Not sure who needed the win more… Dylan Cease, who despite being healthy and having pitched the entire 2025 season did not have a road win or the San Diego Padres who were looking to avoid their fourth consecutive series loss. Either way, Cease and the Padres both got what they needed with an 8-1 win over the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field, Sunday.
Cease entered the contest with all seven of his wins this season coming in front of the Friar Faithful at Petco Park. The Padres were coming off a series sweep at the hands of the Baltimore Orioles, and lost the previous two series to the Seattle Mariners and the Minnesota Twins.
San Diego dropped the first game of the series against Colorado, Friday and was held without a hit through 4 1/3 innings and managed just three hits in nine innings. The Padres bounced back with a 10-8 win, Saturday setting up the rubber match in the final game of the series. With Cease on the mound and on the road, winning the final game of the series against the NL West last place Rockies was no guarantee.
Cease completed five innings, allowing one run on four hits with two walks and five strikeouts. He pitched with a lead throughout the game as a result of Manny Machado blasting a 452-foot two-run home run in the top of the first to give the Padres a 2-0 lead.
Jackson Merrill gave Cease additional run support with an opposite field solo home run in the top of the second inning to push San Diego ahead, 3-0.
The Rockies were able to get a run in the bottom of the third to cut the deficit to 3-1. The Padres responded quickly with three runs in the top of the fourth, which included a one-out 451-foot solo home run from Gavin Sheets to give San Diego a 4-1 lead.
The Padres added two additional runs in the inning after a two-out double by Jake Cronenworth and an RBI-single by Freddy Fermin to put San Diego ahead, 5-1. The Padres pushed the lead to 6-1 when Machado drew a bases loaded walk.
Ramón Laureano led off the top of the fifth inning with the fourth home run of the day for San Diego to make the score 7-1. The eighth and final run came later in the fifth inning when Merrill scored on a wild pitch to put the Padres comfortably in front by the score of 8-1.
Adrian Morejon, David Morgan and Ron Marinaccio covered the final four innings of the game for San Diego and allowed a combined two hits, two walks and four strikeouts.
The Padres return home to play the Cincinnati Reds, Monday at 6:40 p.m.
