SAN DIEGO — There would be no scoreboard watching in San Diego on Thursday night. Just Padres baseball — a chance to move up with a win and down with a loss.
They’re moving up. The Padres won their series opener against the Rockies at Petco Park, 2-0, behind six brilliant innings from Randy Vásquez, who set a career high with nine strikeouts. With the win, the Padres made progress on two fronts, while four other contenders had the night off.
The objective directly in front of them is hosting a National League Wild Card Series. To do that, they’d need to catch the Dodgers (2 1/2 back) in the NL West, or at least reel in the Cubs (3 1/2 back) for the top Wild Card spot.
On the flip side, the Padres increased their lead to 5 1/2 games over both the Giants and Reds, the two teams currently on the outside of the playoff picture looking in. A Padres postseason clinch is getting closer.
