Merrill injured, Suarez blows big lead on a tough night for Padres

PHOENIX -- For a Padres team that has lost its share of close games in recent weeks, Saturday night might have been the most crushing of them all.

They entered the bottom of the ninth with a 7-3 lead, but closer Robert Suarez -- who leads Major League Baseball with 21 saves -- allowed five runs and recorded only one out, with the Padres losing in walk-off fashion, 8-7, to the Diamondbacks at Chase Field.

“We did our part to bring it home,” Padres manager Mike Shildt said after the game. “We trust [Suarez]. We trust him tomorrow. It just didn't happen tonight.”

To make matters worse for the Padres, in the seventh inning, outfielder Jackson Merrill was removed due to an injury after being tagged out on a stolen base attempt at second base.

With Merrill at first, Manny Machado at second and two outs, the Padres attempted a double steal. D-backs catcher Gabriel Moreno threw out Merrill at second, and the tag from second baseman Ketel Marte got Merrill on the front of the helmet, causing his helmet to shift on his face.

Merrill looked dazed from the impact, and Marte instantly motioned to the Padres’ dugout for the trainer. Merrill spent a couple of minutes on the ground but walked off on his own power.

After the game, Shildt did not have a concrete update on Merrill, other than to say that he was feeling “woozy.” Next steps are still to be determined.

Suarez’s brutal ninth inning began with a trio of singles by the Diamondbacks’ 7-8-9 hitters. After notching a key strikeout of Corbin Carroll, Suarez induced a soft grounder from Marte. Shortstop Xander Bogaerts charged and made a quick throw to first, but the call was changed from out to safe upon review.

The next Arizona hitter, Geraldo Perdomo, then delivered the crucial blow: a bases-clearing triple that turned a 7-4 D-backs deficit into a 7-7 tie. At that point, Shildt opted to go with left-hander Adrian Morejon to face the left-handed hitting Josh Naylor.

Naylor hit a slow chopper toward first on the first pitch he saw, Perdomo darted toward home and Padres first baseman Luis Arraez fired to the plate. Perdomo was ruled safe, sneaking his hand in just before the tag, with the call being confirmed by video review. And so the Diamondbacks’ celebration began.

“It's a game of inches ...” Shildt said after the game. “The end of the scoreboard is the end of the scoreboard.”

As for the Padres, Saturday marked their fourth loss in their past five games, all against key divisional foes in the Diamondbacks and Dodgers. The schedule doesn’t let up from here, with one more against the Diamondbacks on Sunday followed by a four-game set at Dodger Stadium.

Suarez was a man of few words after the game.

“I just had a bad day,” he said. “That’s all.”

“[Suarez is] a big part of the reason we have success,” Shildt said. “It wasn't his day, but we love him and we're glad he's on our side.”

For as much as went wrong for the Padres on Saturday, there were some positives, too.

Rookie right-hander Ryan Bergert turned in another solid performance as the newest member of the Padres’ rotation. He allowed three runs -- all of which came on an Eugenio Suárez homer in the fourth -- on three hits and two walks in. Bergert had a career-high eight strikeouts, including six among the first 10 batters he faced.

For the Padres’ offense, Saturday signaled a big step forward. After managing only one run in the opening six frames against D-backs starter Zac Gallen, they scored four in the seventh on a two-run single by Fernando Tatis Jr. and a two-run double by Machado. With an assist from some shaky D-backs defense, they then tacked on a pair of runs in the ninth.

Gavin Sheets also had a particularly strong night, going 3-for-3 with a single, double, home run and walk.

So, what will Padres hitters take away from Saturday?

“Keep doing it,” Machado said. “I wouldn't change anything today. We just lost it. [It] is what it is, but I wouldn't change. Just keep playing the game. Trust our best closer to go out there and keep throwing the ball. Wouldn't change anything.”