The San Diego Padres seem to have started to find their groove. The Friars made franchise history on Sunday afternoon, hitting back-to-back-to-back home runs for the fourth time in club history. It was just the second time of those four that the three homers were to lead off a game. That last happened in 1987, when Marvell Wynne, Tony Gwynn and John Kruk led off with three long balls.
Instead, it was Fernando Tatis Jr., Jake Cronenworth and Manny Machado. Tatis and Cronenworth hit theirs to the opposite
field, with that being Cronenworth’s first opposite-field home run of his MLB career. Machado went to dead center field. That, along with Luis Campusano’s solo shot in the seventh inning, was the difference maker after the New York Yankees scratched three runs across in the eighth inning.
Thankfully, closer Mason Miller slammed the door on the Yanks, striking out the side. That gave the Friars their first series win in two weeks, since they swept the Minnesota Twins. They’ll now face the Washington Nationals at Petco Park before going on their penultimate road trip of the 2026 regular season.
Taking the mound
Jake Irvin (WAS) v. Nick Pivetta (SD)
The Nationals right-hander has had a tough go of it this season. Irvin has pitched to a 5.57 ERA through 18 starts (85.1 IP) with an abnormally high 1.40 WHIP. He’s yet to put it all together at the big-league level after four seasons with Washington. That said, he’s surrendered just three runs in his last 8 1/3 innings.
Irvin’s only positive is that he hasn’t faced the Padres much in the past. San Diego batters have a combined eight at-bats against him. In that time, they’ve batted a collective .250, with Ty France having two hits against the righty. Hopefully, it won’t take long for the Friars to solve Irvin in the series opener.
He’s back! After missing the last five months, Nick Pivetta is finally returning to the Padres. He’ll start a major-league game for the first time since April 12 against the Colorado Rockies. It wouldn’t be surprising to only see Pivetta in for the first four innings, or until he reaches a certain number of pitches. The Friars don’t want to jeopardize his arm.
Still, Pivetta coming back is a huge improvement for the San Diego starting rotation. His return boosts the pitching staff in a big way, and takes pressure off of the rest of the group. If Pivetta can look anything close to his 2025 self, it’ll be a massive add for the Friars.
Batter up!
Apart from the first inning, the lineup didn’t do a whole lot in the series finale on Sunday. That said, Campusano has been a force to be reckoned with lately. During the Yankees series, the backstop went 4-for-10 with a walk, two home runs and three RBIs. If that production continues, it would be a major improvement behind the dish.
- Fernando Tatis Jr., RF
- Jake Cronenworth, 2B
- Manny Machado, 3B
- Ty France, 1B
- Jackson Merrill, CF
- Luis Campusano, DH
- Xander Bogaerts, SS
- Dustin Harris, LF
- Freddy Fermin, C
Harris has swung a hot bat in just about every opportunity he’s had with San Diego. The left fielder is now hitting .292 on the season with a .719 OPS. Since joining the Padres, Harris owns a monstrous .409/.435/.455 slash line. That likely won’t continue, but the production they’re getting from him is phenomenal.
Relief corps
Michael King pitched another gem, as always, straining seven Yankees (4 H, 3 BB) across six scoreless innings of work. That saved the bullpen after Robbie Ray’s disastrous start on Saturday. Bradgley Rodriguez, Adrian Morejon and Miller covered the final three frames. Morejon struggled a bit, giving up three runs, though one was due to a throwing error.
With Pivetta’s return today, manager Craig Stammen reported that Randy Vásquez will be working out of the ‘pen. It seems likely that Pivetta pitches about four innings before Vásquez enters in relief. Behind those two, Jhony Brito, Griffin Canning, Kyle Hart, Yuki Matsui, David Morgan and Wandy Peralta are all available for San Diego to call upon.
