Jedd Gyorko got his first taste of what it’s like to play in the big leagues on Tuesday afternoon when he was called upon to join the San Diego Padres in their spring training game against the Milwaukee Brewers. The former Mountaineer baseball great was put in the game at the bottom of the sixth inning as a defensive replacement for third baseman Jorge Cantu.
Gyorko got one at bat in the game and that came in the ninth inning. He was the second player to hit in the inning and was walked by the Brewer’s John Axford. He later advanced to second on a walk to Guillermo Quiroz. He was left stranded at second base to end the game and the Padres lost 7-0.
This was Gyorko first game with the big league Padres during spring training. Each organization has two separate spring trainings: one of the big league players and one for the minor league players. Gyorko has spent all of the spring with the minor league organization, until he received word from the Padres that they wanted him to dress for their spring training game just hours before the first pitch.