Padres end losing streak, defeat Reds 6-4 on walk-off home run
Credit: AP Photo
Petco Park – San Diego, California
With Petco Park now open to 100% capacity for the first time since 2019, 40,362 fans packed the park for “Opening Day 2.0” on Thursday night. In front of the sold-out crowd, the San Diego Padres defeated the Cincinnati Reds 6-4 on a walk-off home run by Victor Caratini.
Both the Padres and the Reds were shut out through five innings, and they each scored four runs in the 9th inning in one of the most exciting games of the season.
In a matchup between two pitchers who have each thrown no-hitters this season, Joe Musgrove outpitched Wade Miley in what was a pitcher’s duel until the 9th inning. In yet another quality start, Musgrove threw seven shutout innings and struck out two batters while allowing four hits and three walks. He was able to get out of any situation thrown his way and, in the 2nd, got out of a bases-loaded jam as Miley grounded out to him to end the inning.
Miley allowed four hits in the game, but two of them were solo home runs courtesy of Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado. He struck out five batters and retired 13 in a row in a span from the 1st to 5th innings. The starting pitchers each earned a no-decision.
The Padres did not get their first hit of the game until the 6th inning when Tatis hit a 395-foot home run to left-center field to take a 1-0 lead. The home run was Tatis’ 22nd of the season to tie the MLB lead.
Machado led off the 7th inning with a 433-foot home run to left-center field to extend the Friar’s lead to 2-0. The home run was Machado’s 10th of the season as he became the second Padre with double-digit home runs.
After Miley allowed back-to-back singles to Caratini and Jurickson Profar to start the 8th, Art Warren replaced him and retired the next three batters to get out of the jam.
Emilio Pagan pitched the 8th inning and stranded Jesse Winker on second after a 1-out double. It was a nail-biter in the 9th after Mark Melancon allowed a leadoff single to Joey Votto. Melancon struck out Eugenio Suarez before allowing a double to Tucker Barnhart.
A Kyle Farmer groundout scored the first run of the game for Cincinnati, and Tyler Stephenson tied the game with a 2-out, full-count single. The next at-bat, Jonathan India, homered to left to give the Reds a 4-2 lead.
Machado led off the bottom of the 9th with a walk, and Eric Hosmer tied the game with a 1-out, 401-foot home run to right field. Jake Cronenworth singled to center, and Caratini crushed a breaking ball 378 feet into the left-field bleachers to give the Padres a 6-4 walk-off win.
“Oh man, this is electric,” Eric Hosmer said after the game about the crowd. “I appreciate you guys. You have been sticking with me and sticking with this team and continue to do that; it’s gonna be a lot of fun… hopefully, this gets us going, and this will get us on a little streak.”
The Padres snapped their three-game losing streak tonight after being swept by Colorado, and the Reds’ six-game winning streak has ended.
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“It felt like more than a win…for a lot of reasons,” Jayce Tingler said after the game. “Full capacity, the energy was felt. I don’t know if we do that without the place rocking throughout the night. This one feels like more than just a regular win, and now we have to come out and play some good baseball tomorrow… that’s how we get this thing going.
Tomorrow’s game is the second of a four-game series, and the first pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. Chris Paddack (3-5, 4.14 ERA) will be on the mound for the Padres, and Tony Santillan (0-0, 1.93 ERA) will be for the Reds.
Bobby is an Arizona State University alum and majored in Sports Journalism at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Fall 2023. Bobby is from San Diego, loves to write, and has a deep passion for baseball, football and basketball. He has co-hosted the “Devils Talking Padres” podcast and was a digital reporter and photographer for Cronkite News/Arizona PBS. He also broadcasted high school and junior college football games in Arizona as a play-by-play and color commentator.