Canning stellar in debut, Padres win finale vs. White Sox 4-3
Credit: Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images
San Diego looked to bounce back on a Military Sunday vs. the Chicago White Sox, who have taken the first two games of this three-game series. The Padres have lost four straight to this point, dropping the middle of the final games in the Cubs series.
On Sunday, it would be lefty Anthony Kay taking the bump for the Sox, who recently came back to the states from a two-year stint in the NPB with the Yokohama BayStars. And for the Padres, Griffin Canning is making his Padres debut after recovering from a ruptured left Achilles tendon in Jun of 2025 with the Mets. Canning tossed 76 1/3 innings for the Mets a year ago, posting a 4.04 FIP. If Canning can provide a little bit of what he did last season, he could be a major help to this thin rotation.
Lining up on the finale
A struggling Fernando Tatis Jr. will sit in the series finale vs. the White Sox. Miguel Andujar, who’s swinging a hot stick,k will take Fernando’s two-spot in the lineup and will do the designated hitting. In Andujar’s last 15 games, he has a slashline of .346/.370/.500.
Sunday matinee. pic.twitter.com/hbJDKqw3o3
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) May 3, 2026
In a corresponding move to make room for Canning on the 26-man roster, Germán Márquez was placed on the 15-day IL with right forearm nerve inflammation (retro to 5/2).
Canning’s Padre debut
The Orange County native looked very solid in his first outing in the brown and gold, his first major league appearance in 311 days. Canning would start his outing off shaky, throwing six straight balls. He would escape a 21-pitch first inning unscathed, where he’d walk Sam Antonacci and Colson Montgomery. Aside from that first inning and a solo shot by Drew Romo in the third, Canning cruised through the White Sox lineup. Canning would go a full five innings, allowing three hits, an earned run, three walks, while striking out seven. The righty struck out his final four batters faced, ending his outing on a high note. Canning would toss just 73 pitches in his first outing back in the big leagues, with 42 of them going for strikes. Through his outing, he would generate 15 whiffs.
In the top of the fourth with an out and runners at the corners, Canning picked off Jarred Kelenic at first base to help him escape a jam and keep the score at 1-0, Chicago.
Getting on the board in the fourth
Andujar got the scoring started for the Padres in the fourth with a lead-off solo homer. His second home run of the year extended his hit streak to eight games.
Gettin’ Miggy Wit It pic.twitter.com/9mglvh6qGw
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) May 3, 2026
Manny Machado also hit a solo shot in the fourth, this one to give the Padres a 2-1 lead, and their first lead of this series.
There goes that Manny. pic.twitter.com/SzdM7T9LbX
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) May 3, 2026
Xander Bogaerts and Ty France each followed Machado’s round-tripper with singles. A Nick Castellanos ground ball out to the pitcher, Kay would move the runners 90 feet into scoring position. Freddy Fermin would walk on eight pitches,s and on that eighth pitch came a passed ball by catcher Drew Romo, which would allow Bogaerts to score the third Padres run and make the score 3-1, San Diego.
Morejón enters in the sixth
The southpaw Adrián Morejón came in the sixth inning to relieve the starter Canning. Morejón kept the same role that Canning had as he completed his outing, striking out the side in order. Morejón came in to face the heart of the White Sox order, Munetaka Murakami, Miguel Vargas, and Colson Montgomery, and K’d all of them.
The seventh inning was much different for the Cubanleft-handerr as he went out for a second inning of work. Chase Meidroth would single on the first pitch he saw, to lead off the inning. Then, on a 0-2 count, pinch-hitter Derek Hill tied the game with one swing of the bat, homering into the bullpens in left center. Morejón finished strong, retiring the next three batters in order.
Adam with a clean eighth
Jason Adam came on in the eighth inning to face the top of the Sox order. Adam notably struck out Murakami and allowed an infield base hit to Miguel Vargas. Adam would throw 17 pitches, nine of them for strikes,s in his scoreless eighth.
Padres magic late
Ramón Laureano led off the inning with a walk-off of Tyler Davis, which would end his outing. In came left-handed Bryan Hudson to face Andujar, who’s struggling against lefties in 2026. Andujar would strike out swinging. Then Laureano stole second base to get out of a double play situation. Jackson Merrill would single on a ball deflected by first baseman Murakami, and would get fielded by second baseman Meidrot,h and Laureano would advance to third. Merrill would steal second base to put both base runners in scoring position. Machado struck out on an elevated fastball for the second out of the inning. Going down 0-2, early in the count was Bogaerts, ts who followed Machado in the order. Bogaerts worked the count to an even 2-2 and would reach on a check swing batted ball down the third base line. This would give the Padres a 4-3 lead going into the ninth for Mason Miller.
?♂️ pic.twitter.com/OvCDBzvbnD
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) May 3, 2026
The Reaper does his thing
Miller entered the game hot, striking out Meidroth and pinch-hitter Edgar Quero to get the first two outs of the inning. Tristan Peters would hit a perfectly placed single into the 3.5 hole in the outfield. Peters would later steal second base in the at-bat to Luisangel Acuña. The two-out base hit would not matter as Acuña would go down on strikes as Miller strikes out the side for the Padres W.
Wrap-up
The eighth-inning man, Jason Adam, would receive his first win of the season. Tyler Davis goes down with the loss, his first of the year as well. Mason Miller extends his league lead in saves to 11.
San Diego got their 20th win of the season, and they improve their record to 20-13 through 33 games. Former Padres outfielder Will Venable and his White Sox drop to 16-18 on the year.
Canning, Adam, Morejón, and Miller combined to strike out 15 White Sox on Sunday afternoon. The pitching was a huge help to get the team back on track after dropping four games in a row. A momentous win for the Padres as they have a happy flight and go up the coast of California to play a divisional opponent.
Onto San Francisco on Monday
The Padres will make the trip to the Bay to take on Tony Vitello and the struggling Giants. San Francisco enters Monday on a six-game slide, as they just went winless in their East Coast road trip, getting swept by Philadelphia and Tampa Bay. Randy Vásquez, originally set to pitch on Sunday afternoon, has been pushed to pitch on Monday. The Giants have yet to announce a starting pitcher at this time. First pitch for Monday is scheduled for 6:45 PM PT at Oracle Park.
Angel grew up a San Diego sports fan, following the Padres, SDSU athletics, San Diego FC, as well as the Chargers. He is currently a third year community college student, and will transfer to SDSU to pursue a career in Journalism.