DENVER -- This time, the Padres left no doubt.
In one of the most prolific offensive displays in franchise history, the Padres throttled the Rockies on Saturday night at Coors Field, 21-0 -- the largest margin of victory in franchise history and one of the largest shutout victories in the history of the sport.
Right-hander Stephen Kolek was brilliant, tossing a shutout in just his second career start -- as the Padres came one run shy of tying the record for the largest shutout victory since at least 1900.
“My mindset every time was to get us back in the dugout as fast as possible,” Kolek said. “Put up another zero as quick as I can. Let those guys stay hot.”
These two teams have staged some wild games in Colorado through the years -- crazy comebacks, back-and-forth thrillers. A night before, the Padres led by 11 runs in the eighth inning, then found themselves calling upon their closer in the ninth.
There would be no such shenanigans on Saturday. The Padres scored early. Then they scored some more. Then, they kept right on scoring.
Some feats from the game:
• The Padres won by 21; they had never before won a game by more than 16 runs, which they’d last done against the Nationals in July 2021.
• The 21 runs in a shutout victory are only one behind the record (since 1900) of 22, held by Cleveland (over the Yankees) in 2004 and Pittsburgh (over the Cubs) in 1975.
• Kolek matched the record (since 1900) for largest individual shutout. Red Ruffing in 1939 and Ed Siever in 1901 also pitched 21-0 shutouts.
• Kolek joined Andy Ashby (1999) as the only Padres to record shutouts at Coors Field in the 30 years of the ballpark’s existence, and he became the first visiting pitcher to do so since Clayton Kershaw in 2013.
• The 24 hits tied a franchise record from 2003. Eight Padres recorded multi-hit games -- also a franchise first.
• Fernando Tatis Jr. passed Tony Gwynn on the franchise’s all-time home-run leaderboard. (Speaking of No. 19, that three-run shot put the Padres on top 19-0 in the fifth inning.)
• The 21 runs are the second most San Diego has scored in a game in franchise history, trailing only the 24 from that 2021 game against the Nationals.
On Friday, the Padres welcomed Jake Cronenworth back from the injured list, marking the first time their offense has been fully healthy since the first road trip of the season. They’ve scored 34 runs in two games since.
“We’re deep,” said Tatis. “Especially when everybody’s healthy, this lineup together, it’s really good.”
The Rockies, of course, are off to a dreadful start. At 6-33, it’s one of the worst in baseball history. But the Padres offered no room for air. They scored five times in the first inning and eight times in the fifth. They scored at least once in each of the first six frames.
“I loved the hunger of it,” manager Mike Shildt said. “I loved the competitiveness of the at-bats. … Loved the contributions, one through nine.”
Jackson Merrill led the way offensively, with four hits. Luis Arraez, Gavin Sheets and former Rockie Elias Díaz had three apiece. Five different Padres went deep -- including Sheets’ 439-foot moonshot.
Through it all, Kolek endured some lengthy waits in the visiting dugout.
“Whenever they're putting up five to eight runs an inning, it tends to get kind of cold in the dugout,” Kolek said. “You've got to get yourself warmed back up, stay active.”
He seemed to handle the challenge just fine, becoming the first Padres starter to pitch a shutout within the first two starts of his career since Jimmy Jones in 1986. He couldn’t remember ever going the distance in a shutout at any level of his baseball career. Maybe in high school, he said, but those games only lasted seven innings anyway.
“Doing it here is clearly impressive,” Shildt said. “But also doing it with that kind of lead, keeping the gas down. He was on go the whole game. Hats off to him, he threw the ball exceptionally well.”
By the top of the sixth, the Padres had a 20-0 lead and appeared as though they might be on the verge of baseball history. Since 1900, the record for runs in a game is 30 and the record for hits is 33. Both felt within reach.
Alas, they would “settle” for 21 runs on 24 hits, rewriting the franchise record book in the process.