Front Row Seat: Padres drop Mets series, fall further behind the Dodgers
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Darren Smith
John Gennaro
San Diego Padres
With division still within reach, Shildt's quick hook of Vásquez backfires - MLB.com
In so many ways, the Padres’ three-game series against the Mets at Citi Field this week was an appetizer for postseason baseball. And, hey, maybe the Padres will be able to draw on the experience when they’re playing a best-of-three Wild Card Series on the road. Because it sure looks like that’s where this is all headed.
Padres Daily: Calculated decision; What’s ahead; O’Hearn’s self-assessment - San Diego Union-Tribune
Vásquez had thrown 48 pitches and allowed two runs. The Padres trailed 2-1. Shildt saw it as a turning point and liked the plan he and his coaches had mapped out to finagle a win.
He acknowledged afterward that piecing together 20 outs with his bullpen was not the only math he had done.
There was also the matter of the two games by which the Padres trailed the Dodgers (and really three because the Dodgers hold the tiebreaker by virtue of having won the season series).
“That’s a little bit of the component, as far as the going for it part,” he said. “We’re looking to win our division and we know we’re down in the division.”
Margin Call Part 4 - Letters to A.J.
Enough of the season has elapsed that, short of a cataclysm, the Padres will be playing in October. This cast of players and their skills will be tested on the biggest stage. There are 10 games left before the second season begins. The one that truly matters. To win in October you have to have good fortune. Teams can’t control that. But they can control decisions. And a closer look at the month of September, and two innings from the past week suggests the Padres are trying to do just that.
Dodgers edge Giants after bullpen manages to hold on to precarious lead - Los Angeles Times
Yoshinobu Yamamoto was not at his most efficient Thursday night.
Which meant, even though he pitched 5⅓ scoreless innings against the San Francisco Giants, he left the fate of the game to the Dodgers’ shaky bullpen.
So often on nights like these recently, such a scenario would be a recipe for disaster. Given the way things have been going for the Dodgers’ unreliable relief corps — which entered the night with a 5.65 ERA in September — anything more than a few innings has felt like a big ask.
This time, however, the Dodgers’ relievers found a way to grind things out.
Dodgers legend Clayton Kershaw will retire as the ace of his generation - Yahoo Sports
When you think of greatness on the mound over the past 20 years, you probably think of Clayton Kershaw. Whether it was his signature windup or his iconic curveball, the longtime Dodgers ace has been the best starting pitcher of his generation.
And after 18 seasons in L.A., Kershaw announced Thursday that he intends to retire at the end of the 2025 season. He will make his final regular-season start at Dodger Stadium on Friday against the San Francisco Giants.
