The Padres post-All-Star break road trip took them through Cleveland, Washington and Baltimore. The Guardians had the best home record in baseball, the Nationals were looking for revenge for a sweep at Petco Park, and the Orioles have the 3rd-best record in the game.
Just going 5-4 through that gauntlet would have been a successful trip. They've done a heck of a lot more than that.
The Friars whipped the O's 9-4 on Saturday for their 7th straight win, giving them another series win and a chance for a sweep on Sunday afternoon at Camden Yards.
Starting pitcher Michael King set the tone for the afternoon, despite giving everyone a scare in the 1st inning. Leadoff hitter Gunnar Henderson hit a rocket back up the middle, a 109 MPH liner that struck King in the calf. He calmly picked it up and threw to first base for the out before being checked on by team medical personnel. He said he was OK.
Get top local stories in San Diego delivered to you every morning. Sign up for NBC San Diego's News Headlines newsletter.
That was an understatement.
King proceeded to give up just two runs on two hits with nine strikeouts to pick up his 9th win of the year. Over his last five starts King has been stellar, throwing 30.2 innings and allowing just six earned runs. He had an early lead to work with thanks to some uncharacteristically shoddy Baltimore defense.
Henderson is a fantastic young player. He might win an MVP some day. This outing will not go on his career highlight reel.
Local
In the 2nd inning Kyle Higashioka hit a routine popup to the left side of the infield. Henderson settled under it. Problem is, so did 3rd baseman Ramon Urias. They bumped into each other and the ball fell harmlessly to the ground, allowing two runs to score for a 2-0 Padres lead. Henderson was given the error, a ruling that is up for debate.
His second miscue was not. In the 4th inning Henderson tried to complete a double play but his throw sailed well wide of 1st base, allowing another run to score. That makes three free runs, all on plays that would have ended the inning. In the 7th San Diego got three runs the old-fashioned way.
They earned them.
Manny Machado, back in the ballpark where he started his major league career, launched a 3-run home run to right-centerfield, pushing him over the 1,000 career RBI plateau. The suddenly red-hot Xander Bogaerts followed with a triple for his 3rd hit of the day. In 10 games since returning from the Injured List with a fractured shoulder Bogaerts is hitting .512 with eight multi-hit efforts. He scored on a Jackson Merrill sacrifice fly that made it 8-0.
The win moves the Padres to 7-1 on their road trip. They have a chance to sweep the O's on Sunday when Randy Vasquez gets the ball against Albert Suarez ... the brother of San Diego closer Robert Suarez.
