The San Diego Padres won’t have to wait long for a chance to exact revenge on the Philadelphia Phillies.
After getting swept by the Phillies in San Diego last week, the Padres look to get even in Philadelphia as the teams open a three-game series Tuesday.
Philadelphia outscored San Diego 10-3 over three games at Petco Park, bookended by a pair of 3-0 shutouts. The middle game of the set was a 4-3 triumph in which Aaron Nola outdueled Randy Vasquez — and that will be the pitching matchup again in Tuesday’s contest.
Nola (3-4, 5.72 ERA) has had a rocky start to the season, although his most recent outing against the Padres was among his 2026 highlights. The veteran right-hander held San Diego to two runs and three hits over six innings, striking out five without a walk.
“He was getting ahead of guys, the sinker was really good, curveball was sharp,” analyzed Philadelphia shortstop Trea Turner. “I thought he looked great. The old Nola that I faced many times is not very fun, so it was good to see him do that for us.”
Since that outing, Nola and his wife had their second child. His new son, Walter, will be eager to see if his father can win back-to-back starts for the first time this year.
Nola, who is 4-4 with a 3.24 ERA lifetime against San Diego, will once again be opposed by Vasquez (5-3, 3.28). The Dominican right-hander has lost his last two starts after opening the season 5-1 with a 2.68 ERA.
Vasquez has faced the Phillies twice previously – including last Tuesday – and has given up 10 runs in 10 innings. He allowed four runs in 5 2/3 frames in the most recent matchup, surrendering homers to Bryce Harper, J.T. Realmuto and Turner in the first three innings.
All four runs that Vasquez allowed in that contest came with two outs.
“(Pitching with two outs) is something that Randy’s usually good at — and he was better at it later in the game,” San Diego manager Craig Stammen said. “But it’s part of pitching. It’s not easy. It’s tough, especially against a team like that. … He fought hard, stuck with it. I’m very proud of how Randy finished the game.”
After facing the Phillies, the Padres traveled to Washington for a weekend series with the Nationals. San Diego lost two of three, including a 4-2 setback Sunday. Jackson Merrill went 3-for-4 with a run scored in a losing effort.
“We haven’t collectively been able to put at-bats together one through nine,” said Stammen, whose team has lost six of its last seven games.
Philadelphia, meanwhile, lost two of three against the Los Angeles Dodgers to conclude their road trip with a 4-2 mark.
In Sunday’s 9-1 defeat to the Dodgers, the Phillies managed only a solo home run by Bryson Stott. The team has scored 26 runs in its last 11 games.
“At the end of day, it comes down to whether or not you score the runs,” Turner said. “And we haven’t done that.”
Realmuto was hit on the left wrist with a pitch Sunday but X-rays were negative and he may be available for the opener.
–Field Level Media
