Padres Take Advantage of Nationals’ Struggling Bullpen
Washington, D.C.
The San Diego Padres used a six-run 10th inning to clinch their three game series against the Washington Nationals, winning 8-3 on April 27 at Nationals Park.
The game was tied at 2-2 after the ninth inning. The Padres erupted in the extra frame behind a combination of clutch hitting and plate discipline.
Ty France, in his second major league at-bat, worked the count full before sending a ground ball up the middle for a leadoff single. Francisco Mejia followed with a double to right, moving France over to third.
Greg Garcia, who entered the game late in a double switch, replacing Ian Kinsler at second base, hit a sacrifice fly to left to score France, giving the Padres a 3-2 lead. Fernando Tatis, Jr. and Wil Myers drew back-to-back walks to load the bases. That brought Manny Machado to the plate, looking for a big hit to seize a run-scoring opportunity. Instead, he was hit by a pitch and took a free base, bringing in an RBI in the process.
The next hitter in the lineup was Manuel Margot, who hit a line drive into left to drive in two runs, giving the Padres a 6-2 lead. Eric Hosmer worked the count full before drawing a walk to again load the bases.
Hunter Renfroe hit a deep fly to left center to drive in another run. The throw was offline, and National catcher Yan Gomes went into the Padres dugout in an attempt to keep the ball from going into the dugout.
After a lengthy review, one where umpire Joe West and his crew stood around looking like they didn’t know what was going on, Margot was allowed to take an extra base to score the sixth run of the inning.
Renfroe hit his second home run in as man days, hitting a two-run shot in the top of the second inning. It was his sixth home run of the season. He added a double in the fourth inning.
The Padres will go for the series sweep on April 28. Joey Lucchesi takes the mound against Nationals starter Jeremy Hellickson. The game begins at 10:35 a.m. PDT.
Mike is the sports editor for the Fayette Advertiser, and has been with East Village Times since 2015. His work has appeared on Bleacher Report. He is an avid Padres fan who is keeping the faith and trusting the process.
