What. A. Game. The San Diego Padres edged out the New York Yankees in a pitcher’s duel on Friday night. It was a win the Friars desperately needed after dropping their series against the Cincinnati Reds earlier this week. Starters Walker Buehler and Max Fried went toe to toe, each allowing a run. Their respective bullpens locked it down, forcing extra-innings drama.
The Yankees quickly got on the board in the 10th with a Spencer Jones RBI single. The onus was then on the Padres to tie the game in the bottom of the tenth. They did that, and more. Luis Campusano, after throwing out three Yanks on the basepaths, hit a two-run homer into deep right field off of Paul Blackburn. It was a walk off for San Diego, the first in quite some time. Hopefully, it’s the turning point that the Padres need.
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Taking the mound
Carlos Rodón (NYY) v. Robbie Ray (SD)
Rodón has spent much of the 2026 season stuck on the injured list. He’s made three starts since returning from his most recent stint, pitching to a 2.84 ERA during that time. That’s just a little higher than his 3.20 ERA this season. When he’s been on the field, Rodón has looked stellar.
That said, the Yankees’ starter has yet to work through six innings since June 10 against the Cleveland Guardians. Rodón has yet to pitch five innings since returning from the IL. But, in the time he has spent on the mound, he’s dominated. The bigger question for New York will be if their bullpen can hang on.
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Since being traded to the Padres, Ray has looked great. He’s cemented himself as a valuable contributor to San Diego’s starting rotation, pitching to a 3.42 ERA through five starts. Most of that damage came in his first start (4 ER, 5.0 IP). Without that start, Ray’s ERA with the Padres goes down to 2.53 clip.
Ray has reinvented himself this season, owning a 3.14 ERA through 149 innings pitched. Most of that time was in San Francisco, where Ray was the de facto ace while Logan Webb struggled all season. He’s been dominant from the left side of the mound and will look to continue that against a potent Yankees lineup.
Batter up!
Ty France, per usual, had a productive night at the plate. The star first baseman went 2-for-3, scoring the lone run the Padres had in the first nine innings. The game would never have gone to extras if France had straightened out a fourth-inning foul ball from Fried just a little. He missed a home run by inches that would have been the winning run. The Friars ended up getting the job done anyways.
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The lineup, despite struggling against Fried, put together some decent offense against New York. That said, the Friars struggled to score in any of their opportunities, going 2-for-7 at the plate. That being said, San Diego will have an opportunity to turn that around versus Rodón tonight.
Relief corps
The Padres’ bullpen locked it down after Buehler departed. Yuki Matsui, Bradgley Rodriguez, Adrian Morejon and Mason Miller pitched four scoreless innings before heading into the 10th inning. Miller pitched an (almost) immaculate ninth inning, throwing nine strikes but inducing a fly out from Ben Rice instead of a strike out. Miller gave up a run in the 10th due to the ghost runner, but quickly locked it down afterwards.
That leaves San Diego with plenty of options to turn to for Game 2. Jhony Brito, Griffin Canning, Kyle Hart, David Morgan and Wandy Peralta will all be available for manager Craig Stammen. None of them have pitched particularly well in high-leverage situations. Though, with the way Ray has been pitching, the Padres should be alright.
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