Gomber and Beck lead Rockies past Padres 8-0 for 3-game sweep and 7-game win streak

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Austin Gomber allowed two hits in six innings, Brenton Doyle and Jordan Beck homered and the Colorado Rockies beat the San Diego Padres 8-0 on Wednesday to complete a three-game sweep with their seventh straight victory.

It is Colorado's longest winning streak since an eight-game run that ended in June 2019.

Gomber (1-2) struck out five and walked two before three relievers finished a four-hitter. It was the first time Colorado (15-28), which has won six road games all season, swept a three-game set in San Diego since 2013.

The last-place Rockies had gone 93 games without throwing a shutout.

“I thought (Gomber’s) fastball for the most part was located in and out,″ manager Bud Black said. “Even though the Padres hitters were looking for the secondary pitch, the fastball was always in the back of their minds. He just had their timing disrupted.″

Gomber wasn’t shy about using all four of his pitches, regardless of the count.

“I’ve gotten to the point where I just trust the kind of pitcher that I am and the stuff that I have,″ he said. “I’ve kind of found what works for me and I just kind of let the results be what they are.

“I’m not out here trying to strike guys out. If you want to swing at the first pitch, be my guest. If you want to guess at what I’m going to throw, that’s fine. I feel like that puts me in an advantageous spot.″

Beck, who had four RBIs and two extra-base hits, smacked his first major league homer in the sixth with a drive deep into the left-field seats.

“Obviously, that is something you dream about,″ said Beck, who extended his hitting streak to a career-high five games.

Michael King (3-4) had a rocky outing for the Padres, giving up his big league-high 11th homer to Doyle in a three-run second. Beck, who finished with three hits, delivered a two-run double.

King was cognizant of the frustration voiced by Padres fans.

“We’re fully deserving of it if we’re playing that poorly,″ he said. “I continue to think we have some smart fans here and they know when they are watching bad baseball.″

Colorado tacked on with Jacob Stallings’ two-run single in the third. Beck added a two-run homer in the sixth and an RBI single in the eighth.

King permitted six runs, eight hits and two walks with seven strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings.

The Padres were shut out for the third game this year and second time on their homestand. Manny Machado, Fernando Tatis Jr. and Xander Bogaerts went a combined 1 for 9, with Machado striking out a team-high three times.

Donovan Solano had two hits and a walk for San Diego, which went 3 for 22 with runners in scoring position during the series.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Rockies catcher Elias Díaz (left hand) was held out of the lineup.

UP NEXT

Rockies: RHP Ryan Feltner (1-3, 5.20 ERA) faces Giants LHP Kyle Harrison (3-1, 3.42) on Friday.

Padres: RHP Matt Waldron (1-5, 5.49 ERA) pitches against Atlanta LHP Max Fried (3-1, 3.57) on Friday.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB

Colorado Rockies' Jake Cave runs on his way to scoring from second base off a two-RBI double by Jordan Beck during the second inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Wednesday, May 15, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Colorado Rockies' Jordan Beck, right, celebrates with teammate Jacob Stallings after hitting a two-run home run during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Wednesday, May 15, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

San Diego Padres starting pitcher Michael King works against a Colorado Rockies batter during the first inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, May 15, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Colorado Rockies' Brenton Doyle celebrates after hitting a home run during the second inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Wednesday, May 15, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

San Diego Padres starting pitcher Michael King works against a Colorado Rockies batter during the first inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, May 15, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

San Diego Padres center fielder Jackson Merrill makes a catch at the wall for the out on Colorado Rockies' Brendan Rodgers during the ninth inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, May 15, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Colorado Rockies' Jordan Beck bats during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Wednesday, May 15, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Colorado Rockies' Jordan Beck runs to first base after hitting an RBI single during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Wednesday, May 15, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

