NEW YORK (KGTV) — The San Diego Padres are advancing to the National League Division Series after defeating the New York Mets 6-0 Sunday night.
San Diego native Joe Musgrove's performance on the mound led the Padres to victory, as he held the Mets scoreless in seven innings pitched. He threw 59 strikes on 86 pitches, punching out five batters and giving up just a single hit along the way.
Mets pitcher Chris Bassitt made quick work of the Padres' top three batters in the first, forcing a line drive out and two ground outs in rapid succession. The second inning was a different story: Bassitt gave up back-to-back walks after a Josh Bell single. With the bases loaded, Padres catcher Austin Nola hit a 2-RBI single to draw first blood.
Trent Grisham has stepped up big time at the plate for San Diego in this series, and he contributed again on Sunday. A Grisham single in the top of the fourth led to shortstop Ha-Seong Kim crossing the plate, extending the Padres' lead to 3-0.
Bassitt was pulled in the fifth in favor of David Peterson, but Manny Machado managed to hit an RBI-single off the fresh arm after a Juan Soto sacrifice bunt put Jurickson Profar in scoring position. Musgrove struck out two batters in the bottom frame to maintain the Padres' 4-0 lead into the sixth inning.
The Mets quickly yanked Peterson out of the game and subbed in Drew Smith in an attempt to cool the Padres' bats down.
With two outs and two runners on, the Padres were unable to convert as Profar grounded out to close out the top of the sixth.
During the bottom of the sixth, Mets manager Buck Showalter called for a substance check on Joe Musgrove, which yielded nothing after umps checked his ears when he took his hat off.
Musgrove again held the Mets scoreless that inning, striking out Tomas Nido along the way.
Seth Lugo replaced Smith in the seventh, making him the fourth pitcher to enter the game for the Mets. Juan Soto hit a single to start the inning, and Manny Machado hit a double the very next at-bat, marking his second hit of the game.
New York continued the pitcher-by-committee strategy. After Lugo struck out the next two batters, he was taken out of the game as Showalter sent Mychal Givens to the mound. Three pitches, three strikes: Givens struck out Wil Myers on the ensuing at-bat to complete the frame.
San Diego's defense continued to dominate in the seventh. After walking the first batter, Musgrove tossed a trio of sliders at Francisco Lindor, leading to a ground out as Myers dove for the ball on the first base line. Pete Alonso hit a line out to Juan Soto when he stepped to the plate. Jeff McNeil hit another ground out, bringing the inning to an end as Myers flipped the ball to Musgrove at first.
Pitching woes were the story of the night for New York. After walking Kim and letting Grisham hit a single to kick off the eighth inning, Edwin Diaz replaced Givens.
Diaz managed to close out Game Two for the Mets, but his stuff wasn't enough Sunday night.
After a sacrifice bunt from Austin Nola put both Kim and Grisham in scoring position, Profar struck out after a contentious at-bat.
Enter Juan Soto. The young superstar hit a single off the first pitch he saw from Diaz, driving in both runners. The youngster did get a little greedy though: He tried to steal second base but was tagged out to end the half-inning. The Padres led 6-0 going into the bottom of the eighth.
Robert Suarez took over for Musgrove, who earned some much needed rest. Suarez struck out Mark Canha to open the frame, catching him swinging on a 99 mph four-seam fastball. The next batter popped out after five pitches, and Suarez only needed three more fastballs to strikeout Eduardo Escobar and advance to the ninth.
This time around, Trevor May ran out on to the dirt for the Mets. He wasted no time: It took eight pitches to strike out Machado and Bell. Jake Cronenworth quickly popped out, bringing the game to its final frame.
Josh Hader clocked in to close out the game for San Diego. Hader's heat caught Nido slipping, as he struck out swinging at a 99 mph sinker. The next batter forced Hader to pitch seven times, but he ultimately grounded out. Finally, Hader sealed the deal as the third batter grounded out as well, securing the victory for San Diego.
The Padres will play the No. 1 seed Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS. Game One is scheduled for 6:37 p.m. PDT on Tuesday.
