I guess we can call it a victory sandwich.
The Padres started their 9-game road trip with a loss to the 1st place Guardians and ended it with a loss to the 1st place Orioles. In between they ran off seven straight wins, announcing their presence with authority in the National League playoff picture.
Sunday's setback was an 8-6 loss in Baltimore that really hinged on one bad inning. Randy Vasquez has been amazing over the last month, pitching to a sub-1.80 ERA in his last five starts. The 3rd inning at Camden Yards, however, was a nightmare.
Vasquez just lost it for a bit, putting six straight batters on via three walks and three singles. All of them scored to put the O's on top 6-0. This is very likely an outlier for Vasquez but if not it does add a bit of urgency to general manager A.J. Preller to add a starting pitcher or two before Tuesday's MLB Trade Deadline.
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To San Diego's credit, they nearly made another big comeback. In the 6th inning Xander Bogaerts lofted a 2-run home run to left field that cut the lead to 6-5. Since coming off the Injured List, Bogaerts has played 11 games and collected 22 hits, a very positive development moving into the final two months of the season.
The Padres take Monday off then start a 2-game set at Petco Park on Tuesday against the Dodgers.
