SAN DIEGO -- The final regular-season game of 2006 at PETCO Park is in the books. Closer Trevor Hoffman put it in the record books.
Hoffman calmly set down the Pirates in order in the bottom of the ninth on Sunday, converting the 479th save of his illustrious career, making him the all-time leader in Major League history.
He froze Ryan Doumit on strike three, struck out Jose Batista swinging and pinch-hitter Freddy Sanchez grounded out to give Hoffman the historic mark. He was quickly mobbed by teammates at the mound.
Offensively, the Padres relied on a pair of home runs to squeeze by the Pirates, 2-1, and sweep the three-game series.
Russell Branyan smacked his fifth home run of the season to right-center field, an estimated 453 feet away from home plate in the fourth inning and tied the game. The blast tied for the longest in PETCO Park history with Atlanta's Andruw Jones. Branyan left Sunday's game in the sixth after being hit by a pitch on the right hand.
Josh Bard hit his ninth homer of the season to give the Padres a 2-1 lead, giving Bard a career high in homers. His shot went to left field in the sixth inning.
With the win, the Padres finished their final regular-season homestand with a 5-1 record. Clay Hensley got off to a shaky start in the first, allowing two consecutive singles to lead off the game, but he struck out the next two batters. Doumit's single scored Chris Duffy for the early 1-0 lead, but the Pirates couldn't get anything else off Hensley the rest of the game.
Hensley finished his day after six innings, striking out a career-high nine. The right-hander did not walk a batter.
