Padres trade for Soto, then sweep doubleheader from Rockies
By RICHARD J. MARCUS
AP Sports Writer
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Trent Grisham hit a game-ending home run in the ninth inning, Josh Hader got the win in his San Diego debut and the Padres beat the Colorado Rockies 3-2 Tuesday night to complete a doubleheader sweep hours after obtaining superstar Juan Soto in a blockbuster trade.
It was the second homer of the day for Grisham, who also went deep in the opener as the Padres won 13-5 behind Jurickson Profar’s career-high five hits.
“It was pretty low. I was kind of worried, so I’m glad it got out,” Grisham said. “It was a long day, a fruitful day.”
Profar added two more singles in the nightcap, and Hader (2-4) pitched a scoreless ninth one day after the All-Star closer was acquired in a trade with Milwaukee. He received a huge ovation when he came out of the bullpen and again on his way to the dugout after setting down the Rockies in order.
“It was way better than watching him on the other side,” Padres manager Bob Melvin said. “The life of the fastball, top of the zone, is good to see.”
Grisham connected with one out on a full-count pitch from reliever Alex Colome (2-4). It was the first run for either team since the first inning, when both clubs scored twice.
“Anytime you can come up big for your team is huge,” Grisham said. “(The trades) definitely played a part in the first game. In the second game, it was all will.”
Early in the day, the Padres obtained Soto from the Washington Nationals in one of the biggest trades in baseball history.
The deal was announced a few minutes before first pitch of the first game. The crowd of 23,828 at Petco Park applauded loudly when an image of Soto and Josh Bell, who also came over from the Nats, was shown on the video board early in the game.
Melvin said he was “ecstatic” about getting Soto, a generational talent who is only 23.
“You’re talking about a premier player, and you look at what Josh Bell is doing this year, too. Those are two big bats that will be somewhere in the middle of the order. I did a little scouting in my own head what it might look like come tomorrow,” Melvin said.
“Man, to be on this side of it is pretty cool.”
Melvin said it was tough for the Padres to part with first baseman Eric Hosmer, who declined to waive a no-trade provision that would have allowed him to be sent to Washington. Hosmer was then traded to Boston for left-hander Jay Groome.
“But you know what? It’s baseball. You’ve got to be a pro and you’ve got to go out there and continue to play,” Melvin said. “We’ve got some really good players coming in here and everybody knows that. Once they took the field, it’s all about winning, playing hard, and winning baseball games.”
Adding Soto and Bell “is going to help us a lot,” Profar said. “We’re going to be an even better team.”
The Padres also obtained infielder Brandon Drury from Cincinnati.
“I’m excited for everybody that we got, but especially Juan Soto,” Profar said. “The hitter that he is, especially being so young and the things that he’s already accomplished offensively.”
Profar drove in two runs in the first game, and Ha-seong Kim had a career-best four hits and two RBIs. Jake Cronenworth added a two-run homer.
“It’s over. It was a long day. It was emotional right away just because all that was going on,” Melvin said. “To be able to sweep a doubleheader, which is hard to do, it ended up being a really good day.”
THE TRADE
The Padres acquired Soto and Bell in exchange for rookie left-hander MacKenzie Gore, first baseman/DH Luke Voit and prospects James Wood, C.J. Abrams, Robert Hassell III and Jarlin Susana.
UP NEXT
Rockies RHP Chad Kuhl (6-6, 4.59 ERA) pitches Wednesday evening against LHP Blake Snell (3-5, 4.43) in the fourth game of the five-game series.
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AP Sports Writer Bernie Wilson contributed to this report.
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