None of that stopped the Padres from doing what they've done to the Giants all series. San Diego took 3 of the first 4 meetings this weekend, and Sunday's finale followed the same script even after Roupp got through the opening two innings unscathed.
San Diego jumped Roupp for 4 runs in the second inning and never trailed. San Francisco chipped away with single runs in the 4th, 5th and 8th to make it interesting late, but a Padres run in the 4th proved to be the difference in a 5-4 final. Seven Giants hits and 2 errors weren't enough to erase a four-run hole dug in a single frame.
The bigger picture explains why this result stings differently for each side. San Diego is scrapping for a wild-card spot and needed exactly this kind of series — winning 4 of 5 recently — to stay in the mix. San Francisco, at 47-64, is buried in the NL West and has reportedly been fielding trade calls on its better players ahead of the deadline, so results like this one are more about evaluating who's worth keeping than chasing October.
Manager Tony Vitello spent part of the week publicly defending Willy Adames after criticism of his defense went viral on the broadcast, which tells you where the temperature is in that clubhouse right now. San Diego, by contrast, gets to bank a series win and move on with its bullpen intact for the stretch run — the kind of small, unglamorous edge that adds up over 162.