Padres pregame: Alfaro back behind plate for finale in Washington

After progressing by way of pregame exercises the earlier two days, Jorge Alfaro is once more behind the plate for Sunday’s sequence finale in Washington.

First pitch is 9:05 a.m. (Peacock).

Alfaro had not performed since exiting Monday’s recreation with recurring proper knee irritation, leaving Austin Nola to begin 4 straight video games.

Alfaro will bat ninth in a lineup with a number of tweaks, starting with Jurickson Profar serving because the DH for the primary time since Might 21 as Wil Myers sees his first begin since Aug. 8.

Myers doubled off the bench in Friday’s win, his solely extra-base hit since getting back from the injured checklist Aug. 1. He’s hitting .261/.308/304 with 10 strikeouts towards two walks since then and had been relegated to bench obligation since beginning three straight video games in middle towards left-handed pitching.

Myers is the eight-hole behind middle fielder Trent Grisham, who has homered in back-to-back video games and is 5-for-10 over his final three video games to push his batting common above .200 for the primary time since after the second recreation of the season.

Juan Soto stays in proper area and is within the two-hole after going 3-for-9 with a double and two RBIs in his first two video games in his outdated dwelling park.

Third baseman Manny Machado will bat third, adopted by first baseman Josh Bell at clean-up, second baseman Brandon Drury and Jake Cronenworth beginning at shortstop for the primary time since Might 29.

The final Padre to begin at shortstop apart from Ha-Seong Kim: CJ Abrams on July 22 and Abrams is now within the Nationals system.

Kim has hit in six straight video games after going 1-for-4 with a double in Saturday’s 4-3 loss, a pricey one within the wild-card race because the Braves swept a doubleheader to maneuver 5½ video games above the Padres and the Brewers beat the Cardinals to maneuver inside one recreation within the push for the No. 6 seed.

• Braves | 69-46 | +5.5
• Phillies | 63-50 | +0.5
• Padres | 64-52 | —

• Brewers | 61-51 | -2

Sunday’s pitching matchup

Padres LHP Blake Snell (4-6, 3.96 ERA)

He’s allowed a 1.19 ERA, struck out 29 and walked 5 over his final 4 begins, going 3-1 in that stretch. Snell allowed 4 runs on six hits and 4 walks in 4 innings final 12 months towards a Nationals staff that also employed Soto and Bell.

Solely 4 present Nationals have historical past with Snell and one (Luke Voit) was his teammate till his Aug. 2 commerce to Washington:

• DH Nelson Cruz (4-for-12, HR, RBI, BB, 4 Ks)
• 1B Luke Voit (1-for-9, HR, 2 RBIs, 4 BBs, 3 Ks)
• OF Victor Robles (0-for-1, HBP)
• INF Ildemaro Vargas (1-for-2)

Nationals RHP Paulo Espino (0-4, 4.04 ERA)

The 35-year-old has a 2.03 ERA in 26 2/3 innings as a reliever and a 5.14 mark in 11 begins (49 innings). He has not gone deeper than 5 1/3 innings in any of his begins, however allowed only one run in 5 innings in his final begin at Wrigley Discipline on Tuesday.

Present Padres hitters are a mixed 2-for-11 towards Espino, though one hit was a grand slam by Myers in final 12 months’s 24-8 win in Washington (Cronenworth collected his triple towards Espino in that recreation en path to his first cycle):

• C Jorge Alfaro (0-for-3, Okay)
• INF Brandon Drury (0-for-2, Okay)
• OF Wil Myers (1-for-2, HR, 4 RBIs)
• 1B Josh Bell (0-for-1)
• INF Jake Cronenworth (1-for-1, 3B, RBI)
• OF Trent Grisham (0-for-1)
• 3B Manny Machado (0-for-1)