San Diego Padres: 3 takeaways after being swept by the Atlanta Braves

The San Diego Padres were rusty after a five-day break, dropping the first series of the second half to the Atlanta Braves. Here are three takeaways from the series sweep.

The San Diego Padres were hoping to pick up where they left off coming out of the All-Star break. Instead, they came up short against the Atlanta Braves and got swept in the first series of the second half.

It’s a tough situation to be in — the Friars took three out of four against the Los Angeles Dodgers and looked ready for a wild card chase. The All-Star break was littered with playoff talk and hype, both from Friar fans and the MLB alike.

As the dust settles, the Padres need to take a good look in the mirror and figure out what their priorities are this season.

How are they going to tackle the trade deadline? Are they buyers or sellers? Will they jump on an opportunity to snag a player they like, perhaps one who could push them into the playoffs this season, or take their time and see what their prospects can do?

Only time can tell, but the Friars have less than a month to figure that out.

Things will change once the roster expands in September. That’ll give San Diego the opportunity to take a closer look at some of their prospects in the pipeline and give them some experience in the majors.

That said, the 40-man roster might vary drastically depending on if the Padres are playing meaningful baseball in September.

Until then, here are three takeaways from the series loss to the Braves.

Offense in need of a boost

Aside from Game 2 of the series, the Padres’ offense was flat all weekend. They scored three runs on Friday night, leaving nine batters on base and four runners in scoring position.

So far, the Padres rank in the bottom ten of league in several offensive categories, including BA, OBP, hits, RBIs, and runs scored. That’s just not going to cut it.

The Padres can’t depend on Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado to carry the team every game. Tatis Jr. went 4-for-5 on Sunday, while Machado hit three home runs in the series. The Friars might need to consider making some changes or shuffling things around to jumpstart the lineup.

After an exciting first half, Franmil Reyes, Hunter Renfroe, and Eric Hosmer were unproductive this series. Renfroe went 0-for-7 with two walks while Reyes had two hits total, a couple of abnormal singles for the home run hitter.

Perhaps the biggest surprise was Hosmer’s lack of production. He had a couple of base knocks on Sunday but he was awfully quiet all weekend, going 3-for-15 in the series. Hosmer is now 6-for-43 in his last 10 games, equalling a .140 BA.

The Padres really struggle to manufacture consistent runs with balls in play. On Sunday, they got some offense going from the start by getting men on base but failed to capitalize. They ended the series by stranding 27 runners on bases and going 3-for-20 with RISP.

It’s evident that the team is playing home run ball, choosing to swing for the fences rather than base hits. More than half of the Padres’ runs scored this season are via the long ball. This style of play was particularly exposed against the Braves and feels unsustainable in the long run.

Pitching depth a clear concern

Let’s be honest; the rotation and bullpen as they currently stand won’t get this team into the playoffs.

The bullpen once again allowed a three-run inning to give the Braves the win. Otherwise effective in his last four games, Trey Wingenter surrendered a three-run homer to Freddie Freeman in the top of the eighth, followed by a single to Nick Markakis. The game-winning home run was Freeman’s first hit of the entire series. In Game 2, the Padres had two leads that they lost thanks to the bullpen.

For most of Sunday, the pitching felt like an anomaly for the Padres. It was a pitcher’s duel between Mike Soroka and Cal Quantrill, as the score was 0-0 through eight innings.

More from Friars on Base

• Padres fighting with hated rival to sign quality veteran relief pitcher
• Jurickson Profar free agency update likely rules out Padres reunion
• Fernando Tatis Jr. may not take to outfield move after Xander Bogaerts addition
• Padres News: Fernando Tatis Jr. trade rumors, Seth Lugo chase, Manny Machado
• Padres barely missed out on high-end veteran starting pitcher

Cal Quantrill was fantastic in his second start since being moved to the bullpen. He tossed six scoreless inning with three hits, three strikeouts, and one walk. However, he’s been pushed back into a starting role only because of the Padres’ thin rotational depth.

While the starting rotation has shown promise, it has faltered in one major area — being able to go deep into games.

Lasting only five innings puts immense pressure on the bullpen to eat innings and get to Kirby Yates — more often than not, they end up exacerbating the problem that pulled the starter in the first place.

There’s also been some questionable decision-making and management from Andy Green — but I’ll let the readers hash that one out.

Fortunately for the Padres they play in the National League, where the wild card race has turned out to be a free-for-all this season. Sitting at 45-48, the Friars are 3.0 games back from a playoff spot but falling quickly. They’ll need to bounce back soon, and they’ll have the chance to do so against the Miami Marlins starting on Tuesday.

Let’s see how this team responds to adversity.

For complete coverage of the San Diego Padres’ 2019 season, continue following Friars on Base all season long.