Good morning,
Jurickson Profar thought for several seconds last night when asked whether any crowds he had experienced at Petco Park compared to the energy consistently being created there this summer.
“The playoffs (were) real good,” he finally said, referring to the Padres’ 2022 postseason run.
The playoffs?
That’s a pretty hefty comparison. Because it is mid-August.
“They’re bringing it every night now,” Profar said.
You can read Jeff Sanders’ game story (here) for the particulars of the Padres’ 7-5 victory over the Twins last night, including Manny Machado’s game-tying two-run homer in the seventh and Profar’s game-winning three-run homer in the eighth. And we’ll further break down their latest (and perhaps greatest) comeback later in the newsletter.
But now, let’s talk about what is fast becoming a significant ancillary story in this season.
A crowd announced at 39,143 was the smallest at Petco Park in almost two months. And it might have been the best this season.
“Our home field has been great year in, year out,” Machado said. “And I think this year they’ve taken it up a notch, and it’s been fun to play in front of.”
Last night’s crowd got nuts and stayed nuts for longer.
Fans serenaded Machado with chants of “Manny, Manny” as he batted in the seventh, and after he rewarded them with the home run, they continued their chants for several seconds after he had returned to the dugout.
“They wanted Manny,” Xander Bogaerts said. “That was a good one. They wanted him. The big boy delivered.”
Following Profar’s home run and slow jog around the bases, the cheers were still lusty through the first two pitches of Jake Cronenworth’s ensuing at-bat.
That sustained energy is verging on what happens in places like Philadelphia and New York. For as big and loud as the Petco crowds have gotten, it has rarely been charged with the vigor it possessed in the final two innings last night.
“Knowing how good we’re playing, these people are showing up expecting us to win,” Bogaerts said. “… These guys are paying their money, and they want you to come back, regardless. … Knowing the schedule, knowing how far we are in the season, it’s like these guys are showing up to see really good baseball, and that’s what they expect of us, and that’s what we expect of ourselves. But now every game, this is what they expect. And that’s a great thing. That’s a great feeling to come to the ballpark and you know that’s what they want.”
Petco turned into the place to be in 2021, as COVID restrictions were lifted and the Padres played the first half of that season as if they were going somewhere.
The end of the regular season and the postseason in ‘22 were electric in a way that only September and October can be.
In ‘23, the Padres set an attendance record and drew 40,000-plus for 59 of their 79 home games.
Sometimes, it felt more like a party than a baseball game, though. The underperforming (and mostly boring) team probably had something to do with that.
The disappointment those crowds often felt was pronounced, and that sense continued to some extent early this season. Boos were quick to come. And relative indifference followed at times, as the event itself seemed more intriguing to many in attendance than what was happening on the field on some nights.
So many times last season, it was as if crowds were trying to will the Padres to show some life. They were ready to lose their minds, and the Padres rarely gave them a reason to do so.
And early this season, as the Padres won just 10 times and were batting .222 over their first 27 games at Petco Park, the collective displeasure of the large crowd was frequently voiced.
“We were getting booed all the time,” Bogaerts said.
Expectations had been built. This team was supposed to win.
The crowds kept coming. And the Padres started winning. They have won seven straight at home (and nine of their past 10 and 22 of their past 31).
“I think we as a team, we give them really good baseball,” Profar said. “They’re going to be behind us.”
A symbiotic relationship has developed.
“This is something special, and they feel it,” Bogaerts said. “We know it, and they feel it. It’s a great combination, especially when you deliver.”
Back again
Last night was the Padres’ 32nd comeback victory of 2024, their ninth when trailing at some point in the final three innings.
This one arguably topped them all for all it required.
The Padres lost a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning, tied the game 3-3 in the seventh, fell behind 5-3 in the top of the eighth inning and took the lead for good with four runs in the bottom of the eighth.
“We just continue to fight,” Machado said. “Until the game is over, the game is not over. This team has been doing it all year. We’re gonna continue to do it.”
The confluence of circumstances is what made last night remarkable, even as the Padres continue to react to these feats as if they are routine.
Twins starter Bailey Ober, who entered the game with a 1.87 ERA over his previous 10 starts, had retired 13 straight batters before Cronenworth led off the seventh with a blooped double the other way that fell just fair.
The game-tying homer that followed was Machado’s first hit in his past eight at-bats with a runner in scoring position.
Tanner Scott, one of the Padres’ top high-leverage relievers, came in and promptly gave up two runs. The damage wasn’t more extensive because of a throw Profar made from left field.
With one out and the bases loaded, Profar ran to field a two-run single by Christian Vásquez, grabbing the ball and throwing across his body as his momentum carried him across the foul line.
Profar with a Steph Curry type throw from left field!!! #Padres pic.twitter.com/aUwamKPpJj
— Defiant Baptist (@DefiantBaptist) August 21, 2024
Profar’s throw was so precise, Machado was able to catch it without moving his feet and apply what was essentially a no-look tag on the runner attempting to advance from first to third.
