The San Diego Padres won two games out of three in a three-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
This was the first series that the Padres have won since they swept the Diamondbacks nearly a month ago. The Padres had been struggling since that series sweep, as they had a record of 6-14 until this series against the D-backs.
The first game of the series was a solid rebound after losing three straight games against the Colorado Rockies. The Padres’ offense started out hot, and they scored five runs in the first three innings. This gave the Padres a 5-1 lead going into the fourth inning. Starting pitcher Yu Darvish started this game for the Padres, and he struggled somewhat in the first four innings. Darvish gave up three runs in the first four innings, but then he pitched three shutout innings after that. He was able to maintain the lead for the Padres, and he ended up pitching a decent seven innings with three earned runs. Darvish only gave up five hits and had nine strikeouts in this outing.
The main offensive producers for the Padres in this game were shortstop Ha-Seong Kim and catcher Austin Nola.
Kim went 2-for-4 with a run and an RBI, and Nola went 2-for-4 with a run, a double and two RBIs. Relief pitchers Nick Martinez and Taylor Rogers were able to hold the lead for the final two innings and close out the game with ease. The Padres ended up winning this game 5-3.
The Padres were able to continue their winning ways in the next game of the series. Starting pitcher Sean Manaea started this game for the Padres and had a solid outing. Manaea pitched in six innings and he gave up three runs, earning a quality start for his efforts. The bullpen shined once again, and they finished the last three innings without giving up a single run.
The Padres offense was struggling a bit early in the game. The team was unable to score a single run until the fifth inning. 3-1 was the score in the bottom of the sixth inning, and designated hitter Luke Voit was up to bat with two Padres runners on base. He then proceeded to hit a three-run home run off of the pitch of D-backs relief pitcher Noe Ramirez. The Padres went on to win this game 4-3.
The next and final game in this series did not have the same result as the previous two games of the series.
Starting pitcher Mike Clevinger was a tough-luck loser in this one. He pitched six solid innings, only giving up one run on four hits. He also had eight strikeouts in those six innings. The game was a close 1-0 in the seventh inning until relief pitcher MacKenzie Gore came in and gave up three runs.
The Padres offense was unable to get much going in this game. The score was 3-0 going into the bottom of the seventh inning, so Padres fans were hoping for a little rally to get going. The Padres were able to score a run in the bottom of the seventh inning, which was a solo home run by Voit. Unfortunately, the Padres could not score any more runs for the rest of the game. The Padres ended up losing this game 3-1.
Going into the All-Star break, the Padres have a record of 52-42. They are still in second place in both the National League West division and the NL Wild Card race.
