Padres' Paddack, Giants' Beede seek to exorcise demons

One pitcher seeking his first win and another seeking his first hit -- and redemption -- encounter opponents that have embarrassed them in the past when the San Diego Padres and host San Francisco Giants open a two-game series on Tuesday night.

The matchup of National League West rivals already finds the fourth-place Padres (33-33) six games ahead of the last-place Giants (26-38) after San Francisco finished seven games north of San Diego in the 2018 standings.

One reason for the Padres' surge has been right-hander Chris Paddack (4-4, 2.97 ERA), who ranks second in the National League among rookies in ERA behind Atlanta's Mike Soroka (1.38). Paddack will face off with San Francisco right-hander Tyler Beede (0-2, 8.15) on Tuesday.

Paddack got off to a fast start, on the mound anyway, when he helped the Padres earn a 3-1 win over the Giants in his major league debut on March 31. He did not get a decision in the game despite holding San Francisco to just one run on two hits in five innings, striking out seven and walking one.

The reason the game probably will never be forgotten by the 23-year-old, however, was because of what occurred in his first big-league at-bat.

After the Giants intentionally walked Austin Hedges to load the bases in the second inning of a scoreless game, Paddack sliced an apparent single to right field, a liner that not only would provide his first major league hit but also his first RBI or two.

However, Giants right fielder Gerardo Parra caught Paddack in too much of a celebratory mood and threw him out at first base, a rare 9-3 putout that ended the inning and left Paddack with neither a hit, an RBI nor a lead.

"I got thrown out," Paddack lamented afterward. "All the guys will give me a hard time about that. I'm sure it'll be up on all the (video) screens when I walk in."

To add insult to injury, Paddack remains hitless in the majors, now 0-for-14 with eight strikeouts.

His pitching has slipped a bit of late, as well. He is 0-2 in his past two starts, allowing nine earned runs and 14 hits in 9 1/3 innings.

Paddock will face a Giants team that the Padres have beaten on five of seven previous occasions this season.

Beede didn't pitch in any of those games, but he did face the Padres last April in his second major league start. He was bombed for five runs and six hits in 3 2/3 innings in a 10-1 loss.

He was demoted to the minors after the debacle and didn't get back to the majors until last month.

The 26-year-old remains winless in five big-league starts bridging the 2018 and '19 seasons, but he is just one start removed from his most promising outing: one run on five hits with four strikeouts and three walks in six innings of a 3-1 win at Miami on May 30.

"That gave me a strong foundation to build on and stay confident with throughout the season," Beede said of the outing. "I want to be a guy they can count on to contribute to the rotation and to this team. It's not to the point where I want to put pressure on myself and know that I've got to do something exceptional, but just know that I trust myself going out there."

Both teams begin the series on two-game losing streaks.

--Field Level Media