SAN DIEGO -- Ty France homered, and Fernando Tatis Jr. pounded out three hits, but the Padres dropped their series finale against the A’s on Sunday, 5-2.
Here’s some instant reaction from Petco Park:
An encouraging day for Tatis
Nope, still no homers.
But the Padres will take a day like this one from their leadoff hitter every time.
Tatis notched his first three-hit game since May 1. And he used the whole field to do so, singling to right field in the first and to left-center in the third, before doubling down the left-field line in the fifth.
Through the first six games of the homestand, Tatis is hitting .364. Now, about that power…
A rare off-day for King
Generally speaking, even when Michael King struggles, he’s able to grind his way through an outing, preserving the Padres’ bullpen, while keeping the game close. That was not the case on Sunday.
King dealt with an uncharacteristic lack of command on Sunday afternoon. He threw some hittable mistakes early (particularly with two strikes). Then, he lost the zone entirely later in his outing. Add it all up, and he lasted just 3 2/3 innings, allowing four runs while walking four and allowing five hits. It was his worst start of the season.
King has been so good for the Padres this year that he gets a pass for an occasional rough start. His ERA is 2.76. He’s been mostly excellent, when the San Diego rotation has desperately needed him. But King believes he’s capable of being a front-line-type ace. This start certainly did not fit that description.
Aggressive? Or overaggressive?
On a day the Padres found themselves lacking in offense, they also ran into a pair of outs on the basepaths. Both could partially be excused by the situation. But they would prove especially costly.
In the third, Tatis was caught at second, trying to stretch a single into a double. Again, it was somewhat sensible considering Tatis was trying to work his way into scoring position with two outs. But the play wasn’t all that close at second.
Then, in the fifth, France was thrown out at the plate with two outs, trying to score on Tatis’ double. Again, if there’s ever a time to be aggressive, it’s with two outs. Relying on a hit from the next batter is usually only a 30% proposition at best.
France, like Tatis earlier, forced the A’s defense to make a play. And the A’s defense made it.