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Rookie of the Year candidate Jackson Merrill sat out the San Diego Padres’ 6-3 loss Saturday night against the visiting San Francisco Giants after suffering a patella contusion when he hit his knee with a foul ball on Friday.

Padres manager Mike Shildt hopes Merrill will be able to return for Sunday’s series and homestand finale.

“He feels optimistic about being able to get in there (Sunday),” Shildt said. “We’ll take inventory as the day progresses.”

One reason Shildt and San Diego should feel optimistic that Merrill will play is that he was able to pinch hit in the ninth inning Saturday, although he made an out. Merrill is batting .289 with 22 homers and 82 RBIs, a franchise record for RBIs by a rookie.

Even with Merrill and right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. out of the lineup, the Padres (81-63) had plenty of chances to win. They reached Giants ace Logan Webb for 10 hits over six innings but managed just three runs as he induced three double-play balls to minimize damage and eventually earn the win.

The day was in one sense a missed opportunity for San Diego, which could have increased its lead on Arizona for the National League’s top wild-card spot after the Diamondbacks’ 11-5 loss in Houston. But the Padres stayed 1 1/2 games ahead of Arizona, although they fell five games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West.

San Diego will aim for a series win behind its best pitcher in the past month, right-hander Joe Musgrove (5-4, 4.09 ERA). Since being activated from the injured list last month, Musgrove has allowed only four runs in five starts.

In beating Detroit 3-0 on Monday, Musgrove fired six innings of three-hit ball, walking two and fanning eight. He has lowered his ERA by nearly a full run since returning from his second injured list stint of the year.

Musgrove is 4-4 with a 4.03 ERA in 14 career starts against the Giants, losing his only outing against them in March when he was tagged for eight hits and four runs over 5 2/3 innings of an 8-3 setback.

Meanwhile, San Francisco (70-73) will shoot for a series victory after rookie Grant McCray hit 844 feet worth of homers on Saturday night. He boomed a three-run shot in the second to give the Giants the lead for good, then cracked a 425-foot blast in the ninth for two runs of insurance.

Seeing McCray in a 19-game trial has enabled manager Bob Melvin to think about the possibility of a 2025 outfield consisting of McCray, Jung Hoo Lee and Heliot Ramos, who’s had a breakout season this year with 20 homers.

“It’s exciting — and athletic,” Melvin said. “I think that’s something we need to look at a little bit harder, is how games are played in our ballpark. I think in our ballpark, that’s really going to play.”

The Giants’ Kyle Harrison, who would have been in line to start on Sunday, hit the injured list with left shoulder inflammation after Tuesday’s 8-7 loss to Arizona. The Giants listed right-hander Spencer Bivens as the probable starter in Harrison’s place.

Bivens is 3-1 with a 2.86 ERA in 19 appearances this season, with just one start. He has never faced the Padres.

–Field Level Media