DENVER _ The worst start of Clayton Richard's career began in relatively tame fashion. The Colorado Rockies' leadoff batter, Charlie Blackmon, dumped a single into shallow left field.
Soon enough, Coors Field had the feel of a raging inferno.
As the Padres absorbed an 18-4 shellacking Wednesday afternoon, Richard did not make it out of the fourth inning. The left-hander surrendered 14 hits and 11 runs, both numbers matching franchise records. The Rockies' onslaught continued after his exit. San Diego, which suffered a three-game sweep, had not seen so many opposing baserunners cross home plate since Sept. 20, 2005.
They were routed 20-1 that day, also here in the game's least forgiving environment. Seemingly the only positive amid another beatdown: The Padres will not have to pitch in Denver again until September.
By then, the composition of the starting rotation could be different. Richard, Trevor Cahill and Jhoulys Chacin _ three veterans on one-year deals _ have drawn slight to moderate interest in advance of the non-waiver trade deadline. Of course, what unfolded Wednesday did not help in the value department.
"Really, I felt good today," Richard said. "It was just one of those days where it seems like it wasn't meant to be."
The Rockies finished with 21 hits, the most against the Padres in a game since 2008. They homered five times, three in consecutive at-bats by third baseman Nolan Arenado.
"You can look at it a whole lot of different ways," Padres manager Andy Green said. "The reality is we just didn't execute pitches consistently, and they hit balls through holes, they blooped balls in, they hit balls off walls and they hit balls out of the ballpark. Literally, every conceivable type of hit they could get, they had today. Maybe positioning-wise, we could've done a little bit better. But you're not changing 21 hits at the end of the day."
Coors Field already had been the site of Richard's most forgettable outings. He had allowed a career-worst eight earned runs on two occasions, both coming at altitude.
In his first start here since 2013, Richard yielded 10 earned runs. His defense was far from crisp. A run scored on a passed ball by catcher Hector Sanchez. Center fielder Manuel Margot struggled to track down a couple of deep drives. A number of singles snuck through the infield.
But Richard had no answers, either. Eleven of Colorado's first 19 batters reached base. The Rockies carried a 6-0 lead into the bottom of the fourth.
Arenado led off that half-inning with the first of his home runs. Richard retired the next two batters. Gerardo Parra singled. Trevor Story swatted a two-run homer. Ryan Hanigan drilled a ground-rule double. Richard was yanked after starting pitcher Jon Gray singled in a run.
"I have to take responsibility," said Richard, whose earned-run average jumped from 4.75 to 5.35. "That's part of the game. But unfortunately, it just seemed like mishit balls found the right spots. It was a Coors Field day."
Reliever Kevin Quackenbush's first pitch met a grisly fate. Blackmon sent a two-run blast out to right-center. Not halfway through the game, the Rockies led 12-0.
The Padres did not get to Gray until the sixth, when Jabari Blash recorded an RBI single and Cory Spangenberg launched a three-run homer. San Diego failed to make the most of other opportunities. For instance, in the top of the fourth, Wil Myers paused to watch a long drive that clanged off the right-field wall. Myers wound up with a leadoff single.
"It was (two) perfect hops to (Parra), and they were able to make the throw to second base," said Myers, who would be stranded at third. "I need to do a better job of getting out of the box."
The Rockies wound up crossing home plate in all but one of their eight innings at bat.
"You learn what you can from these moments," Green said. "We flush these games. We move on. And we show up ready to win a baseball game tomorrow."
Another short start would be difficult to stomach. The Padres, who open a series Thursday in San Francisco, were outscored 36-17 over their three losses here. Seven relievers combined for 14 innings. Wednesday, Quackenbush worked 21/3, serving up six runs.
"I wanted to stay out there as long as I can, especially with the stress, the load, our bullpen has been under the last couple days," Richard said. "Unfortunately, I wasn't able to do that."
