Diamondbacks Allow Four Home Runs in 8-2 Loss to Padres

The San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks split a two-game series at Petco Park marked by strong pitching performances and crucial home runs. On Tuesday, the Padres narrowly defeated the Diamondbacks 1-0 in a pitchers' duel, with Luis Arraez hitting the lone home run off Merrill Kelly in the seventh inning, while San Diego's defense notably robbed Arizona of two potential home runs by Corbin Carroll and Josh Naylor. Despite loading the bases twice, the Diamondbacks were unable to score, leaving nine runners stranded. The following night, Arizona responded with an 8-2 victory, powered by four home runs against Padres starter Dylan Cease, including a grand slam from Geraldo Perdomo, capitalizing on Cease's struggles and allowing Brandon Pfaadt to earn his ninth win after eight strong innings. Padres' manager Mike Shildt expressed ongoing frustration with Cease's performance, as the team's offense continued to falter with runners in scoring position. Overall, the series highlighted the Diamondbacks' power hitting and opportunistic offense on Wednesday contrasted with their offensive frustration on Tuesday, while the Padres demonstrated solid pitching but inconsistent offense across both games.