Dark Clouds Loom Over Padres, Mistakes Lead to 8-4 Loss to Phillies
Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
The day got off to a rough start for the San Diego Padres and their fans as star rookie phenom Fernando Tatis Jr. was put on the 10-day Injured List with a stress reaction in his back. Many believe that this will end Tatis’ season prematurely.
With the Friars reeling from that news, they made several mistakes on Friday night against the red-hot Phillies, who were coming off of a sweep of the Chicago Cubs thanks to a walk-off grand slam by Bryce Harper.
Chris Paddack took the mound for the Padres, making his 21st start of the year.
He struck out the side in the top of the first but ran into his first bit of trouble in the second, when Cesar Hernandez singled home a run.
The Phillies got to Paddack for two more runs in the third inning thanks to solo home runs by Roman Quinn and J.T. Realmuto.
Realmuto doubled home another run in the fifth. Then Logan Morrison got in on the action with an RBI single as the Phillies led 5-0 after five innings, with Paddack done after 4 2/3 innings.
The Padres were able to scrap back into the game in the top of the sixth. After back-to-back singles and a run-scoring wild pitch, Francisco Mejia tripled in a run to cut the lead to 5-2. Mejia has been the Padres’ best hitter in August, with an OPS over 1.200. Wil Myers then grounded out, scoring Mejia to make it 5-3.
Think three ?♂️?#FriarFaithful pic.twitter.com/vbXffEV050
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) August 17, 2019
In the bottom of the sixth, things got away from the Friars. Michel Baez came on in relief of Paddack. The Phillies got two base runners ahead of Harper, who slugged an opposite-field, three-run home run, extending Philadelphia’s lead to 8-3. Baez ran into further trouble, and Luis Perdomo came in to put out the fire before further damage ensued.
In the top of the eighth, Josh Naylor doubled when the ball got away from first baseman Logan Morrison. He got to third was able to score when Eric Hosmer grounded out to second, cutting the lead in half at 8-4.
The Padres were unable to muster the comeback as they went 1-2-3 in the top of the ninth inning and handed the Phillies their fourth straight win. Travis Jankowski made his 2019 debut in a pinch-hit appearance but grounded out.
The Padres fall to 6-8 in August and continue to be in a rut, especially with the despairing news of their star shortstop. The Friars hope to even the series on Saturday at 4:05 PM PDT with Dinelson Lamet on the mound.
Native of Escondido, CA. Lived in San Diego area for 20 years. Padres fan since childhood (mid-90s). I have been writing since 2014. I currently live near Seattle, WA and am married to a Seattle sports girl. I wore #19 on my high school baseball team for Tony Gwynn. I am a stats and sports history nerd. I attended BYU on the Idaho campus. I also love Star Wars.
The game did not get away in the 6th, it happened by the 5th with the team down 5-0. This is another loss directly the responsibility of the doofus-in-charge. 4 years and he makes the same mistake every night. The only way this team wins is if the starter is great, or the offense explodes. What almost never happens is the manager steals one for the team through strategy or cleverness.
A .500 team at the break collapses to the worst record in the 2nd half. How is that not the manager’s fault?
The Padres have lost their inspiration in Tatis. He has always given 100% on the field. Sorry to say that some others do not. With as many young players that they have in key roles (Mejia, Urias, France, Naylor, Margot and several pitchers) the vets need to step up and lead, and the best way to do that is by example. Myers, Machado, Hosmer, Renfroe are not leaders. Machado needs a couple days off. He not only looks disinterested, but very tired. Put this all together with a manager who has not learned from his countless mistakes from the past and all you have is another year of hopes and dreams down the drain.
It must be that the Padres are run by the government, no one experiences any consequences for incompetence or failure.