SAN DIEGO -- You may have heard: Fernando Tatis Jr. hasn’t been homering all that much this season.
But he picked quite a time for his second of the year.
Tatis launched a walk-off home run, sending San Diego to a 5-4 victory over Cincinnati in the series finale at Petco Park. It was his fifth career walk-off hit. Reds right-hander Chase Petty hung a slider, and Tatis lined it to the first row in left field.
Tatis has been red-hot lately. All that was missing was the power. That might be coming, too.
Here are some other takeaways from the Padres’ much-needed, dramatic come-from-behind victory on Wednesday:
Taylor comes up clutch again
The Padres have seven go-ahead or game-tying hits while trailing in the eighth inning or later this season. Samad Taylor, who was called up last week and only made his first start three days ago, already has two of them.
For the second straight game, Taylor delivered a dramatic game-tying single -- this one into center field with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning. He’d begun the day 0-for-3, but got a belt-high fastball from Reds reliever Tony Santillan and swatted it into center field to tie the game at 4.
The Padres, of course, have struggled plenty with runners in scoring position lately. But Taylor is having no such issues. With Ramón Laureano expected to miss the remainder of the season following hip surgery, Taylor’s arrival has been crucial. And he’s making a strong case to continue as the everyday left fielder -- at least for the time being.
Asking for too much from King
The Padres used all four of their high-leverage relievers in each of the first two games against the Reds this week. That left their bullpen extremely thin for Wednesday’s finale. They would need length from Michael King -- and he mostly delivered.
But in the end, San Diego asked a bit too much of him. King limited the Reds to two runs across the first six innings. Manager Craig Stammen sent him back out for the seventh. King retired the first two hitters he faced.
With the dangerous JJ Bleday due up and King sitting on 100 pitches, Stammen let it ride with King. And Bleday launched a hanging changeup into the right-field seats, putting the Reds on top, 3-2. King slumped on the mound, hands on his knees.
It’s hard to fault him too much, though. King didn’t have his best stuff, but he battled all day and was asked for one batter too many. Ultimately, the Padres paid a tax for covering seven innings with their bullpen in Tuesday’s 11-inning loss.
Wagner makes his case
When Xander Bogaerts landed on the paternity list earlier this week, Will Wagner became the third Padre to be promoted from Triple-A El Paso in the last week. It’s only been two games, but Wagner has made a nice case to stick, even when Bogaerts returns, presumably on Friday in Baltimore.
Wagner has come to the plate six times, and he’s reached base in five of them -- including Wednesday afternoon when he went 2-for-2 with a double and a walk.
A year ago, Wagner arrived during the Padres’ Trade Deadline frenzy (in perhaps the least-heralded move on a day full of blockbusters). He made a couple cameos with the big league club but never established a rhythm.
This time, there’s certainly more opportunity available. With Jake Cronenworth on the IL and Sung-Mun Song struggling, there’s an opening at second base. The Padres are also short on lefty bats, and could definitely use one coming off their bench.
If, indeed, Bogaerts is back in Baltimore, the Padres will have a decision to make, and I’d size it up thusly: It’s Wagner, Song and Jase Bowen for only two spots.