Padres avoid sweep with 5-2 comeback win over L.A.
Credit: Padres
Petco Park- San Diego, California
After falling to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the first two games of the series, the San Diego Padres sent Blake Snell to the mound to avoid the sweep. A solid Snell outing, scoreless bullpen innings, and timely hitting helped San Diego avoid a sweep from Los Angeles, as the Padres won 5-2.
“I’m glad we came out on top of this one, “Eric Hosmer said. “It’s gonna be hard-fought battles all year. This was just the first three.”
In all three contests of a fantastic series of baseball, the San Diego lineup that led baseball in comeback victories in 2020 trailed while facing a very stout Dodgers bullpen. Game one saw multiple Padres’ comebacks, and game two featured a Mookie Betts diving catch to rob a game-tying hit by Tommy Pham to end the game.
Game three followed in the same footsteps as the two that preceded it with yet another Padres comeback.
A Chris Taylor home run in the second inning gave the Dodgers a 2-0 lead, but those were the only runs Los Angeles would get across the plate.
Entering the seventh inning, the Padres trailed 2-1 with flame thrower Brusdar Graterol coming in for Trevor Bauer. Manny Machado and Eric Hosmer made quick work of Graterol, as Machado scored on Hosmer’s double with no outs. The Padres failed to take the lead in the seventh, however.
Papo playing pinball.#HungryForMore pic.twitter.com/AYGER9b1IR
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) April 18, 2021
After just about every break had gone the Dodgers’ way this series, Corey Seager made a costly throwing error to put Jurickson Profar on first to lead off the eighth inning. With two outs, San Diego notched three unearned runs on a Hosmer single, and a Pham double, a much deserved double at that.
“He needed it,” Padres manager Jayce Tingler said. “We needed it.”
Snell, who failed to complete the first inning in his last outing, battled all day against a potent lineup. Once again, he struggled to get quick outs, but he got the job done, lasting five innings and only allowing two hits. It surely felt nice for him to beat the Dodgers after the Tampa Rays lost a demoralizing game 6 in which Snell dealt before being yanked far too early.
Blake Snell "There's a lot to work on…but I was very happy with Caratini behind the plate."
— Marty Caswell (@MartyCaswell) April 18, 2021
After Snell only went five innings, Tingler handed the ball off to the bullpen, trailing at the time. Austin Adams, who entered the game with a 15 ERA, got the ball first. The Austin Adams, the Padres, traded for showed up Sunday as he struck out all three batters he faced.
Stammen followed with a scoreless frame and two strikeouts, then Kela and Melancon shut the door. After the pen got roughed up on Friday, they rebounded incredibly.
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“The comeback doesn’t happen unless the pitching and defense keep us in the game,” Tingler said.
After an emotional series, the Padres must move on to their next competition, the Milwaukee Brewers. Milwaukee, much like the Dodgers, will have their best three starters lined up for the Padres. San Diego will host Brandon Woodruff and the Brewers Monday night. The first pitch is at 7:10 PT.
Dominic is a graduate of Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, with a bachelor’s degree in Sports Journalism. He also is the producer and co-host of the “Padres EVT Podcast.”