With the end of the nine-game road trip that saw the San Diego Padres continue their struggles offensively and with their starting pitchers, the most difficult part of their season lies directly ahead. Flying home from Texas after the completion of a 4-5 road trip, the following 13 games will be against teams with winning records. The first two series, against the Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Dodgers, will be against the teams with the two best records in baseball.
After those six games, with a day
off between series, the Padres fly to Chicago to play the Cubs, who are currently three games over .500 and in third place in the Central Division. Without a day off, they return home to face the Dodgers again in a four-game set.
Offense improved
Even though they remain at the bottom of baseball in all batting averages, the Padres individually are starting to show some signs of life.
Manny Machado has pulled his average up to .179 with a .625 OPS and has 13 home runs with 41 RBI. Over the past week, Machado has hit .211 with a .747 OPS with a home run and two doubles.
Jackson Merrill has hit .318 over the past week with an .818 OPS and has a home run and a double. Overall, his average is up to .216 with a .636 OPS. Merrill has eight home runs and 31 RBI. He has stolen 15 bases, being caught once.
Fernando Tatis Jr. has hit .285 over the past week with a .777 OPS and three doubles. Overall, Tatis is hitting .285 with a .707 OPS. He has two home runs and 26 RBI with 13 doubles, a triple and 18 stolen bases but caught eight times.
While the top of the order has begun hitting better, the previously red-hot Ty France has cooled off. Over the past two weeks, France has hit .156 with a .604 OPS. He has dropped his overall average to .252 with a .772 OPS.
The Padres promoted outfielder Samad Taylor when they designated Nick Castellanos for assignment. Since his arrival, Taylor has hit .370 with a .888 OPS. He has a double, a home run and eight RBI with four stolen bases without being caught. It is depressing to think of where the team would be without him.
DH Miguel Andujar returned from the injured list before the last game in Texas, while Nick Solak was designated for assignment. That leaves the Padres with five players recently called up from Triple-A El Paso playing on the 26-man roster.
The reinforcements will be here awhile longer
Catchers Luis Campusano and Freddy Fermin are both on the IL which necessitates that both Rodolfo Durán and Blake Hunt will be with the team until Fermin is off the concussion list. Jake Cronenworth has no timeline for his return. Ramon Laureano is likely out for the rest of the season. The Padres designated Bryce Johnson for assignment, with Jase Bowen now serving as the fourth outfielder.
Starters are a big problem
The Padres pitchers rank 10th in baseball with a 3.92 ERA. The bullpen is largely to thank for that, with a 3.04 ERA, second to the Braves at 2.87. The starting staff, which includes the fine work done by Bradgley Rodriguez and Wandy Peralta as openers, sits at 26th with a 4.64 ERA.
Michael King has the best ERA of the starters at 3.60 but in his last three starts he has not been particularly effective with his command. His best start was 6.2 innings against the Reds on June 10, allowing seven hits and three runs. Overall, he has given up 10 earned runs over 17 innings pitched for a 5.29 ERA.
The most effective starter over that same span has been Walker Buehler. Over his past three starts, Buehler has gone 14.2 innings and allowed three earned runs. His 1.90 ERA has lowered his season ERA to 3.96.
Randy Vásquez started the season strong with increased velocity on his fastball and had an ERA under 4.00 in both April and May. For June, Vasquez hasn’t gotten out of the fifth inning and has allowed 14 earned runs in 17.1 innings pitched, giving him a 7.36 ERA for the month.
Griffin Canning came off the injured list and joined the Padres on May 3. He had a 7.16 ERA in May with 27.2 innings pitched in six starts. In June, Canning has three appearances, with an opener in his last start against St. Louis. He has thrown 14.1 innings with nine earned runs and a 5.74 ERA.
Lucas Giolito didn’t sign with the Padres until April 22, going to Low-A Lake Elsinore and Double-A San Antonio for his build-up before joining the team on May 17. He started three games in May and had a 4.97 ERA in 12.2 innings pitched. In June, he’s had four starts, having an opener for two of those starts, with a 4.15 ERA in 13 innings pitched.
For both Canning and Giolito, length has been an issue. Canning went more than five innings once and Giolito has completed five innings three times.
Limited depth
The Padres have two pitchers in El Paso who could be used in the near future to bolster the rotation and the bullpen. Both Germán Márquez and Jhony Brito have started for the Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas, with Brito having completed his rehab. Márquez has four starts and 15.1 innings pitched, allowing three earned runs and is still officially on a rehab assignment.
Brito has started two games since coming off his rehab and has nine innings pitched with two earned runs allowed. He could start or work as a long reliever out of the bullpen.
With 13 games coming up against teams with winning records, including the two best teams in baseball, the Padres will need to solve their pitching issues as well as continue to improve on offense.
Normally, being home would be an advantage for the Friars but they are only playing .500 ball at Petco Park and the Dodgers have always done well there. Taking the series against the Braves would be a good way to start this long string of 13 games in 14 days against teams that have been hot lately while the Padres have struggled with a 7-11 record in June.
