While the San Diego Padres are fighting for a National League West title, things have not gone well for them lately. They currently find themselves in a four-game losing streak heading into Friday's matchup with the Colorado Rockies. They were recently swept by the Baltimore Orioles, who sit in last place in the American League East just earlier this week.
San Diego is 2-7 in their last three series, and need to bounce back fast. They have a good opportunity to do that over the weekend against the Rockies, who have already been eliminated from postseason contention.
Manny Machado recently spoke about the club's struggles over the last three series. He was honest in his take, saying he and the club need to buckle down and get back to playing good baseball, via Sports Illustrated's Aaron Coloma.
"Terrible homestand," said Machado. "We got swept. Could have played a lot better. But just keep grinding, man. It's a tough, tough stretch. It's been a bad few weeks for us, but we're going to get over it."
Starting pitching could be to blame for the Padres' struggles lately
Starting pitching has struggled for the Padres over the recent stretch of games. According to Coloma, San Diego has had the worst ERA over the past nine games, sitting at 7.52.
The Pitching staff must be better if they have any hopes of overtaking the Los Angeles Dodgers in the division. San Diego has a much more favorable strength of schedule the rest of the way out. They must take advantage of this upcoming series against the Rockies and one later against the Chicago White Sox.