SAN DIEGO -- The Padres mashed their way to a 7-2 victory over the Astros on Sunday night, getting home runs from Jackson Merrill, Fernando Tatis Jr., Gavin Sheets and newcomer Austin Hays.
In the process, San Diego kept pace with Arizona and Philadelphia and remained one game back of both in the National League Wild Card race. Here’s some instant reaction from Petco Park, where the Padres played one of their most complete games of the season:
Stars hitting like stars again
The solution to the Padres' early-season offensive struggles was always a simple one: Their stars needed to hit like stars again.
There were no guarantees it would happen. Certainly, Tatis, Merrill and Manny Machado wouldn’t spend the entire season struggling like they did through early June. But could they be counted upon to be serious difference-makers? All three of them?
Yes, as it turns out.
That trio is mashing again, and the Padres have been a top-five offense over the past two months as a result. On Sunday, Tatis’ three-run homer put the Padres on top for good in the fourth inning. It was the 163rd home run of his career, moving him into a tie with Nate Colbert for second on the Padres’ all-time leaderboard, behind only Machado (217).
“It takes our team to another level, when he can kind of put us on his back and be like, ‘Hey, I got you guys,’” said manager Craig Stammen. “I’ve just seen it in his eye here lately that he’s got that feeling that he can do it.”
It took Merrill a little longer to get going than Tatis and Machado. But he’s been red-hot through the entire second half. And he homered for the second straight night on Sunday, a solo shot in the second which opened the scoring for the Padres.
“It’s huge,” Tatis said of the Padres’ slugging superstars. “When we’re going, it’s just special. Everybody, it just gets contagious. So we better keep it up, especially at this time of the year.”
Sheets joins the party
Here’s the funny thing about the Padres’ offensive renaissance: As the team has turned its fortunes around, so has Sheets. Only not in a good way.
When the Padres weren’t hitting, Sheets was. He was their best hitter through mid-June. Over the past couple of months, however, he’s been mired in a seemingly endless slump, while dealing with a nasty bout of plantar fasciitis.
Sheets entered play Sunday hitting just .155 with a .477 OPS since the start of July.
But Sheets tacked on a crucial insurance run with a solo blast in the seventh -- his first home run since June 30. He also worked an early walk.
“It’s nice to get in on the fun,” Sheets said. “That’s the fun thing about this team. I feel like I was going in April and May when some guys weren’t. We pick each other up. That’s what good teams do.”
If the Padres’ stars can keep mashing -- and match it up with Sheets getting hot again -- this offense suddenly looks terrifying. Not to mention Hays, who fits perfectly as a righty-hitting complement to Sheets. He went deep after pinch-hitting for Sheets an inning later.
A dominant -- and deep -- bullpen
Mason Miller is the scariest part of this Padres bullpen. Then, Adrian Morejon. But Sunday’s game offered a reminder of why this ’pen might be so valuable come October. It has weapons everywhere, top to bottom.
Padres pitchers retired the last 22 Astros they faced on Sunday night -- including 12 up, 12 down from the bullpen. And that’s with Morejon and Miller getting the night off.
In a game that was still close in the middle innings, Kyle Hart worked a perfect sixth. Bradgley Rodriguez covered the next six outs. Jeremiah Estrada nailed down the ninth, after Hays’ home run put the game out of Miller’s purview.
“When our bullpen gets going, we get the lead to our ‘pen, we are pretty tough to beat,” Stammen said. “Four home runs tonight is just the cherry on top.”
In an ideal world, the Padres get Jason Adam back in a few weeks, and he returns to his high-leverage role. Hart, Rodriguez and Estrada -- in that scenario, at least -- aren’t really even high-leverage options.
But they’re pitching like it right now.
“We feel really confident, especially giving a lead to that bullpen that we have,” Tatis said. “That’s what we need to do. We’ve got all the confidence in the world that they will take care of business.”