Good morning from New York,
The message from the Padres is that they believe in being aggressive on the base paths.
That has been the message after a number of outs made at the plate this season, and it was again the message after they made three outs at the plate in the first two innings of last night’s 2-1 loss to the Mets.
“Any of those throws bounce a little awkwardly, or they’re two feet one way or two feet the other way, or the catcher hits it off his glove, we have a run,” Padres manager Craig Stammen said. “And they just made perfect plays there.”
Yes, Carson Benge hit two bulls-eyes from right field to get Jake Cronenworth and Manny Machado in the first inning and left fielder A.J. Ewing did so to get Xander Bogaerts in the second.
You can read about the circumstances and see some of what the Padres had to say about it in my game story (here).
“It’s like déjà vu all over again…and again…and again.”
And it’s only the 2nd inning. pic.twitter.com/WIGsNxIBYl
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) August 17, 2026
There were a few factors that made the first send in the first inning curious.
One, Benge had thrown out a runner in each of the previous two games and has demonstrated improved release and accuracy to go with his exceptional arm.
Two, Cronenworth had to slow down between first and second to see if the ball hit by Ty France would fall. So from the start, he was not at optimal speed.
You could argue a third factor was that the Padres had gotten four consecutive hits off Nolan McLean, who was clearly struggling to put the ball where he wanted.
However, Cronenworth said he thought he was going to score.
“He made two perfect throws,” Cronenworth said. “And then Ewing makes a perfect throw the next inning. If he throws my ball up the line a little bit or towards the first base side a little bit, and same thing with Manny’s, and same thing with Bogey’s. I mean, he made three perfect throws. Those are about as perfect as you can throw it.”
Benge’s second assist, on the next play, was on a send Henley was justified to make, because there were two outs. However, it is notable that Machado is not running the bases as well as usual due to various leg maladies that have bothered him since late April.
Bogaerts also tried to score with two outs, though he appeared to continue running after a late stop sign from Henley. It is unclear what mechanisms were in play there, but Bogaerts said he should have stopped.
Bogaerts also said he believes the Padres’ aggressiveness has generally served them well.
“These guys are big league players for a reason,” he said. “They’re not always going to throw it on the money, but they threw three on the money. If one goes a little to the side, we got a run. So they made some good throws.”
Perhaps what Mets manager Andy Green said about Benge having four assists in three games sheds some light on how baseball people see such plays.
“It’s been ridiculous, honestly,” Green said last night. “It doesn’t happen at this rate. You just don’t get these opportunities, and you don’t execute perfectly every time the way he has.”
There is little doubt that is what was in Henley’s mind as well.
Now, the Padres might also have been caught in a time where the league has not quite made up its mind about how good Henge is. It happens. It took teams a while to stop running on Fernando Tatis Jr.
The throw that got Cronenworth was 99.9 mph, and the one that got Machado was 103.9 mph, the third-fastest throw on an outfield assist since Statcast began tracking in 2015.
The Padres could have felt entirely convicted to test Benge last night. And now, they might not do so if given a similar opportunity tonight.
There have been a number of plays this year that required a perfect throw by the opposing outfielder and/or relay man. Those fielders delivered a few times. And they did not on others.
Saturday in Cleveland, Jackson Merrill and Bogaerts did that to the Guardians in the first inning.
We remember the ones Henley seems to have gotten wrong. We hardly notice the ones where his aggressiveness helped the Padres to a run they otherwise would have gotten.
Yesterday, two rookie outfielders made him look wrong.
On the Mets’ side, they viewed it somewhat differently. They saw Benge and Ewing as the heroes that enabled starting pitcher Nolan McLean to find his command after eight of the first 11 Padres who went to the plate reached base.
“Without those kids on the corners we don’t win that game,” Green said. “Nolan doesn’t settle in and pitch six strong innings for us. That game could have spun wildly different without them playing the outfield so well.”
Missing piece
This newsletter was created for games like last night, where there was too much information to fit into the game story.
I would have loved to have dived deeper and explained more about what happened on the three plays that resulted in outs at the plate last night.
But Stammen instructed a media relations staffer to inform reporters that Henley would be unavailable to talk. Stammen’s reason was that his addressing the plays was sufficient.
Stammen is, as modern managers go, one of the more willing to engage the media on virtually any topic. He is extremely helpful and should be appreciated by the media and fans for his forthrightness about most things.
But it is unfortunate he made that decision — presumably to shield Henley — because Henley is perfectly capable of speaking for himself and has done so before in his long career.
Also, Henley was the one making the split-second decisions. No one’s perspective is as important as his.
I have never come away from a conversation with a third base coach and not been better informed. There is always an explanation for their decision that makes sense, at least from his vantage point. That would have been nice to have last night.
Anyway, it was important that you know why there is no perspective from Henley in today’s newsletter.
Good finish
Walker Buehler turned in his second consecutive quality start.
It might not have been his best start, but he ended his night with perhaps as dominant a five innings as he has had all season.
After a single, a walk and a single to start what would become a two-run first inning, Buehler retired 17 of the 18 batters he faced after that, including the final 10 in a row.
The first inning was the latest in a season-long battle against a temporary lack of command. It was the seventh time in his past nine starts and 16th time in his 25 starts that Buehler has allowed at least one multi-run inning. Last night was the 10th time this season that crooked-numbered inning was the only time he was scored on in a start.
Buehler has almost always recovered well. It is just a matter of how long it lasts.
Many of the troublesome innings have been a little weird, too. Walks have doomed him a few times. Soft singles have bit him.
Last night, he surrendered a leadoff single on a soft line drive and an RBI single on a grounder that was just out of the reach of both first baseman Ty France and Cronenworth at second.
“Two guys get on and walk a guy, and that stuff kind of piles up,” he said. “Obviously, I can’t rear back and try and punch three guys quite like the way I used to. So, you know, balls in play can be a little tough when you’re a pitcher.”
Not his worst
Walking into the dugout after that first inning, Buehler was caught on the Mets telecast yelling toward at least one person.
“There’s conversations we have (about) the way we were gonna set up certain hitters, or what we’re gonna try to do to hitters,” Buehler said. “And I think every time there’s kind of seeing-eye stuff like that, there’s frustration all around. So, you know, nothing wrong. Just kind of conversation.”
Walker Buehler didn’t look happy in the dugout after his first inning in New York pic.twitter.com/8KWCe605wr
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) August 18, 2026
It sure looked like something different than a conversation. Though it did not look all that different from a number of times Buehler has returned to the dugout in his career. He runs hot during games.
“Yeah, I mean, you know, I’ve always kind of been an emotional guy,” he said. “I know that video is kind of going around a little bit, but I don’t think that’s anywhere close to me being upset.”
It’s official
Yesterday brought the expected news that the group led by José E. Feliciano and Kwanza Jones has been approved as the new owners of the Padres.
You can read about that in my story from yesterday (here).
The Padres will hold a news conference to introduce Feliciano and Jones this coming Monday.
This should be seen as an exciting moment for Padres fans. It will be interesting to hear the new owners’ plans.
And then the real talking starts — with their actions in regard to payroll.
Could be big
Reliever Jason Adam took a significant early step in his return from a shoulder strain yesterday afternoon.
He is still likely at least four weeks from pitching for the Padres. But if the right-hander’s recovery does progress in the manner the organization believes is possible, it could end up being a big boost akin to a trade deadline pickup.
“You get somebody like that sometime in September,” Padres manager Stammen said. “That’s a big shot in the arm for everybody.”
Adam, whose 1.88 ERA in 128 games since joining the Padres at the trade deadline in 2024 is third-best among qualifying relievers in that span, has not pitched since June 29 and only began playing catch from a short distance on Saturday.
Adam reached 90 feet at what he estimated was 60% to 70% intensity yesterday.
“My command was trash, so I think I’m in midseason form,” he joked. “… I honestly felt as good as I’ve felt — at that intensity — all year. It felt clean. No pain. Really encouraged today.”
Yesterday going well means the Padres will begin to map out a progression for Adam’s throwing program. But people in the organization have said they felt he would be able to ramp up relatively quickly once he got to the point he could throw.
“It’s hard because I haven’t got any sort of (plan),” Adam said. But in my mind, my math, I’m hoping around the 12th to 15th of September would be a dream. .. I would love to get a few weeks of regular season, finish strong and roll in the postseason.”
Tidbits
Last night was the first time this season and just the third time in the past 12 seasons the Padres scored fewer than two runs in a game in which they had at least 13 baserunners.
Cronenworth, whose second single is the one that led to Bogaerts being thrown out, finished 2-for-3 with a walk. He is 9-for-29 (.310) during a seven-game hitting streak.
Kyle Hart followed Buehler and worked the final two innings. Hart has allowed one run over his past 10 appearances (17⅓ innings).
Luis Campusano was 0-for-3 with a walk last night. Between Campusano and Freddy Fermin, Padres catchers have reached base safely in 29 of the Padres’ 30 games since the All-Star break.
The Diamondbacks were routed by the Red Sox last night, so the Padres maintained their one-game lead in the race for the National League’s final wild-card spot. They lost ground to the Phillies.
All right, that’s it for me.
Talk to you tomorrow.