Padres Give Away Another Game

The good news is this week the Padres had a winning homestand for the first time in 2016. The bad news is they could have taken a series from the reigning National League champs but blew more than a few chances to do it.

The Friars fell to the Mets 4-3 on Sunday, completing a 4-3 week at Petco Park. New York scored a pair of runs in the 2nd inning and got another in the 3rd on a long solo home run from Mets slugger Yoenis Cespedes, who took Padres starter Andrew Cashner deep for his third dinger of the 4-game series.

San Diego got a pair back in the 5th inning when Christian Bethancourt hit a mammoth home run off Mets starter Matt Harvey. The 2-run shot landed deep in the second deck of the left field bleachers and cut the lead to 3-2.

Later in the 5th Cashner struck out but reached first base when the ball bounced away from NY catcher Kevin Plawecki. Jon Jay followed with a line drive in to the right field corner. Padres 3rd base coach Glenn Hoffman decided to send Cashner, who looked to get his hand under the tag but was ruled out by home plate umpire Ramon De Jesus, a call upheld by replay officials in New York.

Cashner also had to leave the game due to what the Padres called a right hamstring cramp.

The teams traded runs and in the bottom of the 8th the Padres had their golden opportunity to tie it up. With two runners on Matt Kemp lined a single to left field but Hoffman decided to hold Jay at third base instead of letting him try and score. The next three at-bats went like this:

Derek Norris came on to pinch-hit and struck out.

Melvin Upton Jr. popped out on the infield.

Alexei Ramirez struck out.

New York manager Terry Collins even decided to play the middle infield back, trading a double play for the tying run, and the Padres could not get even one run home.

San Diego opens a 3-game series on Monday at Wrigley Field against the Cubs, who have the best record in Major League Baseball.

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