting pitcher for the Padres after Blake Snell was scratched just before the first pitch because of left adductor tightness. San Diego manager Bob Melvin said he had already exchanged lineup cards when Snell felt the injury on his final warmup pitch, setting off a bullpen scramble.
βIt was as late as I've ever seen anything,β Melvin said. βWe had to make some adjustments on the fly and got it done.β
Crismatt responded well in his first career start, throwing three shutout innings and giving up just one hit. Austin Adams (1-0) got the win after a scoreless inning of relief.
Smith (0-1) gave up five runs, four earned, in one inning. Cooper Hummel hit a three-run homer for Arizona in the ninth, his first major league hit. Diamondbacks catcher Carson Kelly moved to the mound for the ninth and pitched a scoreless inning.
D-backs starting pitcher Caleb Smith throws against the Padres on Sunday. Arizona next hosts Houston starting Tuesday.
Snell scratched
Melvin said Snell β the 2018 AL Cy Young Award winner β is likely headed for a stint on the 10-day IL but the team wanted to see how the pitcher feels on Monday.
It was the first bit of bad news for a Padres rotation that was brilliant through the first three games. Yu Darvish and Sean Manaea threw 13 innings of no-hit baseball on back-to-back days and Joe Musgrove was solid on Saturday, giving up two runs over six innings.
Dismal D-backs
It was a rough opening series for the Diamondbacks, who dropped three of four games.
Their only win was on opening night, when Seth Beer clubbed a game-winning, three-run homer in the ninth.
That fun moment aside, the D-backs don't look much better than last season, when they finished with a 52-110 record. On Sunday, Arizona was hurt by two costly errors that led to three unearned runs. When two runs scored on back-to-back wild pitches in the fifth, there were even some boos from the home crowd at Chase Field.
Trainer's room
Diamondbacks: RHP Luke Weaver was placed on the 10-day IL with right elbow inflammation. LHP Kyle Nelson was called up to take Weaver's place on the roster.
Up next
Padres: San Diego travels to San Francisco for a three-game series beginning Monday. RHP Nick Martinez will start for the Padres against Giants LHP Alex Wood.
Diamondbacks: Arizona has a day off before a two-game home series with the Houston Astros that begins Tuesday. RHP Zac Gallen is expected to make his first start of the season against Houston RHP Luis Garcia.
