Padres have yet to clear that major hurdle in series loss to Dodgers

Manny Machado’s home run in the rubber match was one of the few bright spots in what ended up being a series loss for the Padres against the Dodgers.

In all three series against the Dodgers this year, the Padres had either taken the first game of a three-game series or the first two games in a four-game series, but they couldn’t finish. On Wednesday, they had a chance to right that wrong, and after a couple of miscues in the field, the Dodgers offense pounced on the free outs that were given to them.

Jake Cronenworth booted a routine ball up the middle, which allowed Gavin Lux to reach safely. After a couple of pitching changes, Joey Lucchesi made his first appearance since August 1, after spending the majority of his time at the team’s alternate training site. And it looked like he should have remained there, as the southpaw proceeded to give up an RBI double and RBI single to Max Muncy and Will Smith, respectively.

The Dodgers led 3-1 at that point in the game, and they never looked back, scoring three more in the fifth inning and one in the sixth. The Padres tried their best to claw back, with a two-run homer off the bat of Jurickson Profar and a solo shot from Manny Machado made it a 7-4 ball game. Profar chipped in an RBI single in the ninth, but the Padres ultimately fell 7-5 in what felt like a letdown series.

After the first game, highlighted by Trent Grisham‘s home run that appeared to upset the Dodgers dugout and the offensive onslaught that ensued, it looked like the Padres would take a big series from their rivals. But now it feels like more of the same.

“Today we got beat in almost all areas of the game,” Jayce Tingler said. “We didn’t play as clean as we have been defensively.”

Give the Dodgers free outs, and they will make you pay, and that’s exactly what happened.

What’s next for the Padres

After a generally successful ten-game homestand, the Friars will enjoy a much-deserved off day before heading to Seattle for a quick three-game set before returning home to play the Angels.

Look for Eric Hosmer and potentially Tommy Pham to make their returns next week before the playoffs begin. We have only nine games remaining in the shortened season, and it honestly feels like we just got started.