Xander Bogaerts Walk-Off Grand Slam in the 12th and the Padres Are Rolling Into Friday Night

San Diego just started their homestand the only way that matters: walk-off drama in extra innings. Xander Bogaerts stepped up in the bottom of the 12th Thursday night and crushed a grand slam off Colorado relief pitcher Valente Bellozo to give the Padres a 7-3 win over the Rockies and kick off their four-game series in the most electric way possible.

It was the Padres' first walk-off slam since Manny Machado delivered one against Texas back in August 2020. Bogaerts, speaking after the moment, knew exactly what he had just done: "It's huge, you know? I just tried to get a good swing on it, and it was probably my best swing of the year," he said. The whole thing came after San Diego battled through 11 innings of mostly offensive struggles, managing just five hits through nine innings before the bats finally woke up in extra play.

How the Padres Got There

Thursday night wasn't a clean performance. The Rockies' pitching staff has been solid lately, and San Diego's hitters looked out of sync for most of the night. But here's the thing about baseball: one swing can change everything. After Manny Machado delivered a sacrifice fly in the 10th and Luis Campusano ripped a two-out RBI double in the 11th to keep things alive, Bogaerts got his chance. "Those guys are playing good ball, and we battled all night. Man, what a way to start a homestand," Bogaerts said after the win.

Friday's Matchup Has Real Stakes

The Padres are on fire right now, sitting at six wins in their last seven games. San Diego sends out Walker Buehler (0-1, 9.45 ERA) on Friday, and honestly, he needs to show something different. In two outings so far, Buehler hasn't made it past the fourth inning. Last Sunday in Boston, he lasted just 2 2/3 innings, giving up four runs and three hits with three walks and four strikeouts in an 8-6 win. Against the Rockies specifically though, he's got history: 7-4 with a 4.71 ERA in 23 career games (19 starts).

Colorado counters with Tomoyuki Sugano (1-0, 1.69 ERA), who just came off a dominant showing against Philadelphia on Sunday where he went six innings, allowed four hits and a run, and struck out five. This will be his first start ever against San Diego.

The Rockies might be without catcher Hunter Goodman, their lone All-Star from last year, after he took a 95 mph fastball to the hand from Randy Vasquez in Thursday's sixth inning. He took a few steps trying to gut it out before seeing blood and walking off the field. Manager Warren Schaeffer said X-rays came back clean and Goodman hopefully won't miss much time. Still, Colorado has shown real improvement early this season compared to a rough 2025. They had a four-game winning streak going before Thursday's loss.

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