The San Diego Padres salvaged their opening series against the Detroit Tigers, winning the third and final game to move to 1-2 on the year ahead of Sunday’s day off.<\/p>\n
The series was eventful, full of strong pitching, crazy catches<\/a> and one big blown lead.<\/a><\/p>\n At the end of the day, it was only one series, and the Padres still have 159 games to go in the regular season. Nevertheless, it’s never too early to look at some early winners and losers from San Diego’s first series of the season \u2014 and a few overreactions.<\/p>\n WinnersRandy V\u00e1squez<\/p>\n Randy V\u00e1squez had a career year in 2025, acting as somewhat of a savior for the Padres rotation. This year, they’ll need even more from him<\/a> if they want to stay relevant in the loaded National League.<\/p>\n So far, so good.<\/p>\n V\u00e1squez shut down a strong Tigers offense, pitching six shutout innings with eight strikeouts. He helped lead the Padres to their first win of the season in dominant fashion.<\/p>\n Calidad en la lomita. pic.twitter.com\/7jAxEY52Gs<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 San Diego Padres (@Padres) March 29, 2026<\/a>Ram\u00f3n Laureano<\/p>\n Ramon Laureano has been the Padres’ best hitter through the season’s first three games.<\/p>\n He’s 5-for-12 (.417) with one home run, two runs batted in and an OPS of 1.167.<\/p>\n He had a home run on Opening Day, a go-ahead RBI on Friday and a three-hit game on Saturday.<\/p>\n Razor Ram\u00f3n! pic.twitter.com\/xAEZBGQ7d5<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 San Diego Padres (@Padres) March 28, 2026<\/a>LosersNick Pivetta<\/p>\n Nick Pivetta entered the 2026 season with as much pressure as he’s ever had after his breakout 2025 season. He didn’t deliver in his first career Opening Day start.<\/a><\/p>\n Pivetta allowed four runs in the first inning and lasted just three innings, giving up six runs. He’ll have even more pressure in his next start against the San Francisco Giants to prove he can have an encore 2026 season.<\/p>\n \u201cI would love that game back,\u201d Pivetta said after his outing. \u201cBut that\u2019s not reality. That\u2019s not how the world works. Just look to capitalize on a couple days off that I have here, get a good bullpen sesh, get back to who I am.\u201d<\/p>\n Jeremiah Estrada<\/p>\n Jeremiah Estrada entered the eighth inning of a 2-1 game on Friday with the Padres looking for their first win of the season. He walked the bases loaded, allowed a game-tying hit and was then relieved by Wandy Peralta, who allowed three more runs to score \u2014 all charged to Estrada.<\/p>\n Estrada made 77 appearances last season. He allowed four or more runs in just three of them.<\/p>\n He’s already one-for-one in that category this season.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s unfortunate,\u201d Estrada said after the game. \u201cThe way I look at it is it sucks to lose at the end of the day, but get the bad ones out of the way early. That\u2019s all I can say.\u201d<\/p>\n Padres Overreactions from Tigers Series1. Michael King is Back<\/p>\n Michael King had an injury-riddled 2025 season, spending nearly four months on the injured list and never fully being the pitcher he was the year prior.<\/p>\n He had a rough spring, and was starting to raise some serious concerns heading into 2026 \u2014 just months after the Padres gave him a three-year, $75 million deal.<\/p>\n His first start had to have the Padres feeling good.<\/p>\n King threw five innings, allowing just one unearned run while striking out six. He struggled with walks \u2014 allowing four free passes \u2014 but was able to limit the damage in a strong first showing.<\/p>\n 2. The First Base Platoon Isn’t Working<\/p>\n The Padres’ first base platoon this season is expected to be comprised of Gavin Sheets, Ty France and Nick Castellanos, with Miguel Andujar potentially filling in, too.<\/p>\n Sheets has had two starts at first base, and is 0-for-8 with three strikeouts. <\/p>\n France has had one start at first base, where he went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts.<\/p>\n Castellanos has had one start at DH (and two pinch-hit appearances). He’s 1-for-6 with a strikeout.<\/p>\n It’s not a good start for any of the first base options. It’s also early. That’s why it’s an overreaction.<\/p>\n Sign up to our free newsletter<\/a> and follow us on Facebook<\/a> and X\/Twitter<\/a> for the latest news.<\/p>\n