“That was a huge out there in that inning, for sure,” Machado said.
Scott then got the final out, and pinch-hitter Donovan Solano began the bottom of the eighth with a two-strike single that was followed by Luis Arraez’s two-strike single and Profar’s home run, which came at the end of a night in which he struck out his first three times up.
Cronenworth singled and scored the final run on a one-out double by Bogaerts.
Robert Suarez worked a 1-2-3 ninth inning in nine pitches.
Just like they drew it up.
“It’s special,” Bogaerts said. “It doesn’t seem to matter the team. (The Twins) are a really good team. … We just find a way. Some nights it might not be pretty, but this year we’ve been able to find a way, for sure.”
X marks his spot
Bogaerts worked too hard to make the transition to second base. His footwork, his arm slot when he throws, the directions he runs when chasing pop-ups into the outfield grass.
He could not be expected to make a change back to shortstop while Ha-Seong Kim is on the injured list.
At least not full-time.
He played the ninth inning there last night after Solano pinch-hit for Tyler Wade, who started at shortstop, in the eighth. Solano played first in the ninth while Cronenworth slid over to second in place of Bogaerts.
“We talked about the situations and the possibilities of me going there, what the scenarios may have to be,” Bogaerts said. “And tonight was one of those.”
Padres manager Mike Shildt spoke with Bogaerts on Monday about what a short-term solution might be in Kim’s absence. They agreed he would be a sort of defensive replacement for Wade in the late innings of games in which the Padres hold a slim lead. To what extent the team wanted Bogaerts to play shortstop more than that is not entirely clear. What is clear is that Bogaerts was not comfortable doing so.
“I made a big choice in spring training, and I think everyone should respect that,” Bogaerts said. “I mean, I did it for the team. I moved. And it (would be) asking a lot for me to just keep playing back and forth.
“I do know every game matters. Every game is important. But, man, I mean, early on in the season, I wasn’t even feeling right playing at second. Every day, I had something different in my hips. And finally I feel good … It’s easy (for people) to say, ‘Hey, just move. Just flip flop.’ But it’s a little harder for me playing one position and then moving to another one this year, and you start feeling really good there.”
You can read about the decision to put Kim on the 10-day IL and what the prognosis for his shoulder is in Jeff Sanders’ pregame story (here).
Rising in the West
The Padres (22-6, .748) and Diamondbacks (22-8, .733) continue to lead the major leagues in winning percentage since the All-Star break.
With the Diamondbacks beating the Marlins and the Dodgers beating the Mariners last night, the teams kept the status quo in their chase for the National League West title and playoff positioning.
Pro at-bat
With runners at first and second and no outs in the eighth inning, Jurickson Profar squared to bunt on the first pitch he saw from Steven Okert. The ball was outside, so Profar pulled back his bat.
Two pitches later, he hit the go-ahead homer.
You can read Sanders’ game story for Profar’s explanation, which included this quote: “I’m Profar. And Profar plays really good baseball.”
Whether you agree with the wisdom of his thinking bunt, there can be little denying that the confidence Profar possesses is a big part of what has enabled him to do what he did next and what he has been doing most of the season.
“That’s the number one thing that switched this year for me — play baseball with my instincts,” he said.
Things was, for all that his teammates and others shook their head at his initial bunt offering when he has hit around .300 with an OPS that has hovered around .900, Profar has been slumping.
He walked to the plate having gotten just eight hits in his previous 47 at-bats, a run of 12-plus games with a .170 batting average.
No matter. He believes whatever he does will work.
“I play baseball with a lot of confidence right now,” he said. “And if I bunt it right there, I was going to be safe 100 percent.”
Instead, he moved into a tie with Machado for the team lead with 20 home runs.
Tatis update
Right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. did some light running and played catch on the field yesterday. He is regularly hitting in the batting cage.
It is all pretty much the same as he has been doing for a couple weeks, slightly increasing the intensity every few days or so.
There remains no firm timeline for his return from a stress reaction in his right femur.
But as he left the field yesterday afternoon, Tatis said, “I’ll be back soon.”
Tidbits
- The Padres’ 22-5 record since July 20 matches the best 27-game runs in team history. The 2005 and 1989 teams had identical stretches. No Padres team has ever won 23 of 28.
- The Padres’ four-run eighth inning last night was their 43rd time scoring at least that many runs in an inning this season, third most in any of the franchise’s 56 seasons.
- The Padres are 20-0 when Machado drives in multiple runs this season.
- Jackson Merrill’s double in last night’s second inning was his 36th extra-base hit in his past 61 games, second most in the NL in that span (since June 6) behind the 40 by Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani.
- Bogaerts was 2-for-4 with a double last night and is batting .358 with an .870 OPS in 30 games since coming off the injured list.
All right, that’s it for me.
Earlier game today (3:40 p.m. PT).
Talk to you tomorrow.
P.S. You can get this newsletter emailed to your inbox the morning after almost every Padres game. And for free? Just sign up (here).
