The San Francisco Giants dropped a gut-punch 7-6 decision to the San Diego Padres at Oracle Park on Saturday, September 12, in a nine-inning division game that saw the Giants claw back from a two-run deficit before ultimately running out of outs. Four Giants hitters went deep, and a late three-run rally off Padres reliever Bradgley Rodriguez briefly made things interesting, but Mason Miller locked it down in the ninth with two strikeouts to secure the save and hand San Francisco a one-run defeat.

Giants Offense Shows Power but Starter Cesar Perdomo Struggles Early

The Giants could not overcome a rough outing from starter Cesar Perdomo, who surrendered five earned runs on 10 hits across 4.2 innings. He walked two and struck out three, but the damage was done early. San Diego's bats kept coming at him, and there was no clean inning to speak of after the third.

On the other side, Padres right-hander Michael King was sharp for seven innings, allowing just three earned runs on five hits with zero walks and four strikeouts. He earned the win and set the table for San Diego's bullpen to protect a lead the Giants had already made uncomfortable.

Four Giants Home Runs Not Enough Against San Diego Bullpen

San Francisco got individual contributions across the lineup on the power front.

  • Drew Gilbert went 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBI.
  • Rafael Devers went 1-for-4 with a solo home run and two RBI.
  • Shay Whitcomb went 1-for-3 with a home run and one RBI.
  • Drew Cavanaugh went 1-for-3 with a home run and one RBI.

The four-homer game speaks to Oracle Park's lineup having genuine pop on this night. The problem was sequencing and timing — too many runs came in clusters that didn't change the game's final math enough.

Late Giants Rally Falls One Run Short

The turning point of the game came in the eighth inning, when the Giants generated three runs off Padres reliever Bradgley Rodriguez, who recorded zero outs and gave up three hits and three earned runs before being pulled. That burst brought San Francisco within one, but Adrian Morejon came in to stop the bleeding without allowing another run, and Mason Miller handled the ninth with authority — two strikeouts, no hits, no drama.

The Padres' own offensive highlights were led by Xander Bogaerts, who went 4-for-5, and Dustin Harris, who drove in three runs on one hit. Fernando Tatis Jr. added a home run among his two hits. Jackson Merrill also went deep. That kind of run production, spread across the lineup and backed by King's quality start, proved to be more than the Giants' relief corps could erase.

Giants Bullpen Holds the Line Late but Deficit Was Too Deep

After Perdomo's exit, San Francisco cycled through Joel Kuhnel (one earned run in one inning), Reiver Sanmartin (clean one-third of an inning), Jason Foley (one inning, no earned runs), Dylan Smith (one inning, no earned runs), and Carson Seymour (one inning, no earned runs). The bullpen steadied the ship, but the five runs Perdomo allowed made an already difficult task steeper.

What's Next for the Giants

San Francisco remains at Oracle Park with the Padres still in town, meaning this division series continues and the Giants will need a bounce-back performance fast. Saturday's loss stings — four home runs should win more games than it loses — but the combination of Perdomo's rough start and King's seven-inning efficiency tells the story of why the scoreboard read the way it did when the final out was recorded.