Padres stumble in Atlanta as late scratch forces bullpen game, offense stays cold

Atlanta, Georgia – What was already shaping up to be a tough road series took a sharper turn for the Padres just before first pitch on Saturday when scheduled starter Michael King was scratched due to right shoulder stiffness. The club believes the issue is minor — the result of an awkward night of sleep — and not a long-term concern. But in the moment, it forced San Diego into a makeshift bullpen game that unraveled quickly in a 7-1 loss to the Braves at Truist Park.

Rookie right-hander Sean Reynolds got the emergency call and gave the Padres what he could, tossing a career-high 57 pitches over 2.2 innings. He allowed three runs on six hits, including a solo home run to Matt Olson and a double to Austin Riley. Reynolds exited with two on, and Wandy Peralta couldn’t bail him out, allowing a pair of RBI singles that put the Padres in an early 3-1 hole.

From there, the game slowly slipped further away.

Ronald Acuña Jr., continuing to make a thunderous return after missing nearly a full season with a torn ACL, crushed a two-run homer off Alek Jacob in the sixth. Michael Harris II added a two-run single off Yuki Matsui in the seventh to round out the scoring.

Acuña has now homered in back-to-back games since his return and is 3-for-9 through his first two contests. His presence helped spark the Braves to their first win over the Padres in eight games, snapping a losing streak that dated back to last year’s NLDS sweep by San Diego.

While the pitching was patchwork by necessity, the bigger concern might be the Padres’ continued offensive malaise. Manny Machado provided the only run of the day with an RBI single in the second inning and was one of the few bright spots, reaching base four times (2-for-2 with two walks). But as a team, San Diego went just 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position, continuing a troubling trend that has haunted the club during a stretch in which they’ve now lost seven of their last eight.

Grant Holmes (3-3) stifled the Padres over seven innings, allowing just one run on six hits and a walk while striking out six. It was Holmes’ fifth quality start in 10 outings and arguably one of his most efficient performances of the season.

With the series now even, the Padres will look to salvage a win and head home on a high note when they send Dylan Cease to the mound Sunday to face Braves rookie Spencer Schwellenbach in his MLB debut.

If King’s shoulder issue truly is as minor as the Padres hope, that would be a sigh of relief for a rotation already walking a tightrope. But until the offense finds a way to consistently capitalize with runners in scoring position, it may not matter who’s taking the ball.