​SAN DIEGO — The Padres headed into the All-Star break with a familiar sinking feeling after the opening game of the final series before the break, a 5-3 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays at Petco Park on Friday night. San Diego managed to string together a few productive plate appearances but couldn’t capitalize until a late rally, and Toronto managed to swing momentum in their favor with a crucial four-run fifth inning.
Xander Bogaerts gave the Padres an early spark, belting a two-run homer in the first inning to put San Diego ahead. The lead, however, would not hold. Toronto answered in the middle frames, pushing ahead on a three-run shot from Kazuma Okamoto as part of a four-run fifth that flipped the script and handed the Padres their setback.
Luis Campusano and Fernando Tatis Jr. provided two-out singles in the ninth against Blue Jays closer Louis Varland, and Jackson Merrill delivered an RBI single to left to begin San Diego’s late push in a bid to climb back into the game. Bogaerts, who had already earned an ABS Challenge win for the night, lined out on a full-count knuckle curve that Okamoto fielded at third base to seal the win for Toronto.
The Padres had jumped on Shane Bieber early, with Bogaerts following Merrill’s one-out walk by launching his ninth homer of the season to left-center. After baiting the first two pitches out of the zone, Bogaerts pulled a high four-seamer for a homer that ended a 33-game drought without a homer, bringing San Diego to life briefly. Yet after Bieber workmanlike through a 30-pitch first inning, the Browns and Gold managed only one more runner in scoring position against him—Gavin Sheets stranded on second after a two-out Ty France single in the first.
San Diego finally had a chance to create a bigger chance in the sixth inning, but the opportunity stalled. France opened with a double off reliever Chad Dallas, and Miguel Andújar’s fly to left allowed France to advance to third on a tag play. That set the stage for Luis Rengifo’s San Diego debut as a pinch-hitter, replacing Jase Bowen, but the opportunity fizzled when Rengifo struck out and Campusano fouled out after Durán had earlier contributed hits in his two at-bats.
Toronto’s offense began to show signs in the fourth, as Vladimir Guerrero Jr. started with a single and George Springer followed with a one-out knock through the right side. Alejandro Kirk then hit a soft RBI double as he golfed a changeup into right-center. But Padres reliever Joey Sears bore down, inducing back-to-back grounders to strand two runners in scoring position and preserve the 2-1 lead.
The Jays continued to apply pressure in the following frame. Myles Straw beat out an infield hit on a bunt up the first-base side, and Sears could not field it cleanly for an infield single, marking the first of two infield hits for Toronto. Ernie Clement followed with a single to load the bases, and Guerrero greeted reliever Jhony Brito with a slow-roller to third for another RBI opportunity, but the Padres battled back to keep Toronto from capitalizing further.
In the end, the Padres couldn’t complete the comeback. Bogaerts’ two-out success was thwarted by Okamoto’s glove at third, and San Diego left with a 5-3 defeat as they head into the All-Star break looking to retool and regroup.