Monday night was an eventful one for San Diego Padres infielder Luis Arraez. A lot happened during San Diego's 3-1 win over the Houston Astros, including an early exit for Arraez on a night he saw his incredible no-strikeout feat end earlier in the game.
Arraez left the game in the seventh inning after smacking a double into right field for his second hit of the night. He appeared to suffer a knee injury in the fifth inning after he slid into home trying to score on a Jurickson Profar single. Arraez was thrown out by Astros left fielder Jason Heyward.
Arraez said after the game that he feels ok and hopes to be back in the lineup Tuesday, per MLB.com. The Padres lifted him out of precaution though it seems he's avoided an injury that will force him to miss significant time.
Arraez has stayed relatively healthy throughout his career, playing an average of 144 games since 2022. He hasn’t spent time on the injured list since May 2022.
Otherworldly streak comes to an end for Arraez
Luis Arraez was the main subject of most Padres games over the past few days as baseball fans flocked to their screens to see the hitting wizard work his magic at the plate. He finally met his match in Astros starter Spencer Arrighetti, who put Arraez in the scorebook as a strikeout victim for the first time in over a month.
Arrighetti got Arraez to swing through a 3-2 curveball in the second inning, marking the first strikeout since Aug. 10 for the Padres leadoff hitter. Arraez went 141 consecutive plate appearances without striking out, the longest in MLB in over 20 years.
Arraez gave Arrighetti his flowers following their impressive battles. The Astros right-hander beat Arraez twice before the latter knocked a single in his third at-bat.
“The strikeout? It’s painful,” Arraez said. “But [Arrighetti] was nasty. I fought with him. He’s got good stuff.”
Arraez remained confident after the strikeout.
“I strike out, and I said: ‘I’ve got two more at-bats,’” he said. “Let’s see what happens.”
A pair of hits in his final two at-bats happened, giving Arraez a 14-game hitting streak. It was his fourth consecutive multi-hit game and seventh in his last eight. He's hitting over .500 during that span and has a .448 average in September.
Luis Arraez remains among the best hitters in the league and is in line for a third consecutive batting title. He'll be a crucial player for the Padres down the stretch as San Diego tries to keep pace in the National League.
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