SHILDT SAYS: Thoughts After and Before Padres’ 15–11 Win Over Dodgers in Korea

Jake Cronenworth was 4-for-4 with a sacrifice fly, Manny Machado hit a three-run homer, Luis Campusano was 3-for-6 with two doubles and two RBIs and rookie Jackson Merrill had his first two Major League hits early Thursday morning as the Padres defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 15–11 to earn a split of the Seoul Series in Korea.

Padres’ manager Mike Shildt praised his ballclub before and after the game and noted that four Padres — Merrill, Graham Pauley and relief pitchers Yuki Matsui and Stephen Kolek — made their Major League debuts in the two-game, season-opening series.

“I just want to say a real quick thank you to Korea and Seoul,” Shildt said at the end of his post-game remarks early Thursday morning (San Diego time).

“The hospitality has been fantastic. And we’ve had a really good experience here. And we’re very excited to have been part of this.”

Shildt then singled out two members of the Padres’ family for their efforts — traveling secretary TJ Lasita and clubhouse and equipment manager TJ Laidlaw.

“Also a quick shout out,” said Shildt. “There are a lot of logistics that went into this. And the two TJs are unsung heroes and I think it’s important to get it out there. They faced a lot of challenges and made it easy for us to concentrate on baseball. I appreciate those guys.”

As for Thursday’s win …

“Winning tonight means a lot to the group,” said Shildt. “I’m really proud of this group, the way we did it. It was a complete identity game. It took a lot of courage, a lot of toughness, a lot of fight. It was that kind of game early, especially coming back off a tough loss yesterday. To come back and fight for it like we did tonight and keep going. They came back at us like a heavyweight fight. This was a really big game for our group. We talk about that a lot. Coming back and adding on is what it’s all about. It was on display tonight in how they competed.

“It was staying hungry, keep having good at-bats. Be the best and get better. Guys were having great at-bats all the way through. Basically, that was through the whole lineup starting with (Xander) Bogaerts, who set the tone. (Fernando) Tatis (Jr.) had a great at-bat. Cronenworth, what a day, man. He lays out four ropes and a sacrifice fly. Manny give us the space that was nice to have. Campusano had a nice day and Merrill had his first Major League hit. So, we were relentless. I loved it.

“This was two good teams going at each other. It was a hard-fought loss yesterday. Hard-fought win today. We ended up leaving here 1–1. It was a good battle and clearly good games. We did our part for sure. We’re just going to continue to compete. We played Padres baseball.”

Shildt of the Major League debuts: “It’s huge. We had four guys make their Major League debuts in the last two days. Merrill, Yuki, Pauley last night and now Kolek tonight. TJ Lasita and I were talking last night on the way back about how acclimated the young players are and the credit they deserve for that.

“Let’s not underestimate the importance of our veterans welcoming them in and shepherding them in so that the younger players feel comfortable and free to play. Our veteran leadership has been outstanding.”

Shildt on Robert Suarez getting the four-out save: “That was huge. When he came in, that’s not necessarily how you want it. Suarez in a three-run game to go get Mookie Betts. He came back and got (Shohei) Ohtani to end the inning. Then he went back out and went 1–2–3 in the ninth. The ball came out really good. He was hitting 99–100. It was a good day for Robert.”

Shildt on the four-run rally in the third started by the bottom of the lineup: “Campusano and (Tyler) Wade had some good swings and hit the ball hard. Campy had three hits. Wade had two knocks. (Jurickson) Profar was having good at-bats and, of course, Merrill at the bottom just dropped the head on that one and almost got it out for his first homer. Once you have that bottom of the lineup production and it turns over for other guys, it’s huge for team offense.”

Before the game, Shildt spoke at length about starting pitcher Joe Musgrove.

“I’ve been thrilled with his progress,” Shildt said of Musgrove, who finished 2023 on the injured list. “He’s done a tremendous job. He had a great off-season. Appropriately, he used a veteran-type ramp up to spring training, getting himself ready. And then toward the end of our spring training he was really the Joe Musgrove we expect. He’s been terrific.

“There’s a lot of uniqueness in our clubhouse and Joe is part of that in a very positive way. You talk about the ‘it’ factor. It’s hard to absolutely quantify that, but Joe has it. And it’s relative to a lot of things. Part of it is clearly his physical ability to compete at the Major League level and be one of the elite guys, which clearly Joe is. It also speaks to his dedication to be a guy who is willing to step up and model what it looks like to be a professional, big-league contributing winning player. And then it’s also the ability to share your thoughts and hold people accountable to a standard and do that in a manner that shows professionalism. Joe does all those things. He also takes care of the guys off the field. He is a consummate pro. He’s a winner across the board.

“The first time I saw Joe was in Triple-A, which was like a hundred years ago. He was pitching in the Houston organization. Part of my responsibility was to write players up that we liked on other teams who we thought could help win a championship and be a championship player on a championship club. I think I wrote up four guys that year and Joe was one of them. That was my first non-verbal chance to meet Joe.

“And then over the course of time, we had some dinners together, which gives you a chance to share thoughts. That’s the way it works best to get to know our guys. Clearly, I have the responsibility to work together with the clubhouse. Joe has been a tremendous partner and I enjoy talking with him. He has a lot of depth. He’s got a lot of heart and an appreciation for the team, the city. It’s just been a good relationship. I’m enjoying every moment of it.”

Shildt on losing the season opener after leading 2–1 into the eighth: “Yesterday’s game was one of 162. It was the opener. It was on a fairly large stage. People were paying attention to it. So, it was more magnified, which we love. I loved it because it felt like a playoff game. It had that atmosphere prior to the game. And I’m talking about a deep playoff game … deep in the playoffs. It was awesome. I love the environment and I loved the way the guys responded. The guys got after it. They were aggressive. They played the game and played the game right. We came up short, but we took a lot of things from that game that were good and we look at it and figure out ways we can always improve.”

Shildt on deploying Ha-Seong Kim as the №5 hitter: “Kim led off for the club a fair amount last year and did it mostly against left-handed starters. But he did lead off a fair amount last year. And he’s hit fifth these first two games against the Dodgers in Korea and why is that? The good news is we have a lot of interchangeable parts in the lineup. The specific reason why we like Kim in the fifth spot … I always like a guy who can handle the bat in the five spot. I know there are a lot of opportunities, especially with the lineup we have. The №5 hitter is going to come up with runners on base. Kim uses the whole field. He puts the ball in play a lot. He doesn’t hit the ball on the ground a lot and runs well and doesn’t hit into a lot of doubleplays. He’s going to use the whole field. He’s also going to take his walks. He’s going to put the ball in play. He puts the ball in the air. Guys who can do that have a chance to drive in runs.

Shildt on preparing for Dodgers’ starting pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto: “Generally speaking, it’s more of a hybrid view to him — what we’ve seen in what he’s done in Japan and some of the history there and some World Baseball Classic stuff. And then, of course, what he’s done in spring training. We’ve looked at a little bit of everything so far and also we’ll evaluate tonight. Then we talked before the game. We looked for the ball in the middle of the plate and put a good swing on it. Guys took a good approach and had good at-bats.

Shildt on using Jose Azocar in both games in left as a late defensive replacement for Profar: “Profar does a nice job in left. He threw a guy out in an exhibition game trying to take an extra base. He gets good jumps and takes good routes. He’s a very good defender himself. I think he was top-10 in the league in assists a couple years ago. But Azocar is a center fielder who can play left. And so now you’ve got an upgrade a little bit with some speed. So, then you have three center fielders playing in the outfield. I just like the ability to get him in the game with a lead late in the game.”