San Diego Padres' Manny Machado blows a bubble on his way towards first base as he grounds out during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Colorado Rockies, Wednesday, May 15, 2024, in San Diego. The Rockies won, 8-0. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Colorado Rockies relief pitcher Peter Lambert (20) celebrates with catcher Jacob Stallings after the Rockies defeated the San Diego Padres 8-0 in a baseball game, Wednesday, May 15, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Colorado Rockies left fielder Jordan Beck, left, celebrates with teammates center fielder Brenton Doyle, behind, and right fielder Jake Cave after the Rockies defeated the San Diego Padres 8-0 in a baseball game, Wednesday, May 15, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Austin Gomber works against a San Diego Padres batter during the fourth inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, May 15, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Colorado Rockies left fielder Jordan Beck, right, celebrates with teammate first baseman Elehuris Montero after the Rockies defeated the San Diego Padres 8-0 in a baseball game, Wednesday, May 15, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea on Friday bragged of its recently tested new intercontinental ballistic missile, calling it “the world’s strongest,” a claim viewed by outside experts as propaganda though the test showed an advancement in the North's quest to build a more reliable weapons arsenal.

A missile launched by North Korea on Thursday flew higher and stayed in the air for a longer duration than any other weapon the country had so far fired. It signaled that the North has achieved progress in acquiring a nuclear-armed ICBM that can hit the U.S. mainland. But foreign experts assess that the country has still a few remaining technological issues to master before acquiring such a functioning ICBM.

On Friday, the North’s Korean Central News Agency identified the missile as “Hwasong-19” ICBM and called it “the world’s strongest strategic missile” and “the perfected weapon system.”

KCNA said leader Kim Jong Un observed the launch, describing it as “an appropriate military action” to express North Korea’s resolve to respond to its enemies’ moves that escalated tensions and threats to North Korea’s national security. It said Kim thanked weapons scientists for demonstrating North Korea’s “matchless strategic nuclear attack capability.”

South Korea’s military earlier said that North Korea could have tested a solid-fueled missile but Friday’s KCNA dispatch didn’t say what propellant the Hwasong-19 ICBM uses. Observers say the color of exhaust flames seen in North Korean media photos on the launch still suggest the new ICBM uses solid fuels.

Before Thursday’s test, North Korea’s most advanced ICBM was known as the “Hwasong-18” missile which uses solid fuels. Pre-loaded solid propellants make it easier to move missiles and require much less launch preparation times than liquid propellants that must be fueled before liftoffs. So it’s more difficult for opponents to detect launches by solid-fuel missiles.

In recent years, North Korea has reported steady advancement in its efforts to obtain nuclear-tipped missiles. Many foreign experts believe North Korea likely has missiles that can deliver nuclear strikes on all of South Korea, but it has yet to possess nuclear missiles that can travel to the mainland U.S.

There are questions on whether North Korea has acquired the technology to shield warheads from the high-temperature, high-stress environment of atmospheric reentry. Many foreign analysts say North Korea also must have improved altitude control and guidance systems for missiles. They say North Korea needs an ability to place multiple warheads on a single missile to defeat its rivals’ missile defenses.

All of North Korea’s known ICBM tests, including Thursday’s, have been performed on steep angles to avoid neighboring countries. South Korean military spokesperson Lee Sung Joon said Thursday that a high-angel trajectory launch cannot verify a missile’s re-entry vehicle technology, though North Korea has previously claimed to have acquired that technology.

Observers say that Thursday's launch, the North's first ICBM test in almost a year, was largely meant to grab American attention days before the U.S. presidential election and respond to international condemnation over North Korea's reported dispatch of troops to Russia to support its war against Ukraine.

North Korea's reported troop dispatch highlights the expanding military cooperation between North Korea and Russia. South Korea. the U.S. and others worry North Korea might seek high-tech, sensitive Russian technology to perfect its nuclear and missile programs in return for joining the Russian-Ukraine war.

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Associated Press writer Kim Tong-hyung contributed to this report.

This photo provided by the North Korean government, shows what it says a test launch of new intercontinental ballistic missile "Hwasong-19" at an undisclosed place in North Korea Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: "KCNA" which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)

This photo provided by the North Korean government, shows what it says a test launch of new intercontinental ballistic missile "Hwasong-19" at an undisclosed place in North Korea Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: "KCNA" which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)

This photo provided by the North Korean government, shows what it says a test launch of new intercontinental ballistic missile "Hwasong-19" at an undisclosed place in North Korea Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: "KCNA" which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)