The Padres reduced their Magic Number to 3 on Saturday night with a 7-3 win over the White Sox. Mike Shildt was once again aggressive with his bullpen, as he removed Yu Darvish in the 5th inning with 2 outs, and brought in Adrian Morejon to face two lefties in a row with a runner on second base and two outs with the Padres trailing 2-1. Morejon was able to escape the inning without any further damage. The Padres' first run of the game came on a solo homer from Jackson Merrill in the 2nd inning, as he continued his torrid September. The Padres did the majority of their damage in the 6th inning. Manny Machado tied the game at 2 with an RBI-single, and then Ryan O'Hearn ripped a double with the bases loaded and two outs to bring home 3 runs and put the Padres on top 5-2. This was the type of game O'Hearn has been waiting for, as he went 3-4 at the dish including his clutch two out bases loaded double. The Padres went 4-8 with runners in scoring position, allowing them to plate 7 runs, and move closer to clinching a playoff berth. Michael King will start on Sunday with an opportunity to rebound from his last outing and hopefully round into form heading into the playoffs.
You can watch the Jamul Casino Resort Padres Postgame Show below, with full highlights from the game and Mike Shildt's postgame press conference.