Padres on deck: Hosting Yankees to start homestand

San Diego Padres vs. New York Yankees

at Petco Park

• Game 1: 6:40 p.m. Friday (Padres.TV)
• Game 2: 4:15 p.m. Saturday (FOX)
• Game 3: 1:10 p.m. Sunday (Padres.TV)

In the standings

New York Yankees (80-60, 2nd in AL East)

The Yankees have won six of their last 10 games. They are three games behind the Rays in the division but have a 4½-game lead on the Red Sox as the AL’s top wild-card team. The Yankees won two of three last year against the Padres in New York.

San Diego Padres (73-67, 3rd in NL West)

The Padres have suddenly lost seven of their last nine games despite posting a 2.88 ERA over that stretch. That’s dropped them a half-game behind the Diamondbacks in the race for the NL’s third wild-card spot and allowed the Marlins (71-69) to creep to within 2½ games. The Padres’ postseason odds sit at 40.8%, according to FanGraphs.com.

Trending

New York: The Yankees’ .673 OPS since the All-Star break is the third worst in the majors, while the team’s 2.93 ERA in the second half is the best in the majors (the Padres’ 3.30 ERA over that stretch is second best). OF Cody Bellinger is hitting .414/.414/.414 over the last week, while three Yankees have two homers each over the last seven games—1B Paul Goldschmidt (1.039 OPS), former La Costa Canyon High OF Spencer Jones (1.048) and C Austin Wells (.983). Former Padres OF Trent Grisham is hitting .091/.192/.091 over the last week.

San Diego: The Padres have a .762 OPS since the All-Star break, good for third in the majors, but they had a .654 OPS during a 1-5 road trip (24th) and a 4.03 ERA (14th). Both 1B Ty France (1.016 OPS) and OF Fernando Tatis Jr. (.778 OPS) had two homers during that road trip, while 2B Jake Cronenworth hit .048/.130/.095.

Pitching matchups

Friday

Yankees LHP Max Fried (4-4, 2.80 ERA)   |   Fried is expected to be paired with RHP Will Warren (9-6, 4.23 ERA) in a piggy-back after throwing 63 pitches in his first game back from the bone bruise in his elbow. Fried allowed a run in 3⅔ innings in that start on Saturday. Fried has a 2.11 ERA in seven regular-season starts against the Padres, but he took the loss in his 2024 NL Wild Card Series start (2 IP, 5 ER) for the Braves.

Padres RHP Walker Buehler (8-6, 4.66 ERA)   |   He had a 3.16 ERA in six starts in August after posting a 9.82 ERA in July. Buehler has a 4.15 ERA in 14 starts at home this year and a 5.23 ERA in 13 road starts. His only regular-season start against the Yankees was a loss last year (4⅓ IP, 7 ER).

Saturday

Yankees LHP Carlos Rodon (4-3, 3.20 ERA)   |   He hasn’t completed five innings in three starts (2.84 ERA) since missing a month to elbow inflammation. He also missed more than the first month of the season following an offseason procedure to remove a bone spur and loose bodies. Rodon has a 2.27 ERA in five career starts against the Padres, the last a no-decision in 2025 (6⅔ IP, 0 ER).

Padres LHP Robbie Ray (11-7, 3.14 ERA)   |   He has a 3.42 ERA in five starts since the trade to San Diego, although command has been an issue as Ray has struck out 19 against 16 walks through 26⅓ innings. The Padres are 2-3 in Ray’s starts. Ray has a 3.89 ERA in eight career starts against the Yankees, including a loss earlier this year while with the Giants (5⅓ IP, 2 ER).

Sunday

Yankees TBA   |   Manager Aaron Boone has not named a starter for the series finale.

Padres RHP Michael King (9-9, 3.11 ERA)   |   The former Yankee has strung together five straight quality starts (1.71 ERA), striking out 27 against nine walks over 31⅔ innings. He has faced the Yankees once since the Juan Soto trade brought him to San Diego, spinning a quality start (6 IP, 2 ER) in a no-decision in the Bronx last year.

Qualifying leaders

• OPS: Yankees—DH Ben Rice (.865), OF Cody Bellinger (.769), 2B Jazz Chisholm (.716); Padres—OF Fernando Tatis Jr. (.799), OF Jackson Merrill (.711), 3B Manny Machado (.709).
• HRs: Yankees—Rice (35), Chisholm (19), 1B Paul Goldschmidt (18), OF Trent Grisham (18); Padres—Machado (24), Merrill (22), 1B Ty France (20).
• RBIs: Yankees—Rice (87), Bellinger (60), Grisham (59); Padres—Machado (75), Merrill (70), Tatis (70).
• Steals: Yankees—Chisholm (40), SS José Caballero (31), Bellinger (10); Padres—Tatis (31), Merrill (24), SS Xander Bogaerts (19).
• Saves: Yankees—RHP David Bednar (31-for-34, 2.69 ERA); Padres—RHP Mason Miller (32-for-34, 1.26 ERA).
• Holds: Yankees—LHP Brent Headrick (24, 1.93 ERA), RHP Fernando Cruz (19, 3.13 ERA), RHP Paul Blackburn (10, 1.62 ERA), LHP Tim Hll (10, 4.08 ERA); Padres—LHP Adrián Morejón (22, 2.77 ERA), RHP Jason Adam (17, 2.51 ERA), RHP Jeremiah Estrada (12, 3.48 ERA).

Training room

New York: OF Aaron Judge could return from his rib injury as soon as next week, while rookie SS George Lombard Jr. has been day-to-day with knee discomfort. The Yankees are also without LHP Ryan Weathers (forearm), RHP Clarke Schmidt (Tommy John), RHP Fernando Cruz (elbow), DH Giancarlo Stanton (calf), RHP Kervin Castro (elbow) and RHP Angel Chivilli (elbow).

San Diego: RHP Joe Musgrove (elbow) has thrown well on his rehab assignment, but the recovery between starts has been sluggish and his return to the majors this year is far from certain. RHP Nick PIvetta (flexor) has moved his rehab assignment to Triple-A El Paso. 1B Gavin Sheets (plantar fasciitis) finally hit the injured list on Sunday, while INF Luis Rengifo (right knee) sustained a season-ending injury. The Padres are also without RHP Jeremiah Estrada (shoulder), INF Miguel Andujar (wrist) and RHP Jason Adam (shoulder).