SAN FRANCISCO -- The Padres, again, did just enough. They seem to have a knack for that.
Down to their final out on Tuesday night at Oracle Park, San Diego rallied for a second straight win over the Giants in extra innings. Manny Machado's two-out, two-run single tied the game in the ninth, before Jake Cronenworth’s single an inning later proved decisive in a 3-2 Padres victory.
For much of this series -- a crucial four-game showdown between division rivals who were separated by just one game in the NL West when it began -- offense has been scarce. The Padres haven’t managed to do much against Giants pitching.
Except …
"When our at-bats matter the most,” said Cronenworth, “they’ve been the best.”
None mattered more than Machado’s at-bat against Giants closer Camilo Doval in the top of the ninth inning. The Padres trailed 2-0 but rallied to load the bases on Brandon Lockridge’s infield single and a pair of walks.
Doval threw a 1-1 slider at Machado’s ankles. The Padres slugger went with the pitch, golfing it over shortstop Willy Adames and into left field. Fernando Tatis Jr. scampered home with the tying run.
"I was trying to get one up in the air,” Machado said. “Obviously I knew Tati was at second base, so I didn’t really have to try to slug. Just try to get it into the outfield and be short with it. He hung a little slider, just enough for me to get it up in the air.”
It was the fifth time Machado had reached base in five plate appearances. He finished 4-for-4 with a walk, raising his average to .315.
"When he’s in a good spot, [he’s] got that nice easy stroke going, putting a good swing on the baseball,” manager Mike Shildt said. “When he does that consistently -- watch out.”
The Padres had trailed since the third inning when Heliot Ramos launched a two-run homer off starter Ryan Bergert. The Padres’ No. 21 prospect per MLB Pipeline, Bergert was making his first career start and was mostly sharp otherwise.
He and Sean Reynolds held the Giants in check, keeping the game within reach through eight innings. And then, with two outs in the ninth, Machado golfed a single into left field.
"When he hit it, everybody knew that we were going to win that game,” Cronenworth said.
Perhaps the rest was a formality. But it was Cronenworth himself who made it so. In the top of the 10th inning, he shot an RBI single through the right side -- again with two outs.
When Jeremiah Estrada nailed down the save, the Padres improved to 13-5 in one-run games and 21-10 in games decided by two runs or fewer.
"It just reinforces who we are,” Shildt said. “We talk about this fairly frequently. We have a lot of wins like this, and it just becomes even more ingrained. … You’ve just got to find a way, man, and we were able to do it.”
It isn’t like these Padres to overstate things. A win is a win. They all count the same. Not to mention, comeback wins like this one have become the norm. Still, after the past two nights, they weren’t going to deny the importance of victories like these against a divisional opponent.
"Those are two wins that are huge,” Cronenworth said, and Machado echoed that sentiment.
"Huge,” Machado emphasized. “We battled.”
And they did so on a night they were short by a few arms in their bullpen, after pushing all-in to win Monday’s series opener.
Reynolds, recently thrust into the role of long man, filled that role brilliantly again on Tuesday. He pitched three scoreless innings in relief of Bergert, before Yuki Matsui worked a clean ninth, while Estrada stranded the Giants’ automatic runner in the 10th.
"If I just keep it where it’s at, then we have a chance,” Reynolds said. “Our offense is prolific, and they’re relentless. You saw it tonight. Anything we can do as a bullpen to give them a chance to make something special happen.”
That prolific Padres offense hasn’t shown up lately -- at least not at the peak of its powers. Tatis and Jackson Merrill haven’t quite been themselves recently. The bottom of the order has holes.
And yet, the offense has done enough. Despite those struggles at the plate, the Padres are now unbeaten in four straight series.
"Timely hitting, good defense and good pitching,” Cronenworth said. “That’s kind of who we are. And that wins us games.”
Including two huge wins this week.