Padres vs Cardinals Recap: Merrill, Tatis fuel 6-1 win

The San Diego Padres walked into Busch Stadium hungry. They'd lost the last two games in this series and fell to 37-35 on the season. The St. Louis Cardinals came in hot at 40-31, riding a two-game winning streak. But on Wednesday, the Padres had other plans. In the very first inning, Samad Taylor sprinted home on a sacrifice fly from Manny Machado. The ball rocketed off Kyle Leahy's fastball at 96 miles per hour. San Diego grabbed the 1-0 lead before most fans even settled into their seats. The Padres were awake and ready to battle. The Cardinals needed to answer back quickly or watch this game slip away.

By the fourth inning, San Diego's bats were absolutely blazing. Xander Bogaerts whipped a single to right field off another Leahy sinker at 94 miles per hour. Manny Machado raced home, and just like that it was 2-0. One inning later, Fernando Tatis Jr. crushed a double to center field. Will Wagner sprinted across the plate. The score jumped to 3-0. The Cardinals finally got one back in the bottom of the fifth when Alec Burleson singled to right. But San Diego's pitching was sharp. Griffin Canning locked in, allowing just four hits and two walks through four and one-third innings. The Padres' bullpen arms stayed ready and fresh. St. Louis couldn't catch up to the early Padres surge.

The ninth inning exploded with action. Fernando Tatis Jr. laced a single to right field. The crowd held its breath as he tried to stretch it into a double, but he was thrown out. Then Jackson Merrill stepped up to the plate with two outs and Taylor on base. He crushed a sweeper that sailed over the wall. The ball sailed 423 feet through the night air. Merrill's home run was a two-run blast, and the Padres went absolutely wild. San Diego won 6-1 to snap their two-game losing streak and improved to 38-35. The Cardinals fell to 40-32 with the tough loss at home. Padres pitcher Griffin Canning picked up the win. The road trip was turning around for San Diego.