Padres 13, Mets 2

Around this time last season, we were sitting well following some really good showings within the division and series wins against the Cardinals and Astros, among others. The turning point of the season came when we played a stretch of 13 games, against the Central leading Chicago Cubs and the East leading New York Mets. We went 4-9 in those games, which deflated any confidence I may have had for the Padres. Our bullpen was pitching too many innings, and our manager Jayce Tingler looked like he was in over his head, which he was.

This year, we had a long, tough stretch that included series in Atlanta, Philadelphia, and San Francisco, in addition to playing the Brewers twice, the Cardinals, and the Mets, with a series with Pittsburgh sandwiched in between. We went 15-10 in those games and more than held our own. The cherry on top, of course, was last night's blowout win over the Mets. We've scored 20 runs the past two games, which means the bats are finally waking up in a big way. Profar, again, was unstoppable from the leadoff spot, reaching base three more times and scoring three runs. Cron had three hits including a homer and five RBI's. Mazara had two more hits, Grish two more runs. It is all coming together. Every starter had at least one hit. The only blemish was Voit and a 1-for-5 from the cleanup spot. It's not working for him yet, but we'll need it to if we want to get somewhere. 

Our success will rise and fall with our starting pitching, as if that hasn't been made abundantly clear already. Manaea broke his losing streak in style, allowing one earned run over seven frames. Manaea has pitched six innings in 10 of his eleven starts, which is money. The competition for a space in our rotation has just gotten that much stiffer. Crismatt added two shutout innings to give the bullpen another day of rest, so we are all geared up and ready to roll against the Rockies, our next opponent and one that gave us the fits all of last year. One thing we did so frequently in 2021 was show up against the high profile opponents while delivering duds against the bottom dwellers. We don't need to be reminded that these are all still professional ball clubs. The Pirates, for instance, went 5-1 against the Dodgers this year...go figure. That's why they play the games, that's why the players need to earn their corn every day. Aside from that, there are also the fans in the stands at Petco. They were jacked UP last night.  

My understanding is that Wil Myers might be out for a while, although we won't miss him. We are 13 games above .500 and cruising. I like what I am seeing.