The San Diego Padres had been playing some inspired baseball en route to the National League Championship Series.
They took down a couple of 100-win teams: the New York Mets (101 victories) and the Los Angeles Dodgers (111) in the Wild Card round and the Division Series, respectively.
Their offense wasn’t the second coming of the Murderers’ Row, but it was effective and opportunistic.
It completely disappeared in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series, though.
The Philadelphia Phillies took a 1-0 lead in the NLCS thanks to some inspired pitching by starter Zack Wheeler and a couple of solid innings from the bullpen.
Yu Darvish pitched a good game for the hosts, allowing just two runs in seven frames.
A Phenomenal Outing By Zack Wheeler
However, Wheeler was even better: in seven innings, he conceded just a hit and a walk while fanning eight.
“The Padres got another excellent start from Yu Darvish, but they failed to support him, losing a shutout to Zack Wheeler and the Phillies to open this NLCS. For the first time since last August, San Diego finished with one hit or fewer,” Padres insider Dennis Lin tweeted.
The Padres got another excellent start from Yu Darvish, but they failed to support him, losing a shutout to Zack Wheeler and the Phillies to open this NLCS. For the first time since last August, San Diego finished with one hit or fewer.
— Dennis Lin (@dennistlin) October 19, 2022
It had been a while since the Padres offense was dominated the way it was on Tuesday night.
Unfortunately for them, it came at the worst possible time: a best-of-seven playoff game.
The Padres still have time to recover, but winning Game 2 on Wednesday will be crucial.
Names such as Manny Machado, Juan Soto, Jurickson Profar, Josh Bell, Jake Cronenworth, Wil Myers will have to show up.
The great Aaron Nola will be on the mound trying to keep them quiet, though.
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