Derrick Goold gives credit to Dave Duncan's first inning visit for the win last night:

Said Carpenter, goggles propped above his eyes in the postgame celebration, ready for the next spray of champagne: "I just wasn't locating too well. I probably was trying to stay on the corners too much. I was not being as aggressive as I needed to be. I settled back down, and I was able to attack the strike zone and start getting outs."

Duncan believed Carpenter was affected by Sunday's pressure.

That's why he took a rare first-inning stroll to the mound. He didn't want to talk so much as to give Carpenter a moment to relax, to reload.

"Early there, knowing the significance of the game, I think Carp tried probably to do a little bit more than he needed to do," Duncan said.

Carpenter needed 35 pitches, 17 of which were balls, to squeeze three outs from the first inning. It took him 67 pitches to get the next 18 outs.

The Padres season turned right there. Even a single with the bases loaded would give them control of the game. As in most of the series, the Padres could not find that third hit.