Petco Park – San Diego

The San Diego Padres returned to Petco Park to play the second game in a three-game series against the Houston Astros.

Following another difficult loss using one of their new trade deadline starters, the Padres are back to their old reliable. While Michael King’s last two starts were not quality, they were certainly enough to keep the Padres in the game.

Right now, it’s just about getting everyone on the same page. That said, the Padres cannot afford to lose a series if they want a wildcard spot. Luckily, today’s pitching matchup was certainly in their favor.

Historically, Peter Lambert has struggled against the Padres. In his 27 innings against the Padres, he has a 1-2 record with a 7.67 ERA.

The first inning almost completely exemplified this. The Padres immediately got to Lambert, loading the bases after a pair of walks and a hit. Only one run would score on a fielder’s choice, but it was an early omen for what was to come.

In contrast, King sustained a pretty sizable presence on the mound Saturday evening. However, he’s still struggling with home runs. Including today’s outing, he’s allowed a homer in four of his last five outings. They account for nearly all the runs allowed as well.

In any case, Michael King collected six strikeouts against the Astros in six innings, only allowing one run, a much-needed quality start.

Lambert struggled a little harder than King. Jackson Merrill hit a homer to center with two outs. Not long after, in the fourth, Gavin Sheets scored on an error from shortstop Jeremy Pena.

Jackson Barrell 💪 pic.twitter.com/KM9pfWwWrK

— San Diego Padres (@Padres) August 9, 2026

Lambert’s night ended in the fifth inning, not as bad as things could have been but not as solid as the Astros were hoping. Especially given that Lambert’s been their most consistent pitcher this season.

The rest of the night was business as usual. Padres couldn’t put up any more runs, but the pitching side of things held things down well enough to the point where they didn’t need to. However, the Astros were still hoping to bring things back.

Mason Miller came out to close the game almost immediately, plunking Christian Walker. Walker would later score thanks to a base hit from Yanier Diaz. However, the rally ended there, and the Padres split the series against the Astros. Sunday evening’s game will be the rubber match to decide who takes the series.

The pitching matchup is still to be decided for the Padres. However, starting for the Astros is Christian Javier (1-2, 6.59 ERA).

Fabian Garcia