The lessons the Padres need to learn from a forgettable road trip
The San Diego Padres got roughed up on their recent two-city, seven-game road trip against two National League division foes, the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Los Angeles Dodgers. They went 2-5 on what perhaps was the lowlight of their 2025 season thus far.
The Padres aimed to solidify their position in the division race. Instead, they lost five of seven games and were outplayed during most of the road trip.
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Here are the lessons that need to be learned from this forgettable road trip:
Need more quality starts from the rotation
The Padres receive only two quality starts on the seven-game road trip. Nick Pivetta and Stephen Kolek provided outstanding outings that gave the bullpen a brief respite from the grind of preserving a lead. But the remainder of the starting rotation failed to pitch beyond the fifth inning.
It has placed tremendous stress on the bullpen, which has to navigate through 12 innings of work, going through the rotation once. A tired pen is no match for major league hitters. Their pitches are not particularly sharp enough to garner swing-and-misses in extended at-bats. Coughing up a lead late became the norm on this road trip.
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Injuries have changed the look of the starting rotation. However, it is up to the current starters to improve and excel on the mound.
6-9 hitters: inconsistent production
It was a rough road trip for the Friars' 6-9 hitters in the batting lineup. Collectively, they batted .214 (21-98) with seven runs scored, three HRs, and 11 RBIs. However, the production was better for the final three games in Los Angeles. The 6-9 hitters had 12 hits in those contests.
The road trip began with them chasing too many pitches outside the strike zone. Numerous times, the top of the order put the Padres in position to have a big scoring rally, but the 6-9 hitters failed to put a run on the board. In theory, a deep fly ball or a well-placed ground ball gets the job done. Instead, we see batters strike out without extending the starter's pitch count.
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What changed? Well, hitters began to understand that putting the ball in play is beneficial. This approach allows them to make something happen in their at-bats. Now, the bottom of the order is taking a walk to keep the line moving.
Questionable base running
One of the skills that keeps Brandon Lockridge on a major league roster is his speed but it did him no good in a loss to the Dodgers on Wednesday night. Lockridge looked tentative in running the bases on Bogaerts' double to the gap in left-center field. He failed to get a good read off the bat, and it cost the Friars the lead.
Was it a guarantee that Lockridge would have scored? No, but getting a better jump off of first base would have challenged the defense to make a perfect relay to throw him out at home plate. Given how the ball was hit, Lockridge should have been past second base, as no Dodger outfielder would have caught that drive.
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When it rains, it pours, as the Friars lost games in almost every way possible. They blew save opportunities, repeatedly failing to knock in runners in scoring position, and questionable base-running.
It is a trend that goes beyond having bad luck or running into hot teams. It is more about executing the fundamentals of baseball. The inability to convert kept the Padres from grinding out a hard-fought victory.
Yes, it is disappointing to lose in the manner the Padres did this past week. The Friar Faithful wishes the outcomes were different, but we all have to move past it and hope the Padres have learned from their mistakes.
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