The San Diego Padres just completed a three-game sweep against the Miami Marlins on Sunday afternoon, handing Miami a brutal franchise-record 12th straight loss. It was a 5-3 comeback win at loanDepot park, fueled by late-game heroics from Manny Machado and Jackson Merrill.
Padres Offense Finally Wakes Up Big Time
Trailing 3-1 late in the game, the Padres’ big bats finally showed up when it mattered most. Manny Machado, their seven-time All-Star, absolutely crushed a game-tying blast in the eighth inning. He drove a full-count fastball from Miami’s Lake Bachar just over the wall in right-center field. That was his team-leading 23rd homer of the season, and it tied the game at three. Just two batters later, Jackson Merrill kept the party going, launching a 395-foot solo shot to right field for his 15th long ball of the year, putting San Diego in front.
Machado, after what was described as an underwhelming first half, looks like his old self again. The guy has gone on a tear in July, blasting seven homers with a ridiculous .975 OPS. Over his last 21 games, he’s slashing .291/.380/.595, and get this, he’s raised his batting average 20 points from .190 to .210 in that span. That’s a huge surge! This offense, which was one of the worst in baseball for the first two and a half months, is starting to click. Hitters batting second through sixth combined for 11 of the club’s 13 hits on Sunday, with four of those going for extra bases. Jake Cronenworth snagged three singles in a row, and Ty France along with the red-hot Luis Rengifo each picked up two hits. Rengifo, picked up from Milwaukee earlier this month, is batting .433 (13-for-30) with seven RBIs since joining the club. He even had a go-ahead pinch hit two-run homer in Friday’s 4-2 win.
Bullpen Shuts It Down While Starters Search For Answers
While the offense is finally finding its rhythm, the bullpen continues to be a massive bright spot for this team. They tossed 4.1 scoreless innings on Sunday, giving up only one hit and one walk. Flamethrowing closer Mason Miller slammed the door shut with a 1-2-3 ninth, snagging his National League leading 28th save of the season. The guy was throwing heat, with nine pitches clearing 100 mph, and he’s got a tiny 0.81 ERA in 44.2 innings this year. That’s absolutely elite.
On the flip side, the starting rotation still has some big questions. Walker Buehler recorded a season-high seven strikeouts in 5.1 innings, but he gave up three runs (two earned). Miami’s Kyle Stowers launched a solo shot off Buehler in the third inning, marking the 14th homer the 31-year-old has allowed this season. Buehler really needs to find a way to go deeper into games. They can’t keep leaning on that bullpen for four-plus innings every night if they want to make a run.
The Padres are now sitting at 53-53 on the season, just 2.0 games back of the Arizona Diamondbacks for the final Wild Card spot in the National League. They managed to finish their 10-game road trip at .500 (5-5) after starting 2-5, thanks to this three-game winning streak. Meanwhile, Miami, who was actually 10 games above .500 with a series sweep of the Mariners before the All-Star break, has absolutely cratered, now sitting two games under .500 at 52-54. This sweep shows the Padres are not giving up on this season, and with Machado heating up and Miller locking down the ninth, they’re looking to make some noise.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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