The San Diego Padres have dropped out of the third wild-card after a rough road trip, and they have a big homestand.
The San Diego Padres have a marquee matchup coming this weekend, and it’s a big one when it comes to their playoff fortunes, such as they are. The Padres have lost five of their last six, and they’re coming home after a tough road trip needing to turn things around fast.
It won’t be easy against the Yankees. They’ve involved in a pennant race of their own, as they’re just three games behind the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL East. The Yankees have also won five of their last seven after winning a three-game series against the Los Angeles Angels this week.
The Padres will send Walker Buehler to the moung against Max Fried, and that, too, represents something of a mismatch. Buehler’s been good as veteran pickups go, although he was shaky in his last start against Tampa Bay as he gave up three runs in five innings in what eventually became a 7-6 loss.
But Fried has been in another league, even though the Yankess have been carefully managing his pitch count as the left-hander continues to come back from a bone bruises to his pitching elbow. He’s expected to be limited to a pitch count of 65-70 against the Padres, so that represents a bit of an opportunity for San Diego.
But the Padres have a bigger problem than just Fried. They played a mixture of listless to downright horrible baseball during their road trip, and that needs to change if the Padres want to sneak into the playoffs. San Diego is on the verge of giving away the third wild-card spot, and they’re currently a half-game behind the Arizona Diamondbacks in that race.
It’s close to do-or-die time for the Padres, and this homestand could go a long way toward sealing their fate. They get the Washington Nationals next week, but first they have to get through this series against the Yankees.
The Padres offense mysteriously shut down in their last series against the Cincinnati Reds, even though the Reds don’t typically pitch all that well. They scored just six runs against Cincy, and an effort like that against the Yankees won’t get it done.
It’s time for the Padres to decide who they are. Are they the team that got hot after the break and charged all the way to a tie for the second wild-card spot, or are they the tired team that’s played like a .500 team for much of the season?
