Aug 9, 2025; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres left fielder Ramon Laureano (5) celebrates with first baseman Luis Arraez (4) after hitting a walk-off single during the tenth inning against the Boston Red Sox at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: David Frerker-Imagn Images
San Diego, California – For the first time since May, Padres fans got to see Opening Day starter Michael King back on a big-league mound. The right-hander, sidelined nearly three months with a nerve ailment, made his return at Petco Park against one of baseball’s hottest lineups — and walked away impressed.
With the roster reshaped at the trade deadline, King may be right. Newly acquired outfielder Ramón Laureano delivered his first Padres walk-off hit — a 10th-inning single — to secure a 5–4 win over the Boston Red Sox and even the weekend series.
King, who made only one minor league rehab start, wasn’t expected to go deep. He gave the Padres 2.2 innings, allowing four hits and two walks with one strikeout before hitting his pitch limit at 57. Boston made him work, but the bullpen picked him up in a big way.
The Padres offense got rolling in the second when Xander Bogaerts homered off his former team, his 10th of the season and fifth in the last 19 games. Bogaerts struck again in the third, driving in Luis Arraez with an RBI single. In the fifth, Boston starter Lucas Giolito lost the strike zone entirely, walking four straight — including Ryan O’Hearn and Laureano with the bases loaded — to give San Diego a 4–3 lead.
From there, the bullpen took over. Wandy Peralta allowed a run, but Jeremiah Estrada, Adrian Morejon, and Mason Miller combined to strike out 10 over the next four innings, setting up closer Robert Suarez with a one-run lead.
But “Big Game Bob” blinked. Roman Anthony’s ground-rule double in the ninth brought home the tying run for Boston, forcing extra innings.
In the 10th, Bogaerts started on second, and with runners on first and second and the infield drawn in, Laureano chopped a Garrett Whitlock offering over third baseman Alex Bregman into left field. Bogaerts trotted home, sealing the 5–4 win.
It wasn’t all clean — Manny Machado’s failed hidden-ball trick in the third led to a balk call and a Boston run, part of a strange sequence that briefly put the Sox ahead. But in the end, Bogaerts’ big night (homer, RBI single, walk) and Laureano’s clutch bat delivered a statement win in King’s return.
The victory, paired with recent bullpen dominance and the impact of new acquisitions, has San Diego looking like a team ready to make a serious push down the stretch.
