German_Force » They'll try to address

Joe Musgrove had quite the homecoming at Petco Park.

Pitching in front of at least 75 friends and family members Justin Turner Jersey , the right-hander tossed seven shutout innings against his hometown team and Jody Mercer homered to lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 6-3 victory over the sloppy San Diego Padres on Friday night.

Musgrove (3-3), a 2011 graduate of Grossmont High in suburban El Cajon, was facing the Padres for the first time in his three-year big league career. He allowed seven singles while striking out five and walking two.

He had plenty of support as he got into and out of trouble in the seventh. The Padres had runners on first and third after hitting consecutive singles to open the inning but Musgrove retired the side, including inducing Manuel Margot to hit into an inning-ending double play.

”It was incredible,” Musgrove said. ”They were the ones who really pushed me through that last inning. I got first and third and no one out and all I could think about was all the people that are here watching me and how I’d love to get out of this and put on a little bit of a show for them. It was really cool. It was special.”

Musgrove did his best to not get distracted.

”Out of the gate when I’m out warming up, there’s people screaming right and left and every time I took a step I’m getting called from different directions,” he said. ”I was trying to block it out for the most part but I was also trying to acknowledge the people who were here. Throwing my bullpen there’s 50 of my friends standing right above the catcher hollering and stuff. I’ve always done well in front of my family and friends and that’s something that takes me to that next level.”

He had dinner at his parents’ house on Thursday night and planned to go out with them after the game, as well as have a local beer that’s named after the late Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn.

”Tonight was really special for me,” he said. ”It’s a night I’ll never forget.”

Musgrove was relieved by Steven Brault, a 2010 Grossmont grad. Brault had a short night, allowing two runs on two hits while getting just one out in the eighth.

”It was cool,” Brault said. ”Felt good coming in, felt confident. Some things didn’t go my way Rams Joseph Noteboom Jersey , and that happens. Overall the experience is something that is priceless. Something I never knew I’d actually get to have.”

Brault said it was ”pretty weird” to have two guys from the same high school pitch consecutively against their hometown team.

”If you told us six years ago, seven years ago, that that would happen, we’d probably both go, `That’s ridiculous,”’ he said. ”Just for it to actually happen, and for us to get a win out of it, and Joe pitched so well tonight, it was just awesome to see. It was cool.”

Felipe Vazquez got the last two outs for his 16th save.

The Pirates won for the third time in nine games and the Padres lost for the 10th time in 12 games.

While Musgrove dominated, the Pirates piled on against rookie lefty Eric Lauer (3-5) and the Padres. The Pirates scored an unearned run in the first inning on two singles and Austin Hedges’ passed ball, and added four runs, including two unearned, in the third. Hedges and shortstop Freddy Galvis each had a throwing error. Gregory Polanco hit a two-run double and was thrown out to end the inning trying to stretch it into a triple. Josh Bell hit an RBI triple and Elias Diaz drove in a run on a fielder’s choice.

Mercer homered to center field leading off the fourth to make it 6-0. It was his fifth.

Lauer allowed six runs Mason Rudolph Jersey Steelers , three earned, on nine hits in five innings, struck out three and walked none.

Padres manager Andy Green was ejected before the top of the fourth inning by plate umpire Angel Hernandez. Green apparently was unhappy about a balk call against Lauer while trying to pick off Polanco in the second. The Pirates did not score that inning.

”We felt very strongly that it wasn’t,” Green said. ”That was not the story of the baseball game by any stretch. I don’t think we were very clean early in the game. We did what we’ve done very recently which is show a lot of fight late. It was just a little too late.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Pirates: Placed RHP Chad Kuhl on the 10-day disabled list with a right forearm strain.

Padres: Green said OF Franchy Cordero is leaning toward having surgery to remove a bone spur from his right elbow.

UP NEXT

Pirates: RHP Trevor Williams (6-5, 4.03), a 2010 graduate of San Diego’s Rancho Bernardo High, is scheduled to start the middle game of the series. He’s made one career start against the Padres, giving up four runs in six innings and getting a no-decision in an 8-5 Pirates loss at Pittsburgh on May 20.

Padres: LHP Joey Lucchesi (3-3, 3.57) is scheduled to make his third start since returning from a DL stint that lasted just more than a month.

Mason Rudolph and James Washington spent four years lighting up defenses across the Big 12, setting records and winning game after game for Oklahoma State.

