Paxton (1-0) allowed three runs (two earned) on six hits and a walk over five innings in Sunday's 11-7 Cactus League win over the Padres. He struck out six.

EDGE Analysis

Just passed over by Felix Hernandez (forearm) for the Opening Day start, Paxton nevertheless came out and delivered an effort befitting his No. 2 starter role. The two earned runs he was touched up for came in the form of solo shots in his final inning of work, and he was able to work up to 88 pitches overall, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports. Despite the pair of hiccups, manager Scott Servais came away feeling secure in one of the most important components of his rotation heading into the regular season. "Pax threw the ball really well," Servais said. "He got a couple balls up in the wind that didn't help him out, but he got his pitches in, his stuff was good, his curve was good. I just probably held my breath as much as anything with him out there just to get his pitches in, get him off the mound and let's move forward."