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San Diego Padres manager Mike Shildt is enjoying his return to St. Louis.

“It’s good to come back,” said Shildt, who managed the Cardinals to three postseason berths before getting fired after the 2021 season. “A lot of people that you want to see and a lot of good relationships, a lot of really, really good memories and people. But mostly, it’s about the Padres coming in and playing good baseball.”

The Padres did that Monday night while winning 7-4 in the opener of a four-game series, with Manny Machado and Jackson Merrill each driving in three runs. San Diego will bid for its fourth victory in five games when the teams meet again Tuesday night.

The Padres got an emotional lift over the weekend watching pitcher Yu Darvish and slugger Fernando Tatis Jr. edge closer to a return. Both are expected to come off the injured list at some point in September for the playoff push.

“It’s getting real,” Merrill said. “We’re getting down to crunch time, and we’re getting our boys back, so we’re all excited.”

San Diego will start Dylan Cease (12-10, 3.43 ERA) on Tuesday. The right-hander took a hard-luck loss in his last outing while allowing three runs, two earned, on nine hits in 6 1/3 innings against the New York Mets. He struck out seven batters and walked one.

Cease didn’t face the Cardinals earlier this season when the teams met. In his only previous career start against them, on July 7, 2023, he allowed five runs on 11 hits in six innings during a no-decision. Nolan Arenado hit a two-run homer against him in that contest.

The Cardinals on Tuesday will give the ball to Miles Mikolas (8-10, 5.19 ERA), who began his career with the Padres in 2012 and 2013.

Mikolas is coming off a strong performance against the Milwaukee Brewers on Thursday: six shutout innings with just two hits allowed in a game St. Louis eventually won 3-0. He struck out three and walked one.

“Going into the end of the season, I know we have a lot of games that are against teams that are either going to be in the playoffs or trying to scrap their way there,” Mikolas said. “So every base, every play, every bag, every pitch matters this time of year.”

He credited some mechanical fixes for his success on Thursday.

“I think I’ve been hiding the ball a little bit better in my delivery … so it keeps guys a little more honest on the fastball,” Mikolas said. “I think it helps my movement on the sinker as well. It helps make them two very different pitches, one that’s holding the line as much as possible and then one where it’s just kind of running and staying down in the zone and getting underneath the barrel.”

Mikolas earned a 5-2 victory over the Padres on April 2. He allowed two runs on seven hits in six innings while striking out four and walking one.

He is 3-2 with a 2.55 ERA in seven career starts against his former team.

–Field Level Media