Given the way the Toronto Blue Jays and San Diego Padres have struggled to score this year, an 8-7 game at any point in the teams’ weekend series probably wasn’t on many Bingo cards.
Yet that’s what happened Saturday night, with host San Diego winning after turning 11 walks and a hit batter into six runs. That gives the Padres (47-48) a chance to earn a series win and a .500 record going into the All-Star break if they win the decisive contest of the three-game set on Sunday afternoon.
“The first few innings felt like they lasted forever, but the boys kept fighting,” San Diego first baseman Ty France said.
France was a large part of that fight. He was involved in four of the team’s run-scoring rallies — knocking in a run in the first inning, getting hit by a pitch and scoring in the third, singling to extend the fourth, and then cracking a solo homer in the sixth to put the Padres ahead for good.
It wound up being a rare night in which San Diego was able to outslug an opponent.
“We’re going to need more of that throughout the year,” Padres manager Craig Stammen said. “Offensively, to see those guys carry the team a little bit is what we need.”
In addition to the free bases they procured via walks and the hit batter, the Padres also stole three bases, giving them 99 for the year. Only Washington (102) and Miami (101) have more stolen bases in the majors.
Right-hander German Marquez (4-2, 5.02 ERA) will try to give San Diego its first start of more than 4 2/3 innings since Wednesday.
Marquez authored five solid innings in a 4-1 win Tuesday over Arizona, allowing an unearned run on three hits with three walks and four strikeouts. He beat the Blue Jays in his only career outing against them, going seven innings and yielding two runs in 2019.
Toronto will counter on Sunday with veteran right-hander Kevin Gausman (4-8, 4.32 ERA), who was pummeled Monday in a 10-1 loss at San Francisco. Gausman gave up seven runs (four earned) on five hits and five walks over 5 1/3 innings while striking out eight.
In nine career outings against the Padres, Gausman is 3-1 with a 2.85 ERA.
Toronto also could use some length from Gausman after rookie Trey Yesavage got just five outs on Saturday, walking seven and giving up four runs. The team’s bullpen has pitched 10 2/3 innings over the series’ first two games.
Blue Jays manager John Schneider has been more pleased with an offense that’s scored 31 runs the last four games. Toronto rallied from 2-0, 4-2 and 7-4 deficits on Saturday night before the high-leverage relievers in San Diego’s bullpen locked the last lead down.
“It’s rough to watch seven walks and then go out there and score four runs,” Schneider said. “I love the way they battled back.”
Schneider also had to love seeing Vladimir Guerrero Jr. show off some of the power that marked the first seven years of his major league career. Guerrero belted a three-run homer to tie the game in the sixth.
It was just the sixth homer of the year for Guerrero, who came into the season with 183 career homers.
–Field Level Media
