SAN DIEGO — For a player who missed 63 games, Logan Forsythe didn’t miss a beat.
Forsythe homered in his first at-bat as the San Diego Padres held on for a 7-6 victory over the Atlanta Braves at Petco Park on Monday night.
Will Venable added a three-run shot and reliever Dale Thayer recorded his first save to stop the Braves’ four-run rally in the ninth.
Forsythe, who was activated from the 60-day disabled list before Monday’s game after being plagued with plantar fasciitis in his right foot, drove a 1-1 fastball from Atlanta starter Julio Teheran an estimated 445 feet over the wall in center for a 2-0 advantage in the second inning, giving the Padres a lead they never surrendered.
“That was icing on the cake. It felt good to just get out there with the guys and actually be healthy for once,” said Forsythe, who went 2-for-2 with a walk. Forsythe also homered twice Sunday in his final rehab game at Triple-A Tucson. “Everything’s feeling great. About a week ago the foot stoped hurting. It’s been a good bounce back.”
“It’s great to see a guy right off the get go make an impact,” Padres manager Bud Black said. “He did it in a big way with the homer and a base hit.”
Venable, who went 2-for-3 with three RBIs, added a three-run shot to give the Padres a five-run advantage. It was Venable’s eighth home run, seven of them coming at Petco.
Marquis (8-2), who started his career with the Braves, limited Atlanta to a run and four hits before giving a solo home run to Jason Heyward in the eighth. Marquis walked five and struck out four before being relieved after 7 2/3 innings.
“I just tried to carry over what I did in L.A. and tried to be consistent with my delivery and focus down in the zone with my sinker,” said Marquis, referring to his last outing against the Dodgers, who he no-hit for five innings before allowing two runs on three hits in 6 1/3 innings on June 5. “I allowed the game to dictate how I attack hitters. I let my eyes do the talking. All in all I thought it was pretty good. Defense did a good job for me tonight and made some good plays.”
Teheran (4-3), who tossed a one-hitter and struck out 11 in his last outing June 5 against the Pittsburgh Pirates, gave up five runs on six hits in six innings Monday. He served up both homers to Forsythe and Venable.
“Sometimes you’ll have four or five good ones, then get one like this,” Atlanta manager Fredi Gonzalez said.
The Braves made the Padres earn the win by rallying in the ninth. Rookie Evan Gattis went deep with his 14th home run to pull the Braves (39-25) to within 7-5. The home run was Gattis’ fourth as a pinch hitter and is tied for second most in a season, trailing Butch Niemann’s record of five set in 1945. Gatis is 6-for-8 as a pinch hitter with 11 RBIs.
Heyward added the second of his two solo shots before Dale Thayer struck out Justin Upton looking to record his first save and allow the Padres (30-34) to escape.
“I’m really, really proud of our team,” Heyward said. “We have a good team. We don’t quit.”
Alexi Amarista tripled over the head of center fielder B.J. Upton and scored on Chase Headley’s groundout for a 1-0 Padres lead with two outs in the first.
Venable connected off Teheran with one out in the fourth.
Teheran’s RBI groundout in the fifth scored Chris Johnson to put the Braves on the board.
NOTES: The Padres placed 2B Jedd Gyorko on the 15-day disabled list with a right groin strain. Gyorko led all major league rookies in average (.284), hits (66), runs (36) and total bases (107) and was tied for the lead in doubles (17) and second in home runs (eight) and RBIs (25) before going on the DL. … Forsythe, who had been rehabbing at Triple-A Tucson, was activated from the 60-day disabled list and started at second for the injured Gyorko. The Padres also designated C John Baker for assignment. … San Diego RHP Huston Street pitched a simulated game before Monday’s contest. Street will pitch an inning Wednesday at Single-A Lake Elsinore. Street went on the 15-day disabled list June 1 (retroactive to May 30) with a strained right calf. … The game drew a crowd of 21,192.