Chase Field – Arizona

The San Diego Padres returned to Chase Field to play against the Arizona Diamondbacks in the third game of their four-game series.

For the Padres, it’s their first time using one of the new pitchers they acquired at the trade deadline, Casey Mize. For Mize, it’s his first night not in a Detroit Tigers uniform.

He’s currently in the middle of a breakout season with the Tigers. Before his trade, he had a sub-three ERA and a WHIP below one. He’s one of two acquisitions that addressed a severe issue with the Padres team as a whole. That being their starting rotation.

To begin, Mize allowed a leadoff walk and a hit from the first two D-backs hitters, putting him in a difficult position. Then, a hard hit from Geraldo Perdomo looked like it would go out, but Bowen caught it, minimizing the damage. With runners at second and third base, Mize had to reach into his toolbox to get out of the inning unscathed.

A strikeout on Gabriel Moreno got the party started, his first as a Padre. Then came a groundout from Tim Tawa. Mize, not losing his cool, got out of the inning scoreless. Not a bad start, all things considered.

Casey Mize‘s first Padres strikeout pic.twitter.com/CBQvjfcF47

— Talking Friars (@TalkingFriars) August 6, 2026

It was business as usual until the third inning when Mize found himself in a similar jam once again. A sac fly sent speedster Corbin Carroll home, then came a homer from Tawa.

Unfortunately for Mize, his rough night wasn’t over. Five straight hits were enough for the Diamondbacks to score two more runs. With the bases loaded and two outs left, Mize walked in one more run. That was the end of his night.

Kyle Hart came in for relief and cashed every single one of Mize’s batters on a sac fly and a liner to center field. Things ended there, but the damage was done. The D-backs led the Padres 8-0.

In terms of runs scored, it’s not only Mize’s worst start of the 2026 regular season, but it’s the worst of his career. It was an opposite night for D-backs pitcher Mitch Bratt, who pitched the best start of his career, going seven scoreless frames.

Despite opening to a mountain of fanfare, the game more or less could’ve ended at the fifth inning. The D-backs piled on two more runs in the eighth inning. The Padres’ first run came in the ninth inning. Fernando Tatis Jr. secured a leadoff home run to get things started, making the score 10-1. For a moment, the Padres gained some momentum by loading up the bases with one out. The gap was still pretty wide. However, the Padres often do their damage late in the game.

A double from newly acquired Gage Workman cleared the bases, making the Padres trail 10-4. If they were going to get anything going, now was the time.

Gage Workman clears the bases with an RBI double

Welcome to the #Padres#forthefaithful pic.twitter.com/5s9YvjCNe0

— Padres Highlights (@FriarHighlights) August 6, 2026

A pop-up from Luis Campusano. Then, on a 3-1 count, Jake Cronenworth flew out to Laars Nootbar. The ballgame was over.

Casey Mize had a forgettable night to start his short Padres career. Thankfully, he’s got plenty of time to bring things back. The same goes for the Swinging Friars, who ironically were not swinging well today.

Although the night was tough, the Padres could still split the series at Chase Field Thursday night.

For the Padres, Walker Buehler (6-5, 5.18 ERA) got the nod in place of Robbie Ray, who starts Friday. For the Snakes is Kohl Drake (0-0, 4.85 ERA)

Fabian Garcia