The Padres finished the first half of the season Sunday on a somber note, as they dropped their series with the Colorado Rockies, but also watched a young pitcher go down.
Ryan Weathers needed tests on his right leg following a fall in the 3rd inning that required him to be helped off the field. Manager Jayce Tingler said doctors want further tests on Weathers’ Achilles tendon.
The state of the Padres’ pitching staff has to be a point of some concern, as Yu Darvish joined Blake Snell on the injured list Sunday. Darvish is battling left hip inflammation, while Snell is suffering a bout of gastroenteritis.
“Starting pitching – we’ve got to get healthy there, we’ve got to get more depth,” Tingler said.
The Padres lost to the fourth-place Rockies 3-1 Sunday, as Colorado took two games in the three-game set. With the loss, they fall six games behind the National League West leaders, the San Francisco Giants, and four behind the second-place Los Angeles Dodgers.
It is however, the NL’s toughest division – the Padres, at 53-40, would lead the NL East and be just one game behind in the loss column in the NL Central.
Meanwhile, Manny Machado will join Fernando Tatis Jr., Jake Cronenworth and Mark Melancon at Tuesday’s All-Star Game. Darvish, also named to the NL team, had to drop out.
Machado fills the vacancy created due to the season-ending knee injury that Atlanta Brave Ronald Acuña Jr. suffered Saturday. It will be his fifth All-Star Game, but his first as a Padre.
“To be able to go there, and go with the San Diego Padres for the first time, with the teammates that we have here, it’s an exciting moment,” he said.