Padres Series Recap: Marlins Capitalize on Mistakes to Take Series
The suddenly-hot San Diego Padres took on the Miami Marlins in this three-game weekend set.
As I predicted, the matchup on Sunday would decide this series.
It certainly did, and the result was not in the Padres’ favor.
The San Diego Padres are a young team, and their style of play will be maddening to watch from time to time. Manuel Margot, Austin Hedges, and Hunter Renfroe are all doing great things on the baseball diamond and watching them develop will be fun all year long.
In this series, the Marlins came in hot and were able to capitalize on some key errors from the Padres. That is truly the difference between the two teams right now. The Padres are still making little errors here and there (both physical and mental) that are critical in deciding the outcome of the game, while the Marlins are not. Whether its missing your cutoff man, or making a base running error, this young Padres squad has made multiple key mistakes that really affect the outcome of a game.
The mistakes will happen. We need to get over that.
Let’s instead focus on the positives, and what this team is capable of.
The youth on this team, offensively, is amazing.
Hedges is hitting, Renfroe is hitting, Margot is hitting. The starting pitching staff hasn’t been all that bad. They certainly haven’t been the reason why this team doesn’t have more losses. Jered Weaver is surprising some people and eating innings. There are good things happening.
Game 1- Trevor Cahill Steps Up (Padres 5, Marlins 3)
Trevor Cahill had some rough numbers against a number of Marlins’ hitters in his career, but the right-handed pitcher was dealing on Friday for the Padres. He went seven innings, only allowing one run. He recorded his first win of the season, assisted by a three-run home run from Austin Hedges in the seventh inning. Cahill threw 96 pitches on the night and was very economical. A Giancarlo Stanton two-run home run in the ninth off of Brad Hand made the game close, but the Padres survived 5-3 to take the opening game of the series.
Game 2- Padres Defense Kills Them in Extras (Marlins 6, Padres 3)
Jered Weaver was on the mound for the Friars and went six strong innings, only allowing two solo home runs from Stanton and Martin Prado. The pitcher left in a tie game and pitched quite well, throwing 85 pitches and striking out three on the night. The Padres offense was shut down by Dan Straily on the night. The former Friar went seven innings and struck out 14 batters on the night. The game was tied at two headed into the 11th inning when the Padres defense had a breakdown. Jose Torres and Hunter Renfroe were both charged with errors on a Dee Gordon infield single that ended up all over the diamond. Giancarlo Stanton followed with his second homer of the series. The Padres rallied in the bottom of the 11th, but could not get it done in the end.
Game 3- Perdomo Cruising, Then It Happened (Marlins 7, Padres 3)
Luis Perdomo owns the Miami Marlins, early in his career. The young Dominican is 2-0 lifetime, including pitching the Padres only complete game last year in Miami. Early on in this game it looked like the team was going on to a series victory. The Padres were up 3-0 after five innings on a two-run home run to dead center field from Hunter Renfroe. Perdomo had a shutout going and he was on the hill to start the sixth. Prado opened the inning with a single and then Perdomo walked Christian Yelich. There was an uneasy feeling throughout the stadium as Giancarlo Stanton came to the plate. Perdomo fell behind and the mammoth right fielder singled to center. The inning was a disaster as Craig Stammen was unable to slow down the Marlins momentum and just like that, the game was over. The six-run sixth inning for the Marlins was way too much to overcome as the young Padres learned another lesson in the season. They could have won this series. They could have swept the series. But in the end, it’s not about what you could have done, it is about what you did.
Next Up
The Padres head to the desert for a four-game set against the Diamondbacks starting Monday night.
James was born and raised in America’s Finest City. He is a passionate baseball fan with even more passion towards his hometown Padres. Editor-In-Chief of EastVillageTimes.com. Always striving to bring you the highest quality in San Diego Sports News. Original content, with original ideas, that’s our motto. Enjoy.