The Padres went into Coors Field and did what good teams are supposed to do there: pile up runs, keep the pressure on, and leave with a series win. San Diego beat the Rockies 9-2 on Sunday, collecting 15 hits and taking three of four from Colorado while stretching its wild-card cushion.
Colorado struck first when Connor Norby singled home a run in the opening inning, but the Padres answered fast and then kept pouring it on. Xander Bogaerts jump-started the big second inning with a solo homer to lead off the frame, and that was only the first swing of the avalanche.
Jake Cronenworth singled, two walks loaded the bases, and Dustin Harris delivered with a two-run RBI single. Manny Machado followed with a sacrifice fly, then Jackson Merrill and Bogaerts ripped back-to-back triples to drive in the final three runs of the inning and push San Diego ahead 7-1.
The Padres added two more in the fifth. Samad Taylor doubled in a run, and Harris followed with a single that brought Taylor home to make it 9-1.
Michael King gave San Diego the kind of start it needed, even if the sixth got a little messy. The Rockies scratched across one more run when Cole Carrigg singled, TJ Rumfield walked, and Kyle Karros singled to drive in a run. King escaped further trouble and finished his day with two runs allowed on seven hits and two walks, along with six strikeouts.
That mattered, too, because it kept the bullpen in a good spot for this weekend’s key series against the Miami Marlins. Yuki Matsui worked a scoreless inning behind King, and Griffin Canning finished it off with two more scoreless frames.
Bogaerts and Harris each had three hits, and Bogaerts came close to the cycle with a homer, a triple and a double. San Diego’s offense didn’t just win the game - it kept up the pressure all series long, with the club finishing the four games with 52 hits.
The Padres are now 5-1 over their last six and have taken their lead over the Arizona Diamondbacks to four games. They’re also sitting a half-game behind the Philadelphia Phillies for the second wild card and a full game behind the Chicago Cubs for the top spot, pending the Phillies’ game tonight against the New York Mets. Their magic number to clinch a playoff berth is six.
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Padres Could Finally Get Needed Lineup Stability From Miguel Andujar
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For a San Diego club still sorting out the bottom end of its roster, Andujars return could settle one more moving part. The corresponding move is expected to send Jase Bowen back to the minors, a reminder of how much the Padres have been forced to juggle while waiting for healthy bodies to reappear and the lineup to take on a more familiar shape. [Read more 🡒]