Freddy Fermin's heