Ryan O’Hearn delivered a two-out three-run double that put the San Diego Padres ahead of the Chicago White Sox 5-2 in the top of the sixth inning. The Padres added two additional runs to their total and evened their series with the White Sox with a 7-3 win at Rate Field, Saturday.
O’Hearn was given the bases loaded opportunity after Manny Machado hit a one-out single earlier in the inning that scored Fernando Tatis Jr. to tie the game, 2-2. After a pitching
change, Machado advanced to second on a wild pitch from Chicago reliever Fraser Ellard. The reliver then walked Jackson Merrill and recorded the second out of the inning with a strikeout of Ramón Laureano. Gavin Sheets drew the second walk off Ellard to load the bases for O’Hearn.
San Diego fell behind early after starter Yu Darvish allowed a run in the bottom of the first inning. The Padres answered in the top of the second when Merrill hit a solo home run to right field that tied the game, 1-1.
The White Sox regained the lead with a run in the bottom of the third inning and they held the lead until the top of the sixth.
O’Hearn had a successful night at the plate, finishing 3-for-4 with three RBI to lead the San Diego offense. Merrill and Freddy Fermin each chipped in with two hits, while four other Padres recorded a hit in the game. Merrill also scored three runs and Tatis Jr. added two.
Darvish allowed another run in the first inning, which was the 14th first-inning run allowed by San Diego starters since Sept. 1. Early runs allowed by Padres starters has been a concerning development in the month of September, but the silver lining is the run was not scored via the home run. Darvish lasted 4 2/3 innings and allowed two runs on six hits with no walks and four strikeouts.
The San Diego bullpen covered the remaining innings of the game and kept Chicago from adding any runs until the bottom of the ninth inning. Lenyn Sosa stepped to the plate to face Robert Suarez with two outs in the inning and hit a solo home run to left field to cut the deficit to 7-3.
The Padres will try to win the series against the White Sox, Sunday at 11:10 a.m.
