SAN DIEGO -- The Padres earned a split against the Cardinals in dramatic fashion on Sunday afternoon. Nick Castellanos hit a game-tying two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth, and Manny Machado’s sacrifice fly won it in the 10th.
Here’s some instant reaction from the Padres’ wild 3-2 victory at Petco Park:
Castellanos comes up clutch
The Padres’ offense had a rough weekend, for the most part. Their 14 hits were the fewest in a four-game series in franchise history. But they saved their biggest at-bat for when they needed it most.
Castellanos came to the plate in the ninth as the potential final out, with the Padres trailing 2-0. He fell behind in the count, 0-2 -- but he wasn’t nearly done.
Castellanos fouled off three pitches, and he worked the count full, before Cardinals closer Riley O’Brien left a belt-high sinker over the inner half. Castellanos turned on it and launched a game-tying two-run homer into the left-field seats, sending the game to extras.
It’s been an up-and-down season for Castellanos, who has acknowledged that it took some time to get used to his bench role. But lately, he seems to have done so. And he came off the bench Sunday and delivered his biggest swing as a Padre.
Tatis to the track
No one embodies the Padres’ early offensive struggles more than Fernando Tatis Jr. Forty games into the season, he’s still waiting on his first homer. But ... he’s at least getting closer.
In the bottom of the third inning on Sunday, Tatis got a belt-high fastball from Cardinals starter Kyle Leahy. He launched it toward the left-center field wall, 105.4 mph off the bat. It settled in the glove of Cardinals center fielder Nathan Church.
With a projected distance of 395 feet, it was the closest Tatis has come to homering this season. Alas, the wait goes on. Tatis nonetheless worked a pair of walks on Sunday, including one in a key spot in the 10th, after the Cardinals had chosen to walk Jackson Merrill.
Buehler reliable in the rotation
Walker Buehler’s first couple starts with the Padres weren’t great. His velocity was low, and he was getting hit hard. But since then? Across his last six outings, Buehler has been a completely serviceable back-of-the-rotation starter.
And that’s what the Padres signed him to be. Of all the back-end options, Buehler looks like the one most capable of serving as the No. 5 starter when San Diego is healthy and firing in the top four spots.
He’s still maybe a bit too prone to a mistake or two. That was the case on Sunday, when he retired the first 11 Cardinals hitters he faced before an Alec Burleson single. Buehler was mostly cruising. Then, he hung a 2-1 knuckle curve over the inside corner to Jordan Walker, missing his spot.
Walker launched a two-run homer off the third level of the Western Metal Building. Those were the only two runs Buehler would allow.