SAN DIEGO – For the second consecutive game San Diego put up a four-run inning against the Minnesota bullpen, helping the Padres pull away for an 8-1 win to complete sweeping away the series against Twins on Sunday afternoon at Petco Park.
Fernando Tatis Jr. opened the Padres (71-60) scoring with a solo home run, had a two-RBI single in the decisive sixth and added another late solo shot for a four-hit, four RBI day to back up another strong start by Walker Buehler. A Brookes Lee solo home run made for Minnesota’s (63-68) only offense, as they were limited to five hits and just one RISP at bat.
"It was a good series for the San Diego Padres, not just one individual player or a bunch of individual players. The entire team, the entire organization is a good collective way to win a series and it starts with the players doing their job, and the coaches trying to supplement them in that, and the front office helping the coaching staff, and everybody involved in getting things clicking at the right time," manager Craig Stammen said after San Diego's eighth straight home win. "Hopefully that's a formula we can use the rest of the season.
Hanging seven runs on the Twins bullpen overall, the Brown and Gold’s initial recipe for success came by punishing a trio of walks in the sixth. After Jackson Merrill reached on an error and was caught stealing, reliever Kody Funderburke walked Luis Campusano and then pitch-hitter Austin Hays, and was lifted for Jeff Hoffman.
The deadline acquisition promptly walked Xander Bogaerts on a full count, then Luis Rengifo yanked a first-pitch slider down the first base line for a two-RBI double to put the Padres back in front. Tatis followed up with his third hit of the game, this one a damp squib liner to center that plated two more.
"A lot of credit to the hitting coaches over here, and I'm just glad we're coming at the right time, it's a lot of hard work behind this," Tatis said on the field after the game.
"A lot of really good team at bats, one behind another, and I feel like that's the key over here when we strike out, we're going to keep putting the ball in play, keep getting better at running the bases, and when you do that it's a lot of things you can do to win ballgames."
It was part of plenty of late support for another strong outing by Buehler, who pitched six complete for his third straight start and allowed just one runner into scoring position. The San Diego starter finished allowing four hits and one run, with four K’s and no walks, and was good from the get-go to improve to 8-6.
"Ever since the All-Star break, he needed that little breather and ever since then he's been the Walker Buehler we saw in the month of June and we've seen in the past, but I think he smells the postseason," Stammen said. "That's one thing that's part of his career is being a part of taht every single year, so he smells that, he knows the team needs some quality starts, he also see the other starters doing really well, and I think internally that motivates him and he's been able to make a lot of really good pitches here lately."
Buehler faced the minimum through the first three innings, erasing Luke Keaschall’s game-opening single by getting Byron Buxton to bounce into a double play. Then, after an eight-pitch second inning, Buehler notched his first strikeout in the third in addition to getting a pair of outs in the direction of Bogaerts.
That cleared the deck for Tatis to launch a second-pitch slider into the second basket of the Western Metal Supply Co. building, the first hit for San Diego against the Twins soft-throwing starter Bailey Ober. After hitting a 115 MPH rocket for and out in his first at bat, it foreshadowed Tatis’ 16th home run as well as what would become his third four-plus hit day of the season.
The lead would hold through the fourth inning, as Buehler was able to get another double play to erase a single. But with two down in the fifth Lee battled through a 10-pitch at bat before ultimately golfing a cutter just below the knees out to right-center field for his 20th home run to square the score. Alan Roden followed up with a double against the grain to left by Alan Roden, but Buehler left him stranded by getting a pop out.
Merrill added to the Minnesota misery by blasting a first-pitch cutter that didn’t cut 414 feet into the seats in right field, his second game in a row with a homer and joining (for the moment) Tatis with 11 bombs since the All-Star break. Hays then drew a two-out walk and Bogaerts brought him home by hammering an RBI double through the short stop slot for a two-run spot in the SD seventh.
Tatis added his 17th round-tripper on a liner solo shot off Taylor Rogers in the eighth that made for his 14th extra base hit in August, with nine leaving the yard.
"All of the hits today were just line drives and even the one he got out on, he was just hitting the ball hard, but I think he feels good in the box with his swing, he feels good at what the hitting coaches game plan is giving him — Raul Padron, one of our hitting coaches has done a really good job with him individually, (Steven) Souza and the rest of the hitting group supporting him collectively in that, and I think it's freed Fernando up to just be a baseball player, and use his natural talent to the best of his abilities," Stammen said.
Wandy Peralta retired the Twins in order in the seventh, then after notching his first strikeout and allowing a single, was able to roll-up an inning-ending double play. Yuki Matsui took the ninth, conceding a lead-off single then getting the next three, getting a final swing-and-miss to see out the win.
The Padres were unable to gain ground on the Phillies in the NL Wild Card standings, remaining two back as Philadelphia put up six runs in the ninth and recorded their first walk-off home run in three years to extend their winning streak to nine. The Brown and Gold retained their two-game lead for the third and final NL Wild Card spot over Arizona, as the Diamondbacks scored the final five runs of the game in a win over Cincinnati.
San Diego continues their six-game home stand on Monday, opening their three-game set against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Robbie Ray (11-7, 3.20 ERA) will make his fourth start with the Padres while still looking for his first win in brown and gold at Petco Park, and is coming off earning the win at the Mets on Aug. 18 where he went six innings and allowed three hits and one run with four K’s and three walks.
Pittsburgh counters with righty Braxton Ashcraft (13-5, 3.68 ERA), who leads their staff in wins as well as having the best WHIP (1.08) amongst Pirates starters, but his 21 home runs allowed are also the unit’s most. Ashcraft has won three of his four starts in August, allowing a single run in each, which included his first career complete game on Aug. 13 at Miami where he struck out 10 and walked one on just 85 pitches.
First pitch is slated for 6:40 p.m. on Aug. 24 at Petco Park.
This story was updated at 4:36 p.m.