Padres vs – Jake Cronenworth’s clutch home run and Xander Bogaerts’ late-inning heroics kept the Padres’ season alive in a 4-3 win over the Brewers.
Xander Bogaerts dropped to his knees. snared a wicked line drive on a short hop. and scrambled to touch second base before firing to first. In one fluid, desperate motion, he erased the tying run and ended a suffocating ninth inning. The 4-3 victory for the San Diego Padres on Tuesday night didn’t just survive the pressure of Game 3; it kept their season alive.
With the Milwaukee Brewers leading the NL Division Series 2-1, the atmosphere at Petco Park remained heavy. The Padres were forced to navigate a high-stakes night without star closer Mason Miller. who was placed on the paternity list just 45 minutes before the first pitch. Michael King, who had already thrown five innings only two days prior, stepped into the void. He managed the final two innings. recording his first save since 2023—and his first in a postseason uniform—to secure the win.
Offensively. the Padres looked to Jake Cronenworth. whose tiebreaking home run tilted the scale in a game where San Diego never surrendered the lead. Early contributions from Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado established a rhythm the team desperately needed. though the bullpen’s path to the finish line remained narrow. The Brewers, who left 11 runners on base, consistently threatened. William Contreras. who finished the night with three hits and a home run. drew a one-out walk in the ninth alongside Brice Turang. setting the stage for Christian Yelich’s game-ending line drive.
For the Brewers. the defeat marks their 12th consecutive postseason road loss. a drought stretching back to the 2018 NL Championship Series. Despite an RBI single from Yelich in the seventh—his first postseason RBI since 2018—the team could not overcome the early deficit created by the Padres’ top-of-the-order production.
The math is now simple: the Padres have trimmed Milwaukee’s series lead to 2-1. Both teams head into Wednesday night’s Game 4 at Petco Park without having yet announced their starting pitchers. If San Diego manages another win, the deciding Game 5 will return to Milwaukee this Friday.
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