Padres shut out 3-0 at home by Rockies

SAN DIEGO (AP) - The San Diego Padres were on the wrong end of a much too familiar result at home: a shutout.

Clayton Mortensen and five relievers combined to help the Colorado Rockies shut out the Padres 3-0 on Monday night for their major league-leading 10th shutout, seventh at home.

San Diego, owners of the NL’s worst home record at 12-22, seemed to have turned a corner at spacious Petco Park as they began a season-long 11-game homestand last week. The Padres not only took three of four from the Houston Astros, but they scored 20 runs in the series.

But Monday night, Mortensen and much of the Rockies‘ bullpen held San Diego without a timely hit as they combined to strand 11 runners and snap the Padres‘ three-game winning streak.

“From a hitting standpoint, we just need to stay after it,” said catcher Kyle Phillips. “We’ve been swinging the bat well. We got nine hits, we just didn’t get any two-out hits.”

The lack of offense wasted a solid outing from Clayton Richard, who allowed one run on five hits in seven innings. The lefty struck out a season-high eight batters with three walks.

“You’re always frustrated with losses, no matter what the situation,” he said. “But that’s how baseball is. We’ve been playing some real good baseball of late. We had a rough night at the plate. We’ll bounce back.”

The Padres‘ seven shutouts at home are the most since they moved into their downtown ballpark in 2004.

The Rockies won for just the fifth time in 17 games, but continued their success at Petco Park where they have won eight of the last 10.

Mortensen (2-3) allowed five hits in six innings. He struck out three and walked two before he gave way to the relief corp. Huston Street pitched a perfect ninth for his 16th save in 18 chances.

Matt Reynolds, the fourth Colorado reliever, escaped a bases-loaded jam in the eighth inning. Rafael Betancourt started the inning and gave up a single and walk with one out. After he struck out Jorge Cantu for the second out, Reynolds came in and walked pinch hitter Eric Patterson before he struck out Alberto Gonzalez.

San Diego stranded 11 base runners.

Troy Tulowitzki drove in the first run in the first inning and Seth Smith had an RBI triple. Chris Iannetta added a run-scoring single off Ernesto Frieri in the ninth.

Colorado raised its June road record to 3-2, one road win more than it had in May (2-11).

The Rockies reached Richard for a run in the first inning after Chris Nelson’s one-out triple and Tulowitzki’s ground ball that caromed off Richard’s foot for an infield single.

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