Bats awaken with a vengeance, Drury comes in clutch, as Padres win series over Giants
Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports
Petco Park-San Diego, California
The Padres were riding high after a thrilling walkoff victory on Tuesday night. They looked to ride that wave of momentum by clinching the series win over the Giants in Wednesday’s rubber match. The Padres went with struggling lefty Sean Manaea and the Giants countered with Jakob Junis.
Neither starter lasted long, as the bats for both teams beat up on each other’s starter. San Diego trailed twice in this game before eventually emerging victorious, 13-7, on the backs of the hitters up and down the lineup.
It got off to a rocky start for the Padres, as the Giants jumped out to a 4-0 lead after the top of the third. Some poor pitching and a lapse in defense by Juan Soto in the outfield led to the Giants rally.
The Padres offense clearly felt the momentum from the previous night, when they broke out of their five-day long slump with seven runs. They nearly matched that total in the bottom of the third alone. Manny Machado came up with the bases loaded and lined a double down the left field line, scoring two and cutting the deficit in half. Brandon Drury got his big day started with an RBI single, cutting the San Francisco lead to just one.
Jake Cronenworth followed it up with a run-scoring single of his own to tie the game at four. The Friars were not done, as Trent Grisham lined a single to right to score the go-ahead run. Austin Nola padded the lead further with an RBI fielder’s choice. At the end of the inning, the Padres had scored six runs after 11 batters came to the plate.
Manaea was able to navigate away from further damage, but overall, his struggles continued. He finished five innings, allowing four runs, with three of them earned. He walked one and struck out four. This marked the fourth start out of his last five where he has allowed at least three earned runs.
The Giants fought back in the top of the sixth against Nabil Crismatt and Robert Suarez, scoring three runs. Once again, the Padres found themselves down, this time 7-6. It did not take long for the lineup to respond once again.
With two outs already in the inning, Machado lined a single up the middle and Josh Bell followed with a single of his own. This set up a big at bat from Drury. After being robbed of his last two bids for a homer, he was not going to be denied this line. The former Reds slugger lined a go-ahead, three-run shot over the left field wall, giving the Padres a 9-7 lead.
Judge, Drury, and Executioner 💣#TimetoShine | @Padres pic.twitter.com/RYrXE1zsQo
— Bally Sports San Diego (@BallySportsSD) August 10, 2022
Drury has come through several times for the Padres already in his short stint with the club.
The Padres were not done, as they scored four more runs, all with two outs, following an RBI double by Ha-Seong Kim, a scoring single by Grisham and a two-run shot by catcher Austin Nola. With the Padres leading 13-7, they turned to their bullpen to finish the job.
“There is just a different feeling now, when you’re down, you don’t feel like it’s going to take a lot to come back,” Bob Melvin said about the lineup.
Adrian Morejon and Taylor Scott pitched a scoreless eighth and ninth inning respectively to seal the series win over the Giants. After being swept by the Dodgers in Los Angeles over the weekend, a series win over the Giants at home with that kind of offensive onslaught is exactly what the doctor ordered for this Padres club.
Now, they have a day off ahead of a trip across the country to play in D.C. and Miami.
Native of Escondido, CA. Lived in San Diego area for 20 years. Padres fan since childhood (mid-90s). I have been writing since 2014. I currently live near Seattle, WA and am married to a Seattle sports girl. I wore #19 on my high school baseball team for Tony Gwynn. I am a stats and sports history nerd. I attended BYU on the Idaho campus. I also love Star Wars.