The Padres get back to 1st place after splitting series with Cardinals
Nick Castellanos keeps the Padres from losing their series against the Cardinals, SDFC leaves Seattle with a point (but not three), updates from the NBA Playoffs, NBA Draft Lottery and so much more.
First, here’s your updated series record for the 2026 San Diego Padres: 7-4-2 after splitting a four-game series against the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Padres are also, somewhat surprisingly, about a quarter of the way through the season. Their 24-16 overall record is good enough for a tie atop the NL West standings with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
You would assume, if I had told you before the season began that the Padres would tied for first place in their division a quarter of the way through the season, that Fernando Tatis Jr. was supplying the power that the team so desperately needs from him in the lineup. You would be wrong. He still has not hit a home run this season and has posted his worst offensive numbers across the board.
You would also probably assume that the Padres had found a bunch of good fortune in their starting rotation, that Joe Musgrove would be back to the player he was before his Tommy John surgery and that Nick Pivetta would be replicating last year’s success and that the guys picked up in the offseason (Buehler & Marquez) had both been performing well when it was their turn to take the ball.
You’d be wrong about all of this, and probably a lot more.
Here are the offensive categories in which the 2026 Padres fall below the league-average line:
Runs per game
Hits (last in the league!)
Double
Home Runs
RBIs
Walks
Batting average
On-base percentage
Slugging percentage
OPS+
They also have the fourth oldest average age for their hitters this season, so these trends could have a disastrous end. I don’t even have time or energy to go into the Tatis conversation right now.
The team’s 101 ERA+ says that, overall, the Padres pitching has been exceedingly average.
So, what is it? If the team can’t hit, and they can’t pitch at anything more than an average level, how are they racking up so many wins?
Well, the Padres seem to find new life late in games. The stats back this one up, too. While the Padres hitters put up a paltry .605 OPS against starting pitchers (.541 in innings 1-3), they are posting a .748 OPS against relievers (.730 in innings 7-9).
Meanwhile, the San Diego pitchers are doing the opposite to their opponents. Early in games (innings 1-3), opposing batters have an OPS of .728 against Padres pitching. Late in games (innings 7-9), that number drops to .635.
Now, on the offensive side, this is probably just dumb luck. But I do feel like maybe this coaching staff is currently better at making in-game adjustments than they are using scouting reports as they head into games. Or the scouting department needs to be adjusted in some way to improve efficacy. On the pitching side of things, the bullpen is just much better off than the rotation right now for the Padres. That’s not a surprise.
Either way, I do think the Padres getting these kinds of big picture results while having less-than-ideal production from their hitters and their starting rotation is a great sign for the short-term and long-term future of the Padres. Now, they just need to figure out how to hit more in the early innings. Maybe try espresso?
Now, onto the links…
San Diego Padres
Castellanos’ HR, Machado’s walk-off lift Padres to 10-inning comeback victory - MLB.com
Castellanos came to the plate in the ninth as the potential final out, with the Padres trailing 2-0. He fell behind in the count, 0-2. Then, the battle began.
Castellanos fouled off three pitches, and he worked the count full, before Cardinals closer Riley O’Brien left a belt-high sinker over the inner half. Castellanos turned on it and launched a game-tying two-run homer into the left-field seats, sending the game to extras.
Top Padres prospect self-deported to Mexico after plea related to human smuggling - The Athletic
After waiving his Miranda rights, the complaint said, Cruz told agents he had responded to a social media advertisement seeking drivers “to pick up people for easy money.” According to the complaint, Cruz said he was offered $1,000 for each person he transported, was directed to pickup locations through pin drops sent to his phone by an unknown contact, and had been told to drive to Tucson and then on to Phoenix. Cruz said after he picked up the people, he knew “they were illegal,” the complaint said.
The Padres at the quarter mark: Sparse offense, enough pitching and a 97-win pace - The Athletic
For years, little about the San Diego Padres has been straightforward. The 2026 season is providing the latest series of examples.
A mostly patchwork starting rotation has largely delivered. A supposedly deep offense, meanwhile, has appeared riddled with holes. After 40 games, San Diego’s plus-three run differential suggests the record should be 20-20.
And yet, thanks to a dozen comeback victories, the Padres are 24-16. As indicated by seven losses in the past 12 games, their 97-win pace is likely unsustainable. So, you would think, is the glaring underperformance of their household names.
San Diego FC / San Diego Wave FC
San Diego Wave rookie scores late to beat rival Angel City FC in Los Angeles - San Diego Union-Tribune
The San Diego Wave broke a two-game losing streak Saturday night by rediscovering their offensive touch against one of the National Women’s Soccer League’s better defensive squads.
Mimi Van Zanten scored her first goal as a professional in the 81st minute to give the Wave a 2-1 victory against Angel City FC in front of 17,169 at BMO Stadium.
