Jackson Merrill, Fernando Tatis Jr., Gavin Sheets and Austin Hays homered Sunday night as the San Diego Padres won the rubber match of a series between playoff contenders with a 7-2 decision over the visiting Houston Astros.
Randy Vasquez (8-6) got his second win of the week, permitting only two hits and two
runs in five innings with no walks and a strikeout. He combined with three relievers to retire the last 22 hitters San Diego faced as the Padres stayed a game behind Arizona and Philadelphia, who are tied for the National League’s final two wild-card spots.
Cristian Javier (1-3) absorbed the loss, yielding four runs off eight hits and a walk over five innings while fanning two. Houston stayed a half-game ahead of Texas atop the American League West thanks to the Rangers’ loss to Baltimore.
Sheets added some insurance against AJ Blubaugh to lead off the bottom of the sixth with a homer over the right field wall. The 393-foot shot was his 15th of the year but his first since June 30.
Hays, who was signed by San Diego earlier on Sunday, pinch-hit for Sheets in the eighth and cracked a sweeper from Bryan King 361 feet to left with Rengifo aboard. It was Hays’ second homer of the year.
Houston initiated the scoring in the top of the second. Taylor Trammell lashed a one-out single and Daulton Varsho clubbed a 3-2 sweeper 395 feet to right, his eighth homer of the year and his first since the Astros acquired him from Toronto on Monday.
Merrill got a run back in the bottom of the inning when he whacked a high fastball out of the park to right-center for his 18th homer of the season and his eighth in 23 games since the All-Star break.
