Merrill's hustle, the real Pivetta, some luck and lots of hits help Padres avoid sweep by Giants

Kevin Acee, The San Diego Union-Tribune on Apr 1, 2026

Published in Baseball

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SAN DIEGO — Jackson Merrill practically glows at the ballpark.

He is the youngest San Diego Padres player and the most obviously excited to be playing baseball every day.

He knows the energy he brings is a component of his value. He and the veterans who have encouraged him to embrace a leadership role have said so.

On Wednesday morning in the Padres clubhouse, with his team about to play a day game after losing the night before for the fourth time in five games this season, Merrill was practically bouncing off the walls. He joked, he teased, he talked to everyone who passed by.

And he stayed hyped when the game began, getting the Padres on their way to a 7-1 victory over the San Francisco Giants by scoring from first base on a ground ball and an error in the first inning.

That was the first of two runs the Padres scored because of errors before a previously moribund offense added on with a run in the sixth and four more in eighth.

Just as encouraging was that a far more recognizable Nick Pivetta worked five scoreless innings.

On the heels of an ugly opening-day start, Pivetta struck out too many batters (eight) and had too many pitches fouled off to be efficient. But he allowed just one hit and walked two while getting the game to a rested back end of the bullpen.

That went pretty much according to plan. Jeremiah Estrada retired the Giants in order in the sixth inning. Adrian Morejón allowed a run in the seventh before getting the first two outs in the eighth before Mason Miller got the final four outs for his second save.

Gavin Sheets doubled twice, scoring after the first and driving in a run with the second. Ramón Laureano’s two-run homer and Fernando Tatis Jr.’s infield single with the bases loaded in the eighth inning were the last of the Padres’ season-high 10 hits.

But the Padres would have been scoreless until the sixth inning if not for a pair of bad connections between the Giants corner infielders and Merrill’s hustle.

Merrill’s two-out single helped the Padres to their first first-inning run of 2026.

Manny Machado followed by chopping a ground ball to the left side that third baseman Matt Chapman ran in to grab while Machado sprinted toward first.

Chapman’s throw was up the line and just beyond first baseman Casey Schmitt’s glove. The ball clipped Schmitt’s glove and hit Machado as he passed by before it bounced just beyond the dirt into shallow right field. Merrill slowed at second but rounded it hard and took off for third even before Chapman let go of the ball. Merrill slowed at third to see where the ball was and then took off for home, easily beating a wide throw from Jung Hoo Lee.

On the play, Machado was given an infield single and Schmitt an error.

It seemed Schmitt was again responsible for the Padres’ second run, though an error would be assigned to Chapman.

That happened in the fifth inning after Sheets led off with a double. Sheets moved to third on Freddy Fermin’s grounder to the right side before Bryce Johnson struck out.

The Padres had already squandered a leadoff double (by Johnson) in the third inning, and it appeared they would do so again when Xander Bogaerts sent a slow roller to the left side. But Sheets ended up scoring when Chapman fielded near shortstop and fired not all that high but off Schmitt’s glove.

The first RBI of the game came in the sixth, when Laureano and Jake Cronenworth reached on infield singles and Sheets lined a double to the gap in right-center.

The Padres sent nine batters to the plate in the eighth inning, which began with Machado’s double and featured four walks by Giants right-hander José Buttó.

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