Padres take the series at home against the Giants with 8-4 win
AP Photo
The Padres bat around in the 5th inning to propel them to a big win against their division rival, the Giants.
The San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants met at Petco Park for the finale of a four-game series. This contest was crucial for the Padres to win, not only to see a win streak at three in a row, but to keep their NL West deficit at just one game behind the Los Angeles Dodgers.
“This team is equipped to beat you in a lot of different ways,” manager Mike Shildt said postgame. “It was on display again last night, and it was on display today. I loved our approach with runners in scoring position, way better.”
A lot of runners crossed the plate in San Diego on a beautiful Thursday afternoon game. Dylan Cease started for the Friars, and future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander toed the slab for the Gigantes.
Cease pitched well early on, despite a sloppy start from the Padres in the field. In the third inning, Luis Matos tripled to right-center field, but despite the ruling, it was a clear mental error from Fernando Tatis Jr. The 2025 All-Star waived off centerfielder Ramon Laureano, but at the last second, thought his teammate called him off, and the ball dropped off Tatis Jr.’s glove. Catcher Andrew Knizner doubled on the following at-bat, and the Giants had a 1-0 advantage. Then, Jake Cronenworth bobbled a grounder on what could have been an out. That allowed another run to score later in the inning. SF led 2-0.
The Padres bounced back quickly. Tatis Jr. doubled to started the 4th inning to end Verlander’s strong start. The three-time CY Young winner looked vintage in the first three innings. Manny Machado singled home Tatis, and then Luis Arraez would later score off of a sacrifice fly from Xander Bogaerts.
After four, the contest was tied at two runs each.
Cease pitched a strong fifth inning, and then in the bottom half, the Friars broke it open.
Laureano and Cronenworth reached base to begin. Then, Freddy Fermin reached on a bunt which allowed both runners to score from the error by Casey Schmitt, the San Diego native. The bunts kept coming. Tatis Jr. reached on a sneaky bunt, and right after he did that, Arraez bunted to move the runners over. That allowed Machado to step up to the plate, where he launched a two-run double to left-center field.
Run it up. pic.twitter.com/n2spnntaxN
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) August 21, 2025
The Friars led 6-2 but were not done yet. Verlander was removed from the contest for Matt Gage. SD kept the inning alive as Bogaerts singled home Machado for another run. After Gavin Sheets popped up for an out, Laureano had another plate appearance in the inning. He singled for the second time in the 5th to score Ryan O’Hearn. SD had a commanding 8-2 lead after five.
After the game, Laureano was asked about the advantages of seeing a team like the Giants and Dodgers frequently, as they are now.
“It really helps, but I try not to think too much. I just play ball.”
The Giants would not go out without a fight. They immediately responded by hitting back-to-back home runs. Rafael Devers hit his second home run of the series, followed by a solo shot from Willy Adames. Mike Shildt walked out to remove Cease from the game and replaced him with Jeremiah Estrada.
“Overall, really pleased with Dylan (Cease) today, I thought he was outstanding,” Shildt said postgame.
Estrada, Adrian Morejon, and Mason Miller all pitched clean innings. In a non-save situation, Robert Suarez entered the game. He struck out two hitters for the win.
The Padres won a game they needed to win, and remain one game behind the Dodgers after they beat the Colorado Rockies earlier on Thursday.
“We just gotta keep the momentum going and treat the next series like it is a normal series and do our job,” Laureano said postgame when asked how the team is playing ahead of the LA series.
The Friars will now look back at the Dodgers. Yu Darvish gets things going in Game 1 against his former teammate, Blake Snell. Darvish is 2-3 with a 5.79 ERA, while Snell is 3-1 with a 1.80 ERA.
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.