SAN DIEGO -- If there were any lingering doubts about the Padres’ status as contenders -- and as Trade Deadline buyers -- there shouldn’t be after the last three days at Petco Park.
San Diego completed a comprehensive three-game sweep of the Mets, punctuated by Wednesday’s 5-0 victory -- a record-setting win for starter Yu Darvish. It was his 204th career victory between Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan and MLB, breaking a tie with Hiroki Kuroda for the most all-time.
“You’re talking about legends like Hideo Nomo, Hiroki Kuroda,” said Darvish, through interpreter Shingo Horie. “Just to be able to get close to these legends, it means a lot, and I’m very happy about that.”
It’s impossible to overstate what a healthy and in-form Darvish might mean for the Padres’ rotation -- particularly as they assess its viability ahead of Thursday’s 3 p.m. PT Trade Deadline.
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Darvish was hit hard last week in St. Louis and had mostly struggled since returning from right elbow inflammation that kept him out the first 3 1/2 months. With the Deadline looming, there were serious questions about Darvish’s status for the stretch run. He answered a handful of those questions with his performance on Wednesday by allowing just two hits and striking out seven over seven scoreless innings.
“He’s a pillar of this organization and has been for a while,” said Padres manager Mike Shildt. “Made history today -- so he’s clearly a presence and a clear talent. That was on display today.
“And a guy that can go out and grab innings for us as a starter is worth its weight in Padre gold.”
No kidding. Through the first four months of the season, the Padres’ bullpen has been the best in baseball. Somewhat surprisingly, their makeshift back end of the rotation has been excellent, too. But that group of starters is not exactly chewing up innings. As a result, the bullpen has been overworked a bit.
Darvish could help change that. His performance might even sway the Padres’ Deadline strategy away from rotation additions. Perhaps they’d feel more comfortable dealing Dylan Cease to address holes elsewhere on their roster.
It’s only one start, but if the Padres are getting this version of Darvish, it could go a long way toward solidifying a potential playoff rotation.
“When he's throwing all of his pitches for strikes, he could be tough,” said Mets manager Carlos Mendoza. “It looked like we were guessing once he started throwing everything. … He kept us off-balance, and everything was working for him.”
Manny Machado continued his torrid July with a two-run single in the second, and Gavin Sheets broke out of a weeks-long slump with a two-run homer in the third. That was plenty for a vintage Darvish, who exited the mound after the seventh inning to a standing ovation and a chorus of “Yuuuuu.”
Afterward, Darvish credited a mechanical fix he implemented between starts, lowering his arm slot. The Padres also bumped his outing back by a day, giving him extra recovery time -- which they’ll continue to do moving forward, given the number of off-days they have in early August.
“That was as good as I’ve ever seen him throw,” said Sheets. “Just the way he kept them off-balance, throwing everything in every count -- that’s why he’s Yu Darvish.”
It wasn’t a save situation, but with an off-day Thursday, the Padres used setup man Jason Adam and closer Robert Suarez to punctuate the victory. When the series ended, the Padres found themselves as close to the Dodgers at the top of the NL West as their nearest challenger in the Wild Card race (presently the Reds).
As of late Wednesday afternoon, general manager A.J. Preller had yet to make any additions. That’s expected to change.
“In A.J., I trust,” Shildt said. “The team we have, I love. And A.J. is going to do what he does to give us whatever he thinks gives us the best shot moving forward. I’ve got complete confidence in him, however it turns out. As far as expectations go, I love the 26 we have.”
The Padres have certainly positioned themselves as buyers -- winners of five straight as they enter the cram session that is Deadline Day. A few players said they’d be paying close attention on Thursday.
But after 13 games in 13 days, including a grueling three-city trip out of the All-Star break, Fernando Tatis Jr. will evidently not be one of them.
“I’m going to be sleeping,” Tatis said with a laugh. “I’ll leave that to A.J.”