Xander Bogaerts Missed The Bag And The Padres Lost Their Minds

HOLY MOLY, you guys. If you missed the Nationals Padres game yesterday, you seriously missed some absolute CHAOS. The Nats, who'd been kinda slumping with two straight losses, pulled off an INSANE six-run seventh inning to absolutely flip the script and beat the San Diego Padres 9-4. It was a wild one, with an ejection and some seriously questionable defense turning the tide. Talk about a comeback!

The Padres’ Lead Crumbled Fast

Okay, so here’s the deal. The Padres were feeling pretty good, up 3-1 entering the seventh. Bogaerts, Machado, and Tatis Jr. (his first of the season!) had all gone yard for the Padres in earlier innings, giving them a comfortable 3-1 lead. Drew Millas had briefly tied it for the Nats in the third with his own solo shot, but the Padres were feeling comfy. Then the seventh inning rolled around, and it all went sideways for San Diego.

One Missed Foot Leads To An Ejection

CJ Abrams kicked things off with a single off Michael King. Jose Tena reached on a fielder's choice, moving Abrams to second. Jorbit Vivas walked to load the bases, and then Dylan Crews got plunked by a pitch, forcing home a run. Things are getting spicy, right? Reliever Bradgley Rodriguez came in, and Millas hit a grounder to second. But listen to this: Crews was called safe at second because shortstop Xander Bogaerts’ foot wasn’t touching the base! A run scored, and Padres manager Craig Stammen absolutely LOST IT, arguing the call and getting himself tossed. From there, it was a free-for-all. Mead walked, forcing in another run. After James Wood struck out, Luis Garcia Jr. singled up the middle, scoring TWO more. Daylen Lile then beat out a potential double-play grounder, and Mead scored the final run of the inning. Six runs, folks! Just like that, the Nats were up!

Nats Seal The Deal, Padres Keep Sliding

The Padres tried to rally in the eighth. Miguel Andujar walked, then scored on a double by Manny Machado. Two more walks from Gus Varland loaded the bases, making us all hold our breath. But Clayton Beeter came in and shut it down, retiring Ty France. Phew! Then, just to put a cherry on top, Mead hit a two-run double in the bottom of the eighth, pushing the lead to 9-4. Brad Lord, who pitched two scoreless innings, grabbed the win, moving to 3-0, and Beeter notched his third save. King for the Padres ended up giving up five runs, four earned, on five hits in six-plus innings. This loss meant the Padres have now dropped five of their past six games. YIKES. Meanwhile, the Nats are looking like they might have found a spark. What a rollercoaster of a game, right? You gotta love baseball when it gets this wild. For the Nationals, shaking off a two-game skid with that kind of explosive rally, especially with guys like Luis Garcia Jr. and Mead stepping up, that’s huge. It shows some real fight. For the Padres, dropping five of six after a meltdown like that? That’s an early season trend you DO NOT want to see. This is the kind of gritty win that can light a fire. Keep an eye on these Nats, cause if they can pull off comebacks like this, things are gonna get interesting!

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.