San Diego Padres center fielder Jackson Merrill celebrates in the dugout after hitting a home run during the sixth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Petco Park on Jul 12, 2025. — Reuters
SAN DIEGO: Jackson Merrill broke out of a prolonged slump with a pair of home runs, while Manny Machado delivered a go-ahead sacrifice fly in the seventh inning to help the San Diego Padres edge the Philadelphia Phillies 5-4 on Saturday at Petco Park.
Merrill, who entered the game in a 5-for-53 slump over his last 34 games, smashed a two-run homer in the second inning and added a solo shot in the sixth, finishing with three RBIs to lift his season total to 31.
Phillies’ All-Star pitcher Zack Wheeler, known for controlling the pace of games, allowed four runs over six innings. It marked only the fourth time in 19 starts this season that he gave up more than two earned runs.
Machado sealed the win for San Diego with a deep sacrifice fly that scored Fernando Tatis Jr., who had singled and moved to third on a Luis Arraez base hit. The fly ball tied the game at 4-4 before giving the Padres their second straight win in the series.
Reliever David Morgan earned his first career win with a scoreless inning, while Jeremiah Estrada shut down the side in the ninth for his third save of the season.
Padres starter Yu Darvish, making his second appearance since returning from injury, gave up four runs in 4 2/3 innings.
For the Phillies, Edmundo Sosa, filling in for the injured Alec Bohm, gave his team a temporary lead with a two-run single in the fifth inning.
Philadelphia’s Cristopher Sanchez and San Diego’s Nick Pivetta are scheduled to start in the series finale on Sunday.