– by Adesina O. Koiki
A Lot of Sports Talk editor-in-chief
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MIAMI — The San Diego Padres were down, and down big, after allowing a six-run inning in the early part of Saturday’s game. But, as has been the case since the start of the second half of the season, keeping the Padres down is nigh impossible, and their latest dramatic victory continues one of the best stretches of play in franchise history.
Jackson Merrill hit another dramatic late-inning home run to give San Diego the lead, and after being pushed to extra innings, the Padres scored in the 10th and held on in the bottom of the frame to defeat the Miami Marlins 9-8 inside LoanDepot Park and earn their seventh consecutive victory. A couple of former Marlins who started the season in Miami played key roles in San Diego’s win, as Luis Arraez had three hits while reliever Tanner Scott came on after San Diego retook the lead in extra innings to nail down his 19th save.
Miami’s six-run fifth inning gave the Marlins a 7-3 lead, and the lead stood until the seventh until San Diego once again displayed late-inning magic that has been a feature of its hot stretch that has seen it win 16 of its last 19 contests. Both Arraez and Jake Cronenworth started the rally as they each drove in a run on ground-ball outs with the bases loaded to cut the Marlins lead to 7-5.
In the eighth, Mr. Late Night, a.k.a. Jackson Merrill, tied the game with a two-run home run at 7-7. Just one night prior, Merrill hit a game-tying solo home run on the first pitch in the ninth inning that eventually led to San Diego’s 6-2 10-inning victory. Arraez then lifted the Padres into the lead with a two-out single that scored Bryce Johnson.
“We have a great team that never gives up and competes every day,” Arraez said. “We just want to score one run, one run, one run and we have a chance to win the game. This is amazing. When we’re winning, everything is good. We play together, are an excellent group, have an outstanding manager and coaching staff. What else? We have the best relievers in the game.”
*Editor’s note: Above the byline is the photo gallery from Saturday afternoon’s game, with photos taken by ALOST staff photographer Roberto Carlo. After clicking on a photo to enlarge the picture, press the left and right arrow buttons on either side of the caption to scroll through the rest of the pictures that appear on the first page. Also, click on the numbers and/or arrow appearing immediately below the picture grid to load the next set of photos. There are 14 pictures in total.
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