Welcome to San Diego, Luis Arraez. In his first home game as a member of the Padres, Arraez delivered a walk-off single against the rival Los Angeles Dodgers to cap off a thrilling 2-1 win (box score) at a packed Petco Park on Friday. The two-time batting champ is 9 for 24 (.375) in six games since the Padres acquired him from the Miami Marlins.
"It's amazing," Arraez said about his new team following Friday's win (via MLB.com). "It's a different energy, and when I've got energy, I'll do something good."
Arraez was the hero but Michael King was the star of the show Friday. King, the headliner in the offseason's Juan Soto trade, delivered his best start as a Padre, striking out 11 Dodgers in seven shutout innings. He allowed only two soft singles and three walks. King has thrown 13 scoreless innings in his last two starts after pitching to a 5.00 ERA in his first seven games.
"Huge fan of my new teammate," King joked about Arraez (via MLB.com).
King had to be sharp because Tyler Glasnow was electric for Los Angeles. Glasnow struck out 10 in seven innings of one-run ball. He allowed just one hit, a Luis Campusano solo home run. The Dodgers tied the game against reliever Yuki Matsui in the eighth before Arraez won it against reliever Michael Grove in the ninth.
Arraez joined the Padres last weekend in the middle of a road trip and became the first player in Padres history with four hits in his first game with the team. San Diego is 4-1 when Arraez is in the starting lineup and 21-20 overall. They're 5.5 games behind the 26-14 Dodgers in the NL West.
