The San Diego Padres took Game 1 of its three-game series against the Seattle Mariners 2-0 after a dominant start by Padres RHP Randy Vasquez.
The San Diego Padres are now 7-7 in May after winning the series opener of its three-game series against the Seattle Mariners 2-0 Friday night.
Only two runs were scored, but there were 16 total hits in the game and the Padres out-hit the Mariners 9-to-7. Padres designated hitter Miguel Andujar opened the scoring with an RBI double to left, which scored first baseman Gavin Sheets. Infielder Sung-Mun Song grounded out to first in the seventh inning, scoring Andujar for the final nail in the coffin.
Padres right-hander Randy Vasquez was outstanding and kept the Mariners off balance all game. Vasquez threw six scoreless innings and allowed just four hits while striking out three to earn his fifth win of the season and lower his ERA to 2.68.
Closer Mason Miller showed struggle in this one, allowing two hits and a walk but punching out four in 1.1 innings to earn the uncommon four-out save. He needed 34 pitches to shut down Seattle, but he was able to keep the game scoreless and locked down his 14th save.
Mariners righty Emerson Hancock threw a good game, but his six innings of one-run ball on five hits and one walk with six strikeouts wasn’t enough to outduel Vasquez. Hancock took his second loss of the season and is now 3-2 with a 3.02 ERA and 1.01 WHIP with 56 strikeouts through nine starts.
Game 2 of the series will feature a pitching matchup between right-handers, San Diego’s Walker Buehler and Seattle’s Logan Gilbert.
Buehler has had his struggles this season, posting a 2-2 record with a 5.20 ERA and 1.35 WHIP through eight starts (36.1 innings), but he was sharp in his last outing against the St. Louis Cardinals. The two-time All-Star and World Series champion threw six innings and allowed two runs on three hits with two strikeouts, settling for a no-decision.
Gilbert is a huge part of Seattle’s elite starting rotation and he is 2-3 with a 3.78 ERA and 1.16 WHIP and 52 strikeouts through nine starts (50 innings). He was brilliant during his last outing against the Chicago White Sox, throwing six shutout innings and allowing just one hit with nine strikeouts.
He will face a Padres lineup that has scuffled a bit as of late, but nobody has scuffled worse than right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr.
Tatis is still homerless through 43 games (160 at-bats) and has 15 RBI with a slash line of .238/.311/.281 (.593 OPS). It’s been a rough go for him this season – he’s hitting the ball hard, but he hasn’t been able to hit the ball hard in the air consistently. Once Tatis gets hot, I expect the rest of the lineup to piggyback off him.
First pitch is at 4:15 p.m. PDT on FOX and MLB.TV.