The Padres picked up another important win Wednesday night, beating the Dodgers 5-1 and moving to 88-70. The result gave San Diego a chance to take the series from the two-time defending champions on Thursday.
The pitching staff did the heavy lifting. Robbie Ray worked 3.1 innings, struck out two Dodgers and allowed one earned run, then five relievers shut the door over the final 5.2 innings. That group gave up just three hits and piled up six strikeouts while keeping Los Angeles off the board the rest of the way.
San Diego’s offense got rolling in the fourth inning when Manny Machado launched a two-run home run. It would have counted as a solo shot if not for Ethan Salas’ challenge. Fernando Tatis Jr. also had a big night, finishing with three hits.
Before the game, the Padres made a pair of roster moves. The club designated a veteran pitcher for assignment and optioned another pitcher to the Arizona Complex League. In the corresponding move, right-hander Jason Adam was activated off the injured list and is expected to make his first appearance since the end of June soon.
There’s also more clarity - and more concern - around Joe Musgrove’s long road back. Manager Craig Stammen said the right-hander may not return this season, and he made it clear the team isn’t interested in forcing the issue.
"When you add somebody to the roster, somebody goes off the roster," Padres manager Craig Stammen said recently. "And Joe has got to feel comfortable that he can - he wants to help our team win.
He doesn’t just want to [just] pitch. And so we want him to be as comfortable as he can in that situation."
Walker Buehler’s postseason role is also starting to come into focus. His first half wasn’t pretty, as he carried a 5.36 ERA, but he has been much sharper since then with a 3.39 mark in the second half. Add in his strong postseason track record, and Stammen sounds ready to lean on him in a pressure spot.
“I think that’s who he is,” Stammen said of that categorization. “That’s his persona: ‘Give me the ball in a big game and I’ll give you a good start.’
That’s not easy to do. A lot of guys can’t elevate their game in that way or be able to stay in that same space that they are constantly.
“He has that unique ability, and I think we’ve seen that throughout his entire career. Now it’s nice to have that type of personality on our team.”
In Other News...
Padres Answered The Dodgers In A Game That Meant Plenty
A night after the kind of result that can tilt a division race, the Padres responded with a win that carried plenty of weight of its own. Manny Machados two-run homer helped set the tone in a 5-1 victory over the Dodgers in the second game of the series, giving San Diego a needed answer in a matchup that rarely feels ordinary.
David Morgan provided one of the sharper late-game moments, striking out Shohei Ohtani to help preserve the lead and keep the Padres in control. The win also left San Diego a game ahead of the Cubs and Phillies for the top National League wild-card seed after other results broke in its favor, a small but meaningful cushion with the standings still tight. [Read more 🡒]
Dodgers Just Got A New Bullpen Problem In San Diego
The Padres are getting a key arm back at a timely moment, with right-hander Jason Adam set to come off the 60-day injured list ahead of the series against the Dodgers. San Diego plans to clear a spot by optioning Griffin Canning to Triple-A, with a corresponding 40-man move still to come, and Adam is expected to slide back into the bullpen mix quickly.
Even with the return, the picture is still a little unsettled because Adam has not been sharp in his recent rehab outings. The Padres are clearly betting that getting him back into a major league environment will help, and the timing only adds to the stakes with Los Angeles on deck, since San Diego will want every leverage arm available for what should be a high-pressure stretch. [Read more 🡒]
Padres Are Suddenly One Win From A Huge Wild Card Shift
The Padres spent the night taking care of their own business, and it came with a jolt in the standings. A win over the Dodgers pushed San Diego to the top of the NL Wild Card race, with Manny Machado supplying the kind of damage the club has leaned on all season by driving in runs with a two-run homer. In a stretch where every result seems to carry extra weight, this one mattered because it changed the picture at the top of the board.
San Diegos surge now puts the Padres in position for a potentially major shift with one more victory, and that is exactly the kind of October-adjacent pressure this club has been chasing. The Dodgers loss only sharpened the stakes, and for a team trying to keep control of its path into the postseason, the next game suddenly carries a little more than just one wins worth of meaning. [Read more 🡒]