9-1 D'Backs v. Padres. 21-80-40 Byrnesie!

Hit no. 159 was a 3-run homer.

(Photo by Paul Connors/AP)

"It just goes to show you that we're able to file away a bad loss and move on and respond to the next game. We don't hang our heads and get uptight. We keep playing."

--Centerfielder Chris Young, on answering a rout with a rout.

The Diamondbacks managed to put it all together last night: good starting pitching, good relief pitching, solid defense and powerful offense to pay the Padres back for the beat down they had gotten the day before.  The 9-1 victory put the Snakes back into a virtual tie for first place in the NL West with the Friars.  Tony Clark had the game-winning hit in the first inning: a two run homer.  Doug Davis got the win.

It was a roller coaster kind of day for Eric Byrnes.  He started by hitting into a double play with two men on in the first inning.  Some people think he beat out the throw to first; I was at work and didn't get a good enough look at the play to render an opinion.  But the man whose opinion is the only one that counts, the first-base umpire, thought he was out and I didn't see much of in the way of argument.  Tony Clark than did his thing so was it all's well that ends well kind of thing.

Byrnes also struck out  on a checked swing during his fifth and last plate appearance.  It looked to me like he held up, but on appeal, he was punched out.  He walked his third time up and reached on an error his fourth time up, but was stranded on base both times.

Ah, but that second time up with special!  Byrnesie hit a three-run homer that brought him up to 80 RBI.  That's a new personal best.  That's also his second homer in as many days and number 21 for the year.  Twenty-six, which he needs to reach 100 for his career, feels much more reachable now.  The homer was the 159th hit of the season, meaning he now only needs three hits for a new personal best.  And to get a new personal best in extra-base hits he now needs 12 instead of 13.  "My Friend, the Yankees Fan" has Eric on her fantasy league team, said she was glad to hear about the homer because every hit home run and stolen base means something to her as she attempts to finish what she called a respectable third in her league.

While she not only got the homer, but she got the stolen base.  Eric got his 40th bag on the back end of a double steal with Orlando Hudson as the lead runner.  The Diamondbacks were doing a lot of running last night.  Hudson stole two bases; Stephen Drew and Chris Young swiped one apiece.

And about that walk I mentioned earlier, it was intentional.  The Padres decided to take their chances with Tony Clark batting right-handed -- he had hit his homer and left-handed and is not that big a power hitter from the right side -- rather than face Eric Byrnes, who had homered his previous time up.  The strategy worked as Clark struck out.  But it was great to see Byrnesie getting the intentional walk.  In April, the guys ahead of Byrnes were intentionally walked on two occasions to bring him up with the bases loaded.  Both times he delivered RBI singles.  Now in September, the opposition is intentionally walking Byrnes to deal with someone else.  I love it!

Today it's Jake Peavy versus Livan Hernandez in the rubber match.  I think it's time Jake Peavy had an off day, and in fact, he's working on short rest, so I'm hoping he'll hang something belt high to Byrnes, preferably with two or three men on base.  I like it when Eric's RBI come in bunches.  He now has 87 runs scored, so he needs some bunched up RBI to have that total match the runs.

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