Gavin Sheets homered and Freddy Fermin knocked in three runs as the San Diego Padres tuned up for their National League wild-card series by stopping the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks 9-4 on Sunday afternoon.
San Diego (91-71), which opens its best-of-three series Tuesday night against the visiting Chicago Cubs, snapped a 4-4 tie with three runs in the bottom of the seventh. Fermin capped it with a two-run single.
Arizona (86-76) was eliminated from postseason contention when Philadelphia completed a 7-3 win over Tampa Bay around the same time Jake Cronenworth drew a bases-loaded walk to push home the go-ahead run in the seventh.
Griffin Canning (5-9) got the win despite allowing three runs in the top of the seventh that pulled the Diamondbacks even. Justin Martinez (3-1) was charged with the loss after issuing four straight one-out walks in the seventh.
Neither starter factored in the decision. Arizona’s Michael Soroka pitched 4 2/3 innings, allowing three hits and three runs with two walks and four strikeouts. The Padres’ Randy Vasquez went six innings, permitting three hits and a run while walking none and striking out two.
Manny Machado knocked in the game’s first run in the bottom of the third with a two-out single that scored Sung-Mun Song. Machado got two at-bats in an attempt to hit his 400th career homer but was replaced after his single.
Sheets’ 17th homer of the year doubled the lead in the fourth and Ty France grounded an RBI single in the fifth for a 3-0 advantage. The Diamondbacks got on the board in the sixth via Ketel Marte’s single that scored Jordan Lawlar.
After Fermin doubled home a run in the San Diego sixth, Arizona tied the game in its half of the seventh. Corbin Carroll ripped an RBI double, followed by run-scoring singles from Tim Tawa and Lars Nootbaar.
However, the Padres regained command in their half of the seventh and added insurance in the eighth on Austin Hays’ two-run single.
San Diego won seven straight series to end the regular season, going 18-4.
–Field Level Media
