This was a game that, for so many reasons, the San Diego Padres should have won. The Friars were facing the Philadelphia Phillies for the second time in as many weeks after being swept by the Phils last time around. They were also facing Aaron Nola for the second time, giving the batters a second chance against the righty.
That wouldn’t be the case. Instead, the lone runs came on Gavin Sheets’ two-run homer in the third inning. But the Friars failed to score in multiple easy opportunities. Fernando
Tatis Jr. led the game off with a double. He wouldn’t even reach third base. With one out and runners on the corners in the seventh, the Padres only need a sacrifice fly from Sung-Mun Song to tie the game. He struck out before Ty France grounded out to end the opportunity.
In the eighth, Tatis hit a leadoff single before Sheets and Manny Machado flew out. With two outs, Miguel Andujar hit an infield single but Tatis overran second base and was tagged out to end the final scoring opportunity the Friars would have. They’ll need to have much better follow-through in today’s game if they hope to force the rubber match.
Taking the mound
Cristopher Sánchez (PHI) v. Walker Buehler (SD)
Sánchez cemented his active scoreless streak in his last outing against San Diego, going seven innings while scattering six hits. After finishing runner-up in the 2025 NL Cy Young award voting, he’s making a run for it again in what has become a competitive race.
The lefty owns a 1.47 ERA and has struck out 95 batters across 79 1/3 innings pitched. Sánchez’s WHIP is a little high (1.12), but he’s been able to navigate well when he allows baserunners. The Padres couldn’t take advantage last time against him. They’ll need to do so today to force the rubber match.
Somewhat surprisingly, Buehler went toe-to-toe against Sánchez in their meetup last Wednesday. Though he didn’t make it as deep into the game, he certainly could have if allowed to. His pitch count sat at just 58 pitches when he was pulled in the sixth inning after putting runners on first and second.
But, until that point, Buehler had faced the minimum amount of batters through five innings. He looked even better than Sánchez until that sixth inning. If he can do that again tonight, the Padres will have a real chance at taking Game 2.
Batter up!
The bright spot of the offense continues to be Tatis, who went 3-for-4 in the series opener on Tuesday night. His batting average has slowly ticked up to .275 after a recent hot streak.
- Fernando Tatis Jr., RF
- Gavin Sheets, 1B
- Manny Machado, 3B
- Miguel Andujar, DH
- Jackson Merrill, CF
- Xander Bogaerts, SS
- Nick Castellanos, LF
- Sung-Mun Song, 2B
- Rodolfo Durán, C
Andujar has cooled off lately, but owns a career .444 batting average against Sánchez (nine at-bats). It would be incredible to see him do some damage against the left-hander in today’s contest against Philly.
The other exciting moment from last night was Jase Bowen’s first big-league hit in the seventh inning. He had an underwhelming night at the plate, going 1-for-4 with three strikeouts, but his call up could spark something in this Padres offense.
Relief corps
It was the ‘pen that lost it for San Diego. Jeremiah Estrada was the first man out of the bullpen after Randy Vásquez pitched five solid innings. He promptly walked the first batter and allowed a single to put runners on the corners with no outs. Estrada did get Alec Bohm to ground into a double play, but a run came across the board. That would be the difference maker in the Padres 3-2 loss.
The rest of the relievers looked great, with Yuki Matsui, Jason Adam and Bradley Rodriguez pitched the last two innings. Today, the Friars will have plenty of options to turn to. Ron Marinaccio, Mason Miller, Adrian Morejon and Wandy Peralta will be the most readily available. Adam could pitch as well. The righty only threw six pitches in his outing Tuesday night.
