When you look at the Padres’ second-half success, there are plenty of places to point.
San Diego enters Friday holding the third NL Wild Card spot, 1 1/2 games ahead of Arizona and two games behind Philadelphia for the second spot. The Padres have won 12 of their last 17 games – a stretch that included a three-game sweep of the MLB-leading Brewers – with contributions coming from all the places they need most.
The starting rotation has been strong, led by Michael King, who owns a 2.64 ERA in August and a 2.83 ERA since the All-Star break. Fernando Tatis Jr.’s resurgence after an uncharacteristically slow start to the season has fueled the offense, with nine homers and a 1.002 OPS this month. And the Padres boast one of baseball’s best bullpens, featuring Mason Miller, who carries a 0.96 ERA even after Pittsburgh’s Oneil Cruz snapped Miller’s year-plus homerless streak Tuesday night.
But look a little closer at the Padres’ recent run, and Adrian Morejon has quietly been one of their most dominant contributors.
Morejon has been nearly untouchable for most of the second half. Since July 21, he has posted a 0.45 ERA, the lowest in the Majors among pitchers with at least 20 innings during that span. His arsenal is powered by a sinker that averages 99.5 mph and has reached as high as 101.7 mph this season.
That dominance has made him one of baseball’s most valuable left-handed setup weapons, capable of handling high-leverage situations and providing length when the Padres need it.
And perhaps nothing illustrates Morejon’s value better than what the Padres asked of him this week against the Pirates.
On Monday, Morejon pitched the 10th and 11th innings of a tie game, twice stranding the automatic runner. In the 10th, with the go-ahead run at third, Morejon fielded a grounder and fired home when Pittsburgh’s Jake Mangum broke for the plate, starting a rundown that erased the runner before Morejon escaped the inning without allowing a run.
After throwing 17 of his 20 pitches for strikes across those two high-stress innings, the Padres went back to Morejon on Tuesday. King delivered seven scoreless innings before Morejon took over in the eighth and needed just six pitches – all strikes – to retire the side.
A month earlier, it wasn’t a certainty Morejon would still be in San Diego for the stretch run. One of the longest-tenured Padres, Morejon had spent more than 10 years in the organization when his name surfaced in trade speculation ahead of the Aug. 3 Trade Deadline. But as San Diego surged back into the postseason picture, the calculus changed.
President of baseball operations A.J. Preller called Morejon “one of the best relievers in the league.” Manager Craig Stammen, who once shared a bullpen with Morejon, was even more succinct when asked before the Deadline whether he could picture a Padres bullpen without him.
“Cannot,” was all he said.
Morejon made it clear he wanted to remain with the organization he’s called home for more than a decade. A few weeks later, it’s not difficult to see why the Padres wanted the same.
With San Diego in the thick of the postseason race, Morejon could take on an especially important role in October.
Depending on how the postseason shakes out, the Padres could find themselves staring down Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper in Philadelphia, Pete Crow-Armstrong in Chicago or Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman in Los Angeles – though they’ll see the Dodgers first, in a three-game series during the final week of the regular season.
Morejon gives the Padres a weapon particularly well-suited for those situations. Left-handed hitters are batting just .179 against him this season, but his effectiveness isn’t limited to those matchups. Right-handed hitters have managed just a .599 OPS. Add in Morejon’s ability to work multiple innings, and the Padres have flexibility in how they deploy him.
That kind of versatility would make Morejon an asset to any postseason bullpen. Together, he and Miller give the Padres a one-two punch that could lock down the final innings of a playoff game.
If the Padres reach October, Miller will naturally command plenty of attention. Opposing lineups will know they need to do their damage before the ninth inning. But first, they’ll have to get through Morejon.