By Ron Davis:
After coming from behind to win the first two games of the series, the Padres finally found themselves in a hole they could not dig their way out of Saturday night as they dropped the third game of the series by a score of 4-1. Facing Max Scherzer for the second time this season, the Padres did manage six base hits against the Nationals ace but were never able to keep any sustained pressure on the star right hander, as he racked up nine strikeouts over his seven innings of work while keeping the Padres from mounting any serious threats against him. The Padres countered with lefty Eric Lauer who performed admirably over seven innings of his own, but fell behind early allowing a run in the first inning, and allowed what would prove to be the deciding blow in the game in the fourth inning when he left a pitch out over the middle of the plate that Brian Dozier sent to the left-centerfield seats for a 2-run home run and his 1,000th career hit. Lauer however still did enough to keep the Padres in the game and keep some strain off of a bullpen that looks slated for busy day on Sunday, but as mentioned the Padres offense was just not able to string anything together for most of the night. A bit of a late shout for the Padres came in the form of an RBI single to right-center from catcher Austin Allen, but unfortunately that would prove to be the only Padres run of the night. The Padres will still be seeking the series victory Sunday afternoon, but will have their work cut out for them once again as they face yet another star right hander in San Diego native Steven Strasburg. Pregame coverage here on 97.3 The Fan begins at 12:10 PM with Braden Surprenant, and Ted Leitner and Jesse Agler will call the action with first pitch slated for 1:10 PM.
