Knuckleballer Matt Waldron Reacts to First Career Win

While each win feels like too little, too late with the Padres on the outskirts of earning a spot in the National League Wild Card, Saturday's win over the Oakland Athletics was a special one. 

26-year-old pitcher Matt Waldron made his MLB debut in June, allowing two runs off of two homers to the Washington Nationals. He did not see the mound again until late August and averaged a 5.40 ERA between two starts. 

On Saturday, however, the pitcher finally won his first MLB game in the Padres 5-2 victory over the A's. 

Waldron threw for 5.1 innings, allowing seven hits, two earned runs and struck out five batters as the Padres won their third straight.

Waldron, who is known for his knuckleball, said that he was glad to have his first win under his belt.

"It feels pretty special," Waldron said. "I do wish it happened sooner, but that's ... my fault. I wish I executed a little earlier."  

(Via The San Diego Union-Tribune)

As The San Diego Union-Tribune's Kevin Acee noted in his game recap, Waldron has increased the frequency of his knuckleball in his last two starts compared to his first four, from 20 percent to 38 percent. Manager Bob Melvin thinks that the increased use of one of his strongest pitches has served him well. 

“A better mix,” Melvin said. “The knuckleball is becoming more and more prominent for him, and it’s become a really good pitch for him. It makes his fastball better, it makes the breaking ball better. It’s a pitch that he’s thrown enough now to where you have to look for it a little bit. … So I think that’s kind of the difference in what he did today.”

(Via The San Diego Union-Tribune)

The Padres have virtually no chance of making the playoffs, but continued success from Waldron could bode well for the future of the San Diego starting rotation.