SAN DIEGO \u2014 The ping-pong table is black, with an arched aluminum base and a swinging friar logo emblazoned across the top. It arrived in the home clubhouse at Petco Park in October, just after the San Diego Padres exited the postseason, and people with the club say the multi-hundred-pound contraption required a four-figure investment. The same model is touted online as the \u201cbest in high-end table tennis tables.\u201d<\/p>\n
When he was a rookie two years ago, Jackson Merrill envisoned buying this kind of gift for his team.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd then,\u201d he said, \u201cit just kind of never happened. Then last year, more guys were playing, so I just decided it\u2019d be a good idea, a good gesture.\u201d<\/p>\n
For the first three weeks of the 2026 season, it has served as a reminder of his growing profile. The table is the centerpiece of the Padres locker room, a regular source of diversion, an occasional repository for beverages after victories, and perhaps more evidence of Merrill\u2019s intent: During spring training, the young center fielder with the nine-figure contract spoke of seeking to become more of a social connector<\/a>.<\/p>\n Still, the baseball comes first.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I\u2019m in the bullpen watching the game and that situation comes up, there\u2019s no one else I want at the plate,\u201d left-hander Kyle Hart said Thursday afternoon, hours after Merrill supplied a home run robbery<\/a> and a walk-off double<\/a> in a wild comeback. \u201cAnd that\u2019s not a knock on anybody else. He just has a knack for when the moment is in front of him, he loves it and gets the job done a lot. I think that\u2019s kind of his superpower.<\/p>\n \u201cBut I think he knows he doesn\u2019t have to be perfect, and I think we know that as a team,\u201d Hart said. \u201cWe don\u2019t have to be perfect; we\u2019re not going to be perfect. And you realize and you know that we have other guys in here that can pick you up on any given night. I mean, look at all the at-bats that took place down the stretch last night. It\u2019s like, yeah, he was the guy that did it, but there were more clutch at-bats prior to him.<\/p>\n \u201cI think that\u2019s the superpower of our team.\u201d<\/p>\n Thursday evening, the Padres were again imperfect. They also won an eighth consecutive game for the first time since 2023, sweeping the Seattle Mariners with a 5-2 victory. They did not require a fortuitous bottom of the ninth or more heroics from Merrill. They again made Craig Stammen look like an unusually shrewd rookie manager.<\/p>\n It helps, of course, when eight of your nine starting hitters record at least one hit; when reclamation project Walker Buehler posts another solid outing; and when a formidable bullpen lives up to its name.<\/p>\n \u201cWinning is f\u2014ing great when you\u2019re winning like this,\u201d veteran third baseman Manny Machado said. \u201cI think streaks like this don\u2019t last long, so you kind of ride the wave as much as you can. It\u2019s not like we\u2019re going out there and scoring 20 runs a game. We\u2019re playing really close baseball games, and we\u2019re doing everything right.\u201d<\/p>\n Not so long ago, the Padres were 2-5. Their Opening Day starter, Nick Pivetta, is already on the injured list with a flexor strain that could sideline him for months. Yet here they are at 13-6, owners of the majors\u2019 second-best record. Their early-season turnaround has featured such storylines as Mason Miller\u2019s historic dominance, Luis Campusano\u2019s long-awaited emergence and Ram\u00f3n Laureano\u2019s nonsense-free production. It has yet to include Fernando Tatis Jr.\u2019s first home run of 2026 or one of Machado\u2019s patented hot streaks.<\/p>\n \u201cI think everyone is (contributing), honestly, except me,\u201d said Machado, off to a .207 start. \u201cWe\u2019re playing both sides of the ball, we\u2019re pitching well, we\u2019re playing good defense, we\u2019re hitting with runners in scoring position when we need to, getting guys over. I think we\u2019re doing a lot of good things overall, and I think it shows in the results.\u201d<\/p>\n