SAN DIEGO — Melvin Upton Jr. hit a pair of two-run homers in the Padres' 9-0 win Tuesday, both long balls coming against Braves relievers who've struggled mightily in August.
He homered in the sixth inning against David Aardsma, who has a 12.48 ERA and .343 opponents’ average in 10 August appearances, allowing 12 hits, 12 runs (11 earned runs), three homers and five walks in eight innings.
Upton homered in the seventh inning against rookie left-hander Andrew McKirahan, who had a 9.00 ERA and bloated .406 opponents’ average in six appearances through Tuesday, with 13 hits and seven runs allowed in seven innings.
For Upton, it was his first five-RBI game since Sept. 3, 2011, when he was with the Rays, long before his career-worst seasons with the Braves in 2013-2014.
Between that five-RBI game in 2011 and Tuesday, Upton played in 486 games and had these hitting stats: .224 average (379-for-1,690) with 57 homers, 162 RBIs, .296 OBP, .382 slugging percentage, 174 walks and 554 strikeouts.
He entered Wednesday’s series finale with a .242 average, .304 OBP, 10 extra-base hits (five homers) and 13 RBIs in 51 games (124 at-bats) for the Padres.
