The San Diego Padres are on a hot streak entering the series opener against the host Baltimore Orioles on Friday.
The Orioles would like to get back on a roll as well.
The Padres should arrive on a high after Dylan Cease’s no-hitter Thursday afternoon at Washington gave San Diego its fifth straight victory.
Cease walked three and struck out nine in a 3-0 win over the Nationals.
“(The) defense made their plays, and that was magnificent,” Padres manager Mike Shildt said.
Despite the rain-interrupted game and postgame celebration regarding Cease’s feat, the Padres had just a short trip to make in advance of the series in Baltimore, where they will finish a nine-game road trip.
The Orioles are coming off a 3-3 trip following the All-Star break. They snapped a three-game skid on Thursday with a 7-6, 10-inning victory over the Miami Marlins, recovering after they squandered a six-run lead.
“I think our guys are very, very aware that we should have won that game handily,” Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said. “I think there are some guys who are individually frustrated with their performance right now. We just have to get back to a team concept.”
The opener of the three-game series on Friday begins Baltimore’s seven-game, six-day homestand.
“Our clubhouse has all the belief in the world,” Orioles outfielder Colton Cowser said. “We’re going to pick each other up. We’re going to go out and give our best every single day.”
The Orioles feel they should be hitting their stride more often as they try to maintain their status as one of the best teams in the big leagues.
“It’s just that we’re not putting it all together at the same time right now,” Hyde said.
Cowser, who smacked a three-run homer on Thursday, is 8-for-20 during a six-game hitting streak.
“I’m not trying to overthink anything,” he said.
Baltimore will send to the mound right-hander Grayson Rodriguez (12-4, 3.83 ERA), who has won four of his past five starts. That includes a six-inning stint on Saturday at Texas, where he allowed two runs on three hits while striking out eight and walking two.
Last year as a rookie, Rodriguez picked up a win by logging seven innings and giving up one run at San Diego.
The Padres will recall Adam Mazur (1-3, 7.84 ERA) from Triple-A El Paso to make the Friday start. The rookie right-hander last pitched in the majors on July 9, when he took a loss against the Seattle Mariners after yielding five runs on seven hits in 4 2/3 innings.
Mazur, who will oppose Baltimore for the first time, has a tough act to follow after Cease’s gem.
“To be able to do it and go out and experience it, I really don’t even know how to feel,” Cease said. “Just happy.”
Including a loss at Cleveland to begin the post-break slate, four of the past six San Diego games ended in shutouts. The Padres have allowed a total of four runs in their five-game winning streak.
–Field Level Media
