SAN DIEGO (AP) — Bryson Stott hit two two-run homers, J.T. Realmuto also connected and Taijun Walker made a slick behind-the-back catch in his season debut to help the Philadelphia Phillies beat the San Diego Padres 8-6 on Sunday for their first road sweep of the season.
The Phillies overwhelmed the Padres with nine homers and terrific starting pitching in becoming the first team to sweep San Diego this year. The Padres haven't seemed to recover from blowing a late five-run lead at Colorado on Thursday and losing 10-9. Although they briefly had the lead Sunday, the Padres lost their season-high fourth straight game.
Click to Gallery
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Bryson Stott hit two two-run homers, J.T. Realmuto also connected and Taijun Walker made a slick behind-the-back catch in his season debut to help the Philadelphia Phillies beat the San Diego Padres 8-6 on Sunday for their first road sweep of the season.
Philadelphia Phillies' J.T. Realmuto, left, celebrates with Alec Bohm after his two-run home run during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Sunday, April 28, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Brandon Sloter)
Philadelphia Phillies' Bryson Stott rounds the bases after hitting a two-run home run during the second inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Sunday, April 28, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Brandon Sloter)
Philadelphia Phillies' Bryson Stott, center, celebrates after his two-run home run with teammate Nick Castellanos (8) during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Sunday, April 28, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Brandon Sloter)
Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Taijuan Walker throws a pitch during the first inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Sunday, April 28, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Brandon Sloter)
After starting 0-2, the Phillies have won 19 of their last 27 games. They've swept three of their last four series and are a season-high nine games over .500
“Feels like every day, every night, it's a new pitcher shutting down an inning, it's a new hitter driving guys in,” Stott said. “That's what you need as a team, is one through nine, just winning all types of different games. ... It feels like everyone is kind of clicking."
Walker (1-0) opened the season on the injured list with right shoulder soreness and was activated earlier Sunday from a rehab assignment. He pitched into the seventh after Aaron Nola and Ranger Suárez each went eight innings in the first two games.
Walker was chased by pinch-hitter Luis Campusano's three-run homer with one out in the seventh that pulled the Padres to 7-6. Walker also allowed Jake Cronenworth's two-run shot in the third. The right-hander allowed six runs and eight hits, struck out four and walked two.
“Everyone's pitching well and the team's rolling,” Walker said. “I just want to be part of it and be out there with the guys. I just want to go deep in innings and do my part. I don't feel I did that all the way today, but the offense did really well, the defense did well and the team's hot right now. I got the first one out of the way.”
José Alvarado pitched a perfect ninth for his fifth save in as many opportunities.
Stott, the No. 8 hitter, had his first career multiple-homer game. He connected with one out in the second for a 2-0 lead and again with two outs in the fourth for a 4-3 lead. Stott has three this season. Nick Castellanos walked ahead of Stott both times.
“It's always good to put some good swings on the ball, especially when you have a few games in a row when you feel you're a little off or something like that," Stott said.
Stott grew up in Las Vegas and said he'd make trips with family and friends to watch big league games at San Diego and Anaheim.
“I remembered the balls at night weren't really flying but good thing I hit them in the daytime, I guess," he said.
Stott jammed a finger on his right hand while stealing second base in the eighth but said he’s OK. He scored on Johan Rojas’ double.
Realmuto hit a two-run homer in the sixth, his second of the series and fifth overall. All three homers Sunday came off Michael King (2-3). Realmuto added an RBI single in the seventh.
In between Stott's homers, Walker made his slick catch and blew the lead. With Xander Bogaerts aboard on a leadoff single in the second, rookie Jackson Merrill hit a shot back to the mound on a curveball and Walker turned slightly and reached behind his back to make the catch. He then doubled Bogaerts off first. Merrill looked perplexed as he took off his helmet and headed back to the dugout.
“I didn't have time to turn and get it so I just kind of stuck my glove there and I was just as surprised as everyone else that it was in there,” Walker said. “It was a good play. It was a double play. Double plays are always good.”
Walker surrendered the lead in the third on Fernando Tatis Jr.’s RBI double and Cronenworth’s two-run homer, his fourth.
Stott regained the lead for Walker and the Phillies with his fourth-inning homer.
King allowed six runs and six hits in 6 1/3 innings, struck out six and walked three.
ROSTER MOVE
To make room for Walker, RHP Ricardo Pinto was designated for assignment.
UP NEXT
Phillies: LHP Cristopher Sánchez (1-3, 2.96 ERA) is scheduled to start Monday night in the opener of a three-game series at the Los Angeles Angels, who will counter with RHP Griffin Canning (1-3, 7.50).
Padres: RHP Matt Waldron (1-2, 3.96) is set to start Monday night in the opener of a three-game series against LHP Nick Lodolo (2-0, 2.12) and the Cincinnati Reds.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
San Diego Padres manager Mike Shildt, left, takes the ball from starting pitcher Michael King, front right, during a pitching change in the sixth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies, Sunday, April 28, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Brandon Sloter)
Philadelphia Phillies' J.T. Realmuto, left, celebrates with Alec Bohm after his two-run home run during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Sunday, April 28, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Brandon Sloter)
Philadelphia Phillies' Bryson Stott rounds the bases after hitting a two-run home run during the second inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Sunday, April 28, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Brandon Sloter)
Philadelphia Phillies' Bryson Stott, center, celebrates after his two-run home run with teammate Nick Castellanos (8) during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Sunday, April 28, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Brandon Sloter)
Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Taijuan Walker throws a pitch during the first inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Sunday, April 28, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Brandon Sloter)
NEW YORK (AP) — Less than three years ago, Mary Ann and David Giordano were taking turns lying on the living room floor with their Afghan hound Frankie, hand-feeding the desperately ill dog anything she would eat.
