There are big wins and horrible losses.
The San Diego Padres and visiting San Francisco Giants experienced a roller coaster of emotions Tuesday night, setting up a Wednesday afternoon game that is a more than a rubber match to a three-game series.
The Padres recorded a 7-4 walk-off win on Manny Machado’s home run in the bottom of the ninth Tuesday after new closer Josh Hader had blown his first save chance as a Padre, losing a 4-1 lead.
The Padres go into Wednesday on a high rather than on a six-game losing streak. A win in the series finale will give them a boost going into a six-game trip to Washington and Miami.
Instead of riding a comeback Tuesday into a possible series sweep, the Giants need a win Wednesday to boost their fading hopes of overtaking the Padres in the wild-card chases.
“Without a doubt, a win like this can pick up a ballclub,” Padres manager Bob Melvin said after the Padres’ ninth walk-off victory of the season. “We needed this win. And the big guys (Juan Soto, Machado and Josh Bell) got some big hits.
“The middle-order guys, who we are going to count on, all showed up big today. We’ve seen Manny come through like that before. Soto is a ball of energy. He’s into every at-bat, every pitch.”
Meanwhile, Giants manager Gabe Kapler was feeling the flip side of emotions.
“We were feeling pretty good when we tied it in the ninth,” he said. “That catch (by Jurickson Profar on what was the game-tying sacrifice fly) probably cost us a couple of runs … changed the game.”
Now the series comes down to Wednesday afternoon. Right-hander Jakob Junis (4-3, 3.05 ERA) will start for the Giants against Padres left-hander Sean Manaea (6-6, 4.74).
Junis, 29, will make his 14th appearance and 11th start for the Giants this year. He faced the Padres earlier this season, giving up four runs on seven hits (including a home run by Jake Cronenworth) in six innings on May 20 in a game the Giants lost 8-7.
Junis suffered the loss in his last start against the Dodgers on Thursday, giving up three runs on five hits and two walks in 3 2/3 innings.
In his two starts before that, however, Junis had allowed one run on eight hits and two walks with six strikeouts in 8 1/3 innings. The Giants are 6-4 when Junis starts. He has a 1.097 WHIP and a .230 opponents’ batting average.
Manaea, meanwhile, is struggling. His last start also was against the Dodgers, on Friday. He gave up eight runs on 10 hits and a walk in just four innings. Manaea hasn’t allowed less than two earned runs in a start in nine starts since June 8, although five of those were quality starts.
The Padres are 10-10 in Manaea’s 20 starts. He has a 1.325 WHIP and a .247 opponents’ batting average. He is 0-1 in two starts against the Giants this season with a 4.50 ERA — giving up six runs on nine hits with four walks and 11 strikeouts in 12 innings.
–Field Level Media
