SAN DIEGO – The final stop on the San Diego Padres' redemption tour took them to a layer of champagne and beer on Wednesday night after they defeated the Atlanta Braves with a 5-4 victory, completing a two-game sweep in their NL Wild Card series .
The Padres' clubhouse floor was covered in a haze of alcohol, and to the sounds of salsa music, Luis Arraez stood among a circle of teammates, dancing. When he finished, Fernando Tatis Jr. came in and turned around, and they let it go on for a while.
A year ago, the Padres were considered the most disappointing team in baseball, a working example of clubhouse dysfunction. Now, after a culture and personnel overhaul, they face the Dodgers, No. 1 in baseball this postseason. This best-of-five series begins in Los Angeles and, given the huge crowds at Dodger Stadium and the parties the Padres throw at Petco Park, could draw a quarter-million fans in person and many millions on the broadcasts.
“We fought with all our might to reach the end of the season, for the division. “But now we’re in the part of the season where the winner moves on, and we wouldn’t have it any other way,” Padres manager Mike Shildt said. “It will be a wonderful series. We are really excited about it. I can barely wait for it.”
Immediately after the San Diego players sat on the mound for a team photo, third baseman Manny Machado said, “This is what everyone wanted.”
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Maybe not everyone. It's hard to imagine anyone openly wanting a series against the Padres, who have played better than almost any other team since the All-Star break: 45 wins and 19 losses, including the two games against the Braves, a 113- Winning pace since mid-July. Their lineup is deep, their rotation is deep and talented — although there are concerns about Joe Musgrove, who had to leave Wednesday's game with elbow problems — and their bullpen is as good as any after the in-season additions of Tanner Scott, Jason Adam and others.
The Padres acquired Max Fried from the Braves, who may be making his final appearance in an Atlanta uniform. Tatis Jr. fired a 99.8 mph line drive back to the mound, the ball hitting Fried's butt and bouncing off. Fried grimaced, and after a visit from manager Brian Snitker and an athletic trainer, he decided to move on. He then struck out Machado to help him get out of a bases-loaded jam.
But after Tatis' line drive, Fried later told reporters, his injured glutes tightened, and in the second inning, Fried's command disappeared. With two outs, Kyle Higashioka hit a solo home run, his second in two days, and after three consecutive singles, the bases were loaded again for Machado.
As Machado watched this rally unfold, he kept asking his teammates in the dugout to give him another chance, to give him another chance — and when Fried left a slider over the plate, Machado shot it for two Runs to the left field corner. Merrill followed with a two-run triple to make it 5-1 San Diego.
“This is a band of brothers,” Merrill said. “In the first inning we get bases loaded, no outs and we don’t score. But we don't look back, we move forward. Six two-out hits in a row! I don't think that happens very often. This is what you do. “Call a group of brothers who just work together and try to tackle the slopes.”
Higashioka said: “This team has always shown the ability to be resilient and never give up. This is a credit to all the boys. They just nailed good batting no matter what.”
This was a huge loss for the Braves, who have been plagued by injuries all year and were without Ronald Acuna Jr. for most of the season and Austin Riley in recent weeks. Fried was exhausted, and this game reflected the Braves' season, which has been marred by injuries.
The Braves scored a few more runs, but lacking firepower in the lineup — after leading the majors in runs last year, they ranked 15th this season — they would come up short. Travis d'Arnaud came out to end the game and the Padres stormed to the middle of the field.
Later, before San Diego players flooded their clubhouse with champagne, Shildt and others spoke loudly about how this was just the first step and that they needed 11 more wins this postseason.
Moments earlier, Machado had spoken during and after the game about how this is a team that fights and applies pressure, which was nothing that was said about the 2023 Padres, a star-studded club that simply failed. Manager Bob Melvin left the Padres immediately after the regular season and went to the Giants. Juan Soto was traded to the New York Yankees in exchange for a clan of pitching and Higashioka. Shildt, who had been released by the St. Louis Cardinals after the 2021 season and was unsure if he would get another chance, was hired – and shortly afterward, a conversation began between the new manager, staff and players about how He should continue to make the work experience better for everyone.
As infielder Jake Cronenworth described it, players wanted to get back to caring about every game, every score and, perhaps most importantly, having fun again. Shildt wanted the players to enjoy coming to work every day, so some adjustments were made to the schedule.
“I’m happy with the way our guys are approaching this postseason,” Shildt said after Wednesday’s game. “You just play baseball, man. They don't make it bigger than it is. They just go out and play and shoot.”
Over time, Merrill developed into a midfielder at the age of 20. “A superstar,” Cronenworth said. “A freak.”
General manager AJ Preller, long known for his aggressiveness, acquired Dylan Cease from the White Sox in a spring training trade and made the first big deal of the regular season, trading for batting champion Arraez, who reflected the team's newfound commitment, more to do, confirmed they have less contact in their spacious park and are out and about less. Coach Victor Rodriguez called it “Petco Park hitting.”
And at the deadline, Preller made more deals to shore up the Padres' bullpen. On Wednesday morning, a rival manager talked about having Preller named Executive of the Year.
By the time Preller entered the room, the pool of champagne and beer had already begun to grow. Shildt saw him, pulled his boss into a bear hug with his right hand and laughed and emptied a bottle over Preller's head with his left hand.
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