She had developed severe kidney problems after contracting Lyme disease, despite being on medications meant to repel the ticks that carry the bacteria that cause it. Veterinarians weren't sure she would survive.
Yet on Monday, Frankie was at the Westminster Kennel Club dog show, healthy and ready to compete. She would face off against over a dozen other Afghan hounds — including Zaida, the winner of last month’s World Dog Show in Croatia — for a chance to advance to the next round of the United States’ most prestigious canine event.
“It was really tough,” Mary Ann Giordano said, her voice halting as she described Frankie's eight-monthlong ordeal. “But she made it.”
For all the pooch pageantry of Westminster — the coiffed poodles, the top-knotted toy dogs, the formality of dogs trotting around a ring — it's also an illustration of the bond people form with dogs, and what each will do for the other.
Monday marked the start of the traditional judging that leads to the best in show prize, to be awarded Tuesday night. Semifinals began Monday night, pitting the winners of each breed against others in their “group,” such as hounds or herding dogs.
The first semifinal winner was Louis, an Afghan hound that had bested Zaida, Frankie, her littermate Belle and several others to win the breed.
“This breed’s supposed to be ‘the king of dogs,’ and he knows he is,” handler and co-owner Alicia Jones said.
Also advancing to Tuesday night's finals is Comet, a shih tzu who won the toy dog group at Westminster on Monday — and took the best in show trophy at last year's huge, televised American Kennel Club National Championship.
“He's just everything you would want in a shih tzu,” co-owner, breeder and handler Luke Ehricht said after Comet won his breed Monday morning. With a flowing coat like a vanilla-and-caramel ice cream sundae that’s melting onto the table, the dog looked up at his handler with the sweet expression that’s prized in the breed.
“He’s a very sweet, loving dog” who knows when it’s time to perform and when it’s time to relax and play, said Ehricht, of Monclova, Ohio.
In all, seven semifinalists will be chosen Monday and Tuesday nights.
The 2,500-plus first-round entrants range from tiny Yorkshire terriers to towering great Danes. They include a newly added breed, the Lancashire heeler, represented Monday by a single contestant named Mando.
If he knew a lot was riding on his little shoulders, he didn't show it as he appeared in the first-round ring and someone in the audience yelled, “Yay! History!”
“He just has a rock-star attitude,” handler Jessica Plourde said afterward.
The show also was a first for Alfredo Delgado and Maria Davila, who had traveled from Juncos, Puerto Rico, with their French bulldog, Duncan.
Their path started when Delgado's brother found a lost Frenchie. It was soon reunited with its owner, but Delgado was intrigued by the breed.
Fast-forward some years, and he was in the Westminster ring as Duncan's breeder, owner and handler, with Davila cheering him on.
“We made a dream come true to be here," Davila said afterward. “To share with experienced people in the ring — that was awesome.”
In a nearby grooming tent, Valarie Cheimis petted Csoki, a puli, ahead of ring time.
The Hungarian herding breed sports long, thick cords that form naturally, though owners aid the process by separating them. They become so dense that the dogs can take 24 hours to dry after a bath - and that's with an array of box fans and sometimes even a portable dehumidifier, Cheimis said.
Why go through all that?
“These are fun dogs. They’re full of personality,” Cheimis said as she petted her competing puli, Csoki, ahead of ring time. Sure, they can be stubborn and barky, Cheimis said, but they're also endearing — Csoki looks after her geese and chickens at home in Kingfield, Maine, even lying down next to the goslings.
Mister, a bloodhound who won a merit award in his breed Monday, also puts his breed’s ancient instincts to work. He’s qualified to trail missing people, though his calls so far have been resolved before they got into the field, said co-owner, breeder and handler Renee Wagner, of Niagara Falls, New York.
The 148th Westminster show kicked off Saturday with an agility competition — won by a mixed-breed dog for the first time since Westminster added the event in 2014. Nimble, the winner, was handled by Cynthia Hornor, who took the trophy with a border collie last year.
Comet, a Shih Tzu, right, competes in breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A border collie waits to take photos at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A woman wears a dog necklace at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A dog competes in breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A handler runs with a dog during breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Dogs compete in breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Tox fox terrier Half Pint is carried by his handler at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Dogs are groomed during the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Dogs and people watch breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Dogs compete in breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A dog waits to compete in breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A handler grooms a dog during breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Dogs and handlers wait to take photos at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A dog is groomed during the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Dalmatians wait to compete in breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Handler Alicia Jones runs with Afghan Hound Louis during breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Bichon Frises compete in breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Dalmatians compete in breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Mary Ann Giordano runs with Afghan Hound Belle during breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A border collie waits to take photos at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Comet, a Shih Tzu, competes in breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
David Giordano runs with Afghan Hound Frankie during breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A Great Dane licks its nose in the Breed Showcase area at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Saturday, May 11, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A dog is groomed during the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Handler Willy Santiago competes with Afghan Hound Zaida during breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
French bulldogs compete in breed group judging during the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A dog is groomed during the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A dog walks through the grooming area during the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A dog paw tattoo is seen on a handlers leg during breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A dog is groomed during the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A handler shows a Sloughis' teeth during its breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A judge examines a Sloughis' tail during its breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A dog is groomed during the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A French bulldog plays with a toy during breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
A dog is groomed during the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Handler Jessica Plourde competes with Lancashire heeler Mando during breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Dogs are groomed during the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Handler Willy Santiago competes with Afghan Hound Zaida during breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
Comet, a Shih Tzu, right, competes in breed group judging at the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, Monday, May 13, 2024, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
