Nick Pivetta’s start came together almost on the fly, and the Padres got exactly what they needed from him anyway.
San Diego opened its three-game set against Washington with a 3-2 win, leaning on a shutout effort from Pivetta and just enough early damage from its top bats to build a lead that held up. The right-hander was named the starter last night and worked under a tight pitch count, but he still gave the Padres a strong return in his outing.
The offense wasted no time giving Pivetta room to breathe. Fernando Tatis Jr. singled to start the first, Manny Machado followed with a double, and that sequence put San Diego on the board first against Nationals starter Jake Irvin.
The same duo struck again in the third. Tatis singled, moved to second on a fielder’s choice, and scored when Machado came through with a single. Jackson Merrill then added another hit and drove in Machado to stretch the lead to 3-0.
Pivetta was sharp early, then had to work through a tense third inning. Washington got two hits in that frame, and he needed 43 pitches to get through it, 26 of them strikes. Still, he settled back in and finished with two hits allowed and two strikeouts, keeping the Nationals off the board while he was in the game.
San Diego handed the bullpen a lead, but Washington chipped away in the sixth against Kyle Hart, the first reliever out behind Pivetta. Abimelec Ortiz opened the two-out rally with a single, and Dylan Crews followed by cutting the deficit to one with a home run to left center.
From there, the Padres’ bullpen had to protect a one-run game with the offense quiet after the third. Jackson Merrill finished with three hits, Tatis also had three, Machado added two, and Xander Bogaerts chipped in a single as San Diego’s bats slowed down.
The relievers did their job. Bradgley Rodriguez and Adrian Morejon each threw a scoreless inning to bridge the game to the ninth, where Mason Miller handled the finish. Miller allowed a single to Crews after striking out the first two batters, then got a grounder to short for the final out and his 34th save.
The win gave the Padres three victories in their last four games since their disastrous road trip, though it did not move them in the standings because the Arizona Diamondbacks pulled off a wild comeback win over the Kansas City Royals in extra innings.
In Other News...
Padres Playoff Push Runs Through Juan Soto Trade Fallout
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When the Padres line up against Washington, they are not just facing another opponent in the playoff chase. They are seeing the ripple effects of a franchise-altering move that continues to influence both rosters, both front offices and the way each team has built around the pieces it received. For San Diego, the matchup is a reminder that the Soto trade is still very much part of the present, even as the bigger question of who ultimately got the better end of it remains open. [Read more 🡒]
Diamondbacks Face A Brutal Late Wild Card Test Against San Diego
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Even with recent offensive struggles and some uncertainty in the starting rotation, San Diego still has the kind of names that can tilt a race, from Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado to Xander Bogaerts. And if the Padres can hand leads to Mason Miller late, the margin for error gets a lot smaller for everyone else chasing them, which is exactly why this stretch run feels so uncomfortable for the Diamondbacks. [Read more 🡒]
Padres Win Created A Yankees Pitching Decision Worth Watching
The Padres latest win over the Yankees did more than add another result to the standings. It also pushed New York into a roster move that is worth keeping an eye on as the regular season winds down, with the Yankees needing to manage both performance and flexibility on the pitching side.
Elmer Rodriguez was optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to open a spot on the active roster, a routine transaction that keeps the right-hander in the organization and available for a potential return later. He has made six starts this season with a 5.40 ERA and a high walk rate, and the Yankees will be hoping a stretch in the minors helps him sharpen the command issues that have made his big league role harder to hold. [Read more 🡒]