Padres sweep Giants for 7th straight win
Credit: MLB.com
The San Diego Padres are officially rolling at the perfect time.
San Diego completed a three-game sweep of the San Francisco Giants with a 6-4 win Sunday night at Oracle Park, extending its winning streak to seven games and strengthening its position in the National League Wild Card race.
The Padres didn’t waste any time against Giants ace Logan Webb.
Fernando Tatis Jr., Dustin Harris, and Manny Machado all reached base to begin the game before Merrill ripped a bases-loaded double to give San Diego a 2-0 lead in the first inning.
Sizzling hot 🔥 pic.twitter.com/4wbfXm7p70
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) September 13, 2026
Nick Pivetta immediately received some support, as well as help from his defense. Jake Cronenworth, filling in at first base with Ty France away on paternity leave, made a terrific play for the second out of the bottom of the first. You cannot hit the ball into the “Crone Zone.”
The Padres gave Pivetta even more breathing room one inning later. Tatis singled home Samad Taylor before Manny Machado crushed a two-run homer off Webb, extending the lead to 5-0.
So won't the real Slim Shady please stand up? pic.twitter.com/jfcITYjN9s
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) September 13, 2026
Machado caught one of the few mistakes Webb made.
“Honestly, it was tough to see, so anything up,” Machado said of his approach in the sun against Webb at that at-bat. “One of the few hanging sliders he threw.”
The Giants weren’t going away quietly. Andrew Knizner, who entered Sunday with just one home run and one RBI on the season, connected for a two-run homer off Pivetta in the bottom of the second.
Then came the best moment of the night for San Diego. Ethan Salas drilled a ball off the wall in the fourth inning for a triple and the first hit of his MLB career. Tatis followed by driving him home with another single, pushing the Padres’ advantage to 6-2.
First Major League hit for Ethan Salas! pic.twitter.com/f8eeFQPWFY
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) September 14, 2026
It was a long-awaited first hit for one of baseball’s premier young prospects — and potentially the beginning of a special career in San Diego.
Pivetta ran into trouble in the bottom half of the inning. Three singles, including a bunt single, loaded the bases, but Knizner flew out to left before Brett Harris followed with another flyout to end the threat.
That ended Pivetta’s night after 69 pitches. Coming off an injury and making only his second start since returning, manager Craig Stammen had little reason to push him any further, especially with October becoming a realistic destination.
Kyle Hart took over and allowed San Francisco to chip away at the lead. The Giants scored once in the fifth and again in the sixth, cutting San Diego’s advantage to 6-4 and putting the pressure on a bullpen that was trying to avoid using Adrian Morejon and Mason Miller.
The Padres found a way anyway. Yuki Matsui handled the ninth and worked around a two-out double from Bryce Eldridge before striking out Jonah Cox to finish the sweep.
San Diego finished with nine hits, giving the Padres 34 hits in the three-game series. Tatis led the way Sunday by going 3-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBIs, while no other Padre recorded multiple hits.
The Padres never trailed Sunday, and they’ve now won seven consecutive games at the most important point of the season. San Diego leaves San Francisco with a 2.5-game cushion over Arizona in the Wild Card race and remains within striking distance of moving up the NL standings.
Hosting a Wild Card series at Petco Park remains very much in play.
“Keep fighting until the end, we keep fighting for each other,” Machado said after the win. “It’s a group of guys that want something really bad. Just fight.”
Right now, that’s exactly what the Padres are doing. They’ll take their seven-game winning streak to Colorado for a four-game series beginning Monday.
Casey Mize starts for the Friars while Tomoyuki Sugano toes the slab for Colorado.
Chris is a graduate of the University of San Diego. He is the former Sports Editor for the USDVista newspaper. Chris has covered the San Diego Loyal, and now covers San Diego State Men’s Basketball. He also contributes regularly about the Padres. Chris is an athlete and is a huge fan of San Diego sports.