Dudinha added her third goal of the season before recording her fourth assist on Van Zanten’s goal. Kimmi Ascanio contributed her third assist of the year.
Danny Musovski’s late goal extends Sounders’ home unbeaten streak - The Seattle Times
For too long, San Diego FC was in the same sentence as Paris Saint-Germain.
The last time the Sounders lost a match at Lumen Field, it was against the European giant during the FIFA men’s Club World Cup in June 2025. A run that includes defeating Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami for a Leagues Cup title.
A spiraling San Diego made its second trip to the storied facility Saturday. After grabbing an early lead, the visitors appeared to have a game plan that could not only be their first win since March but hand the Sounders their first loss at home in nearly a year.
San Diego blocked seven shots and keeper Duran Ferree had three saves before Danny Musovski had the needed touch in the 80th minute to give the Sounders a 1-1 draw.
NBA
Victor Wembanyama ejected from Game 4 for elbowing Naz Reid - ESPN
San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama experienced his first career ejection Sunday in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals after throwing an elbow at the jaw of Minnesota Timberwolves forward Naz Reid early in the second quarter.
While Spurs coach Mitch Johnson didn’t condone Wembanyama’s actions, he said after San Antonio’s 114-109 loss that officials could do a better job of protecting the 22-year-old big man from the “physicality” routinely imposed on him by opponents.
Knicks torch 76ers with record-tying effort from 3, set team playoff record with 144 points to complete dominant sweep - Yahoo Sports
With OG Anunoby sidelined with a hamstring injury, Miles McBride got a second straight start for the New York Knicks on Sunday in a closeout game against the Philadelphia 76ers.
McBride made the most of the opportunity while leading the Knicks to a record-tying effort from 3 in an overwhelming Game 4 win. The Knicks ran away with the 144-114 victory to complete a dominant sweep of their rivals to advance to the Eastern Conference finals. It was the most points the Knicks have ever scored in a playoff game.
Josh Hart after Knicks sweep 76ers: ‘I used to think Philly was a sports town’ - The Athletic
There’s no official count of how many Knicks fans there were in comparison with hometown 76ers fans, but Philadelphia star Joel Embiid was booed when shown on the giant video screen just before the game, if that gives any idea.
When these two teams met in the playoffs in 2024, Knicks fans took over in Philadelphia. It led to Embiid’s pleading for 76ers fans not to sell their tickets ahead of this year’s series between the two teams.
Clearly, it didn’t work.
Winners and Losers of the 2026 NBA Draft Lottery - The Ringer
In one of the most consequential lotteries of the decade, the Wizards’ tank was rewarded while the Pacers’ big gamble backfired in the most painful way possible.
The 2026 NBA Mock Draft - Hoops HQ
The Washington Wizards have won the draft lottery for the second time in franchise history, securing the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft in June. The Wizards entered the lottery with the best odds (14 percent) after a 17-65 season and had a bit of luck with their No. 1 pick from the 2010 draft John Wall representing the team at the drawing. This is widely considered one of the deepest and talented draft classes, particularly at the top with AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, Cameron Boozer and Caleb Wilson headlining.
Steve Kerr Hasn’t Had Enough Just Yet - Defector
Steve Kerr and Steph Curry are a matched pair, and each helped the other build the last great NBA dynasty; you may quarrel amongst yourselves about the who-did-what ratio, but there's no arguing the broader point. And, as each man was both comfortable and competitive, it seemed appropriate that neither would consider leaving without the other.
Odds & Ends
Sparks routed in season-opener by Aces - Silver Screen and Roll
Aside from an exciting second quarter, it was a pretty underwhelming season opener for the Sparks, who fell to the Aces.
Trump says he ‘wouldn’t pay it either’ in response to USMNT World Cup ticket prices - The Athletic
FIFA, world football’s governing body, has been widely criticised for ticket prices at this summer’s tournament, with the cheapest ticket in its three main categories for U.S.-Paraguay initially costing $1,120 (£823).
And now President Trump, who has a close relationship with Gianni Infantino, the FIFA president, has offered his view.
“I did not know that number (the USMNT’s opening match prices),” the U.S. president said in an exclusive interview with the New York Post. “I would certainly like to be there, but I wouldn’t pay it either, to be honest with you.”
Las Cuatro Milpas is now ready to reopen - San Diego Union-Tribune
The beloved Las Cuatro Milpas restaurant, which shut its doors several months ago following a more than 90-year run in Barrio Logan, will reopen Tuesday at a new location just a couple of blocks away.
The restaurant’s owners announced the grand opening on Instagram, thanking their scores of loyal followers for “standing by us through this journey. We cannot wait to serve our community once again.”