Now, the big-armed quarterback and rugged wide receiver are headed to Pittsburgh. Where they will listen. They will learn. And they will wait. For now anyway. When the guys in front of you on the depth chart include Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown, there's no other choice.

That's fine for both Washington 鈥?taken in the second round 鈥?and Rudolph 鈥?selected with the first of Pittsburgh's two third-round picks.

"To go on to the next chapter with one of your brothers and the best receiver you've spent your whole college days with and maybe spend 15 years with, it's awesome Authentic Sebastian Janikowski Jersey ," said Rudolph said.

Rudolph went 32-9 as a starter with Oklahoma State, the most wins by a quarterback there. Washington set a school record with 4,472 yards receiving, including 125 in Oklahoma State's blowout win over Pittsburgh at Heinz Field last September.

Both players spent the Cowboys' walkthrough the night before the game looking around the stands and playing "what if." Now that "what if" is reality.

"I had no clue this was in the works," Rudolph said.

Offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner downplayed the idea that Rudolph will serve as Roethlisberger's eventual heir, though Rudolph is the first quarterback the Steelers have taken before the fourth round since they drafted Roethlisberger 11th overall in 2004.

Fichtner hopes the 36-year-old Roethlisberger plays for another handful of seasons. The two-time Super Bowl winner told teammates after the Steelers fell to Jacksonville in the divisional round of the playoffs he expects to play at least three more years.

"I always keep my fingers crossed that he's healthy and he wants to play," Fichtner said. "It'd be great for us. It'd be great for me, because he's a guy that's going to be awful hard to replace and if it takes three guys in competition to replace him someday, so be it."

Rudolph will fight for a backup spot with Landry Jones and Josh Dobbs while soaking up what he can from Roethlisberger.

"It's not Ben's job to teach me anything," Rudolph said. "It's my job to learn."

Rudolph set 54 school records during his time at Oklahoma State and at 6-foot-5, 235-pounds is similar to Roethlisberger in terms of size. Whether Rudolph ends up checking all the other boxes, however, is another matter.

The 22-year-old doesn't lack for confidence. Asked if he understands why he slipped to the third round behind the group of five quarterbacks that went in the first round on Thursday Authentic Kyle Lauletta Jersey , Rudolph admitted the slight will stick with him.

"It's definitely a burning fire that definitely began Thursday night and will keep going for a long time," Rudolph said. "(But) I'm a little done with the comparison questions. I'm confident with the way I stacked up."

So is Washington.

The Steelers grabbed him with the 60th overall selection, immediately filling the void created when Pittsburgh dealt talented but enigmatic Martavis Bryant to Oakland on Thursday.

Though the 5-foot-11 Washington lacks Bryant's size and 4.3 speed, he compensates with a competitiveness that made him productive wherever he lined up in the wide-open offense Rudolph guided.

"He's intelligent (and) he held down his position for a long time," Fichtner said. "We would expect that he have that ability to come in, learn and hold that position down quickly."

Regardless of what the stopwatch says 鈥?Washington ran a so-so 4.54 40-yard dash at the combine 鈥?Washington can get downfield. He averaged 19.8 yards per reception with the Cowboys and showed the kind of elusiveness that allowed him to turn a short pass into a sprint to the end zone.

At 213 pounds, Washington also has the strength to be an effective blocker in the run game and brings a kind of physicality the Steelers have long valued in their receiving group.

"This guy comes in with several tricks," new offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner said.

Fichtner called Washington "no maintenance," which would be a departure from Bryant, who was twice suspended for violating the league's substance abuse policy and was briefly benched last fall after demanding a trade.

This is the second straight year the Steelers have taken a wide receiver in the second round. They selected JuJu Smith-Schuster in the second round of the 2017 draft. Smith-Schuster's rapid development 鈥?his seven touchdown receptions were the most by a rookie in the NFL last year 鈥?made Bryant expendable.

"They got the best (receiving group) in the league," Washington said. "I can't wait to work with those guys and learn from them."

Pittsburgh picked Western Michigan offensive tackle Chukwuma Okorafora with their second third-round selection. Okorafora adds depth to a line that helped the Steelers finish fourth in yards while going 13-3 and claiming their third division title in four years.

It's not quite the draft most expected from Pittsburgh. The Steelers took safety Terrell Edmunds in the first round but focused on offense Friday despite glaring needs at inside linebacker and the secondary.

They'll try to address those needs on Saturday. Pittsburgh has two picks in the fifth and one in the seventh.

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