Murphy says he's shocked struggling Padres are so tense
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Pat Murphy has been interim manager of the San Diego Padres for 14 games, enough to form an opinion on the mindset of the struggling club.
Coming in new to the club, the thing that has shocked me is how tense everyone is, Murphy said after the listless Padres were shut out for the second straight game by the Seattle Mariners, 7-0 on Wednesday.
Taijuan Walker pitched one-hit ball for six innings to win his fifth straight start, and Robinson Cano and Nelson Cruz homered for the Mariners.
The Padres have underwhelmed after general manager A.J. Preller retooled the roster by bringing in stars Matt Kemp, Justin Upton, James Shields, Wil Myers and Derek Norris in an offseason binge.
The Padres are 5-9 under Murphy, a former Triple-A manager and college coach.
The 37 hits are the most by an active player against an active pitcher.
Shields was pulled after walking the bases loaded with two outs in the seventh and Cano greeted Frank Garces with an RBI single.
Cruz followed by greeting Marcus Mateo with a two-run shot to left.
Shields allowed two runs and four hits in 6 2-3 innings, struck out seven and walked four.