Joe Musgrove was supposed to start Saturday's game against the Royals in Kansas City but he and Yu Darvish were placed on the 15-day Injured List. So, Randy Vasquez was recalled from Triple-A to make the start. He arrived in Missouri at midnight, got an abbreviated night's sleep, and did exactly what his team needed.
Vasquez worked his way through 5.0 innings and got some help from an offense that continues to excel away from Petco Park in a 7-3 win over the Royals, taking the series and setting up another chance for a series sweep that has so far eluded them in 2024.
The rookie right-hander gave up three runs and struck out five, good enough to get his first win as a Padre thanks to some solid run support. Fernando Tatis Jr. got Vasquez a lead before he even threw a pitch, launching a solo home run to right-centerfield in the 1st inning to stake San Diego to a 1-0 lead.
KC led 3-2 in the 4th inning when the Friars staged the kind of rally they've become known for: getting on base and not relying on the home run. Manny Machado walked then Donovan Solano and Jackson Merrill singled to load the bases for Ha-Seong Kim, who seems to be finding his groove at the plate after a frustrating start to the season. Kim lined a double to left-centerfield, clearing the bases to give the Friars a lead they would not relinquish.
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In the 9th inning the Padres got two more, with one of them coming from an unlikely source. Backup catcher Kyle Higashioka smacked a solo home run down the left field line. It was his 2nd homer and 4th RBI of the year and it touched off another rally. Luis Arraez followed with a single (because of course he did) and came around to score on a sacrifice fly from Jurickson Profar to cap the scoring.
The Royals had some chances to climb back into it but the Padres bullpen was really good behind Vasquez. Adrian Morejon, Jeremiah Estrada, Wandy Peralta, and Robert Suarez combined for 4.0 shutout innings. San Diego has a chance to get their first sweep of the season on Sunday afternoon when Michael King gets the start against KC lefty Cole Ragans.
