Freddy Fermin’s one-out single in the bottom of the 11th inning Monday night lifted the San Diego Padres to a 5-4 win over the visiting Milwaukee Brewers, sealing a spot in the National League playoffs.
Bryce Johnson was placed at second to start the inning and Jose Iglesias bunted him to third. Fermin lined the first pitch from Grant Anderson (2-6) into center to start a celebration in the middle of the field.
Rookie Bradgley Rodriguez (1-0) induced a double-play ball from Jackson Chourio to escape a bases-loaded spot in the top of the inning as San Diego (86-71) clinched a playoff spot for the second straight year. The Padres also pulled within 2 1/2 games of the idle Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League West and 2 1/2 games of the idle Chicago Cubs for the NL’s top wild-card spot.
Each team scored in the 10th inning. Sal Frelick’s fielder’s-choice bouncer plated Brice Turang to put Milwaukee ahead but San Diego equalized on Gavin Sheets’ fielder’s-choice grounder that scored Luis Arraez.
Milwaukee (95-62), which clinched the NL Central title Sunday, still leads idle Philadelphia (92-64) by 2 1/2 games for the best record in the NL.
San Diego tied the game in the bottom of the seventh when Arraez lined a two-out RBI single to right-center that scored Iglesias, who walked and reached second on a walk to pinch-hitter Ramon Laureano.
Arraez’s hit denied Milwaukee starter Freddy Peralta his 18th win. He left after five innings, allowing four hits and two runs with a walk and six strikeouts. San Diego right-hander Nick Pivetta pitched the first 5 2/3 innings, permitting four hits and three runs while walking five and fanning five.
The Padres scratched out a run in the first when Peralta stumbled while throwing a 2-2 pitch to Jake Cronenworth and was called for a balk, plating Manny Machado.
That lead was short-lived as the Brewers touched Pivetta for three runs in the second. Caleb Durbin grounded a bases-loaded single to left with one out and Christian Yelich lined a two-out, two-run single to center.
Given the lead, Peralta breezed through the San Diego lineup until Iglesias ambushed a first-pitch fastball in the fifth and drove it an estimated 409 feet into the second deck in left-center, just his second homer of the year.
