Carlos Rodón gave the Yankees exactly the kind of start they needed Saturday, and New York backed it with an early burst to beat the Padres 5-1 at Petco Park.
After dropping Friday’s game in 10 innings, the Yankees answered fast and clean. They moved to 81-61, have won 5 of their last 7 and 13 of their last 19, and are now one win away from clinching their 34th straight winning season.
The game tilted in the second inning, when New York stacked together the kind of at-bats that wear a pitching staff down. Ben Rice kept reaching, Spencer Jones came through with a two-out double into the right-field corner to bring him in, and then Robbie Ray lost the strike zone. Three straight walks followed, with the last one forcing in another run, before Cody Bellinger lined a two-run single to make it 4-0.
Then in the third, George Lombard Jr. added the 5th run with a sacrifice fly to right, bringing Rice home and giving the Yankees a 5-0 lead.
That was enough to put the Padres in a deep hole, especially with Rodón dealing. He allowed two hits and one run over five innings, struck out seven and walked three.
The only damage came on Manny Machado’s solo homer in the fourth. That was the lone real blemish on a strong outing.
Once Rodón exited, the bullpen shut the door. Michael Fulmer, Brent Headrick, John Schreiber and Tim Hill combined for four scoreless innings, and San Diego finished with just three hits while striking out 12 times.
Rice was the offensive engine all afternoon, going 3-for-3 with two walks and scoring twice. He reached base five times overall, a perfect 5-for-5 day in that department.
Jones also kept making his presence felt, finishing 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI. That gave him his 10th double and 30th RBI of the season.
Jones has already been in the middle of some meaningful moments in this series. He delivered an RBI single in the 10th inning Friday night before Luis Campusano’s walk-off homer ended that game, and Saturday he came through again against his hometown team, where he went to La Costa Canyon High School in Carlsbad.
The Yankees drew seven walks and loaded the bases three times, making the Padres work throughout the afternoon even when the ball wasn’t jumping off the bat. They weren’t overwhelming at the plate, but they kept the line moving and turned pressure into runs.
Now the series shifts to Sunday, with Gerrit Cole set to face Michael King. Cole is 8-7 with a 3.29 ERA, and King is 9-9 with a 3.11 ERA.
For one day, though, the Yankees got the response they were looking for. They took the punch on Friday, came back Saturday and took control early.
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