SAN DIEGO — The San Diego Padres’ bullpen is taken into account among the finest in baseball. Their lineup, revamped by a few key commerce deadline acquisitions, no less than rivals the lately inconsistent model the Dodgers have gotten out of theirs.

However this weekend, with first place on the road within the groups’ ultimate assembly this season, the Dodgers had been speculated to have one distinct benefit.

Their beginning rotation was wholesome, contemporary and lined as much as throw three of its greatest arms at Petco Park.

The Padres, then again, had been banged up and beginning three veterans with a collective earned-run common north of 5.00.

Yeah … a lot for all that.

For the second straight night time on Saturday, in San Diego’s 5-1 win, a Padres starter unexpectedly dominated the Dodgers, whereas a Dodgers starter disappointingly stumbled within the fourth inning. This time, it was Nestor Cortes who was in cruise management, spinning six scoreless innings whereas retiring his first 16 batters. On the opposite facet, it was Tyler Glasnow who bumped into hassle, yielding three runs within the fourth to go away the Dodgers for useless.

Similar to that, what was a two-game division lead for the Dodgers (73-57) in the beginning of this week, coming off their sweep of the Padres in Los Angeles final weekend, is a one-game benefit for San Diego within the Nationwide League West standings, with the Padres (74-56) primed to brush the Dodgers proper again.

An evening after managing only one run and one hit off Yu Darvish (after he entered the sport with an ERA shut to six.00), the Dodgers regarded much more overmatched by the left-handed Cortes — who was out for redemption after giving up Freddie Freeman’s walk-off grand slam within the World Sequence whereas taking part in for the New York Yankees final season.

Since that fateful October night time, Cortes has switched groups twice. Within the offseason, he was dealt to the Milwaukee Brewers, the place he made two early begins earlier than struggling an elbow damage. On the deadline, he was one in every of seven gamers the Padres acquired to bolster their roster for the stretch run.

San Diego Padres beginning pitcher Nestor Cortes delivers in opposition to the Dodgers within the third inning Saturday.

(Derrick Tuskan / Related Press)

Cortes had supplied minimal assist in his first three Padres outings, giving up seven runs in 15 innings whereas averaging barely 90 mph along with his fastball.

However on Saturday, he discovered a rhythm along with his trademark cutter, throwing it greater than some other pitch whereas recording no less than one out with it in all six innings he pitched.

The Dodgers hardly threatened within the first, with Shohei Ohtani main off with a strikeout and Mookie Betts rolling over a center-cut cutter to 3rd base. Within the second, Cortes gained his rematch with Freeman; throwing a down-and-in fastball all so much like the one which landed within the right-field pavilion of Dodger Stadium final 12 months — solely to show and watch one other deep drive die on the warning observe, this time to straightaway heart subject at Petco Park.

From there, the outs saved coming.

Within the sixth inning, Miguel Rojas lastly broke up the no-no, adjusting to one more cutter for a line-drive single to proper.

However by then, Glasnow had already dug a gap too deep for the Dodgers’ slumping lineup to climb out of.

After retiring his first six batters, Glasnow began dropping his command within the third. He issued a leadoff stroll to Ramón Laureano, one other to Fernando Tatis Jr., and solely escaped the jam after a 10-pitch at-bat in opposition to Luis Arraez led to a grounder.

Within the fourth, the Padres wouldn’t come away empty-handed once more.

Walks to Manny Machado (on 4 pitches to guide off the inning) and Xander Bogaerts (on a string of fastballs that missed the zone) had been sandwiched round a single from Ryan O’Hearn. Then, with the bases loaded, Laureano lined a two-run single to proper. Jake Cronenworth tacked on a sacrifice fly. And identical to on Friday, the Dodgers stared down the deficit — and located no strategy to erase it.

Cortes stranded Rojas, with the inning ending on a flyout from Ohtani. After that, the Padres’ talent-rich bullpen saved issues at an arm’s size, with a pinch-hit residence run from Alex Freeland (his second in as many nights) representing the Dodgers’ solely scoring for a second night time in a row.

Dodgers beginning pitcher Tyler Glasnow delivers in opposition to the Padres within the fifth inning Saturday.

(Sean M. Haffey / Getty Photos)

To do some fast math to date this weekend…

The Padres’ two starters have mixed for 12 innings, one run and two hits in comparison with the 11 innings and 5 runs the Dodgers’ rotation has allowed.

The Dodgers have totaled 5 hits, three walks and 15 strikeouts. The Padres have 10 hits, eight walks and solely 10 punchouts in opposition to Dodger pitching.

And, most critically, the Padres have two wins — placing them again alone in first place by one sport, and on the verge of a sweep that (no less than based mostly on the pitching matchups) few would have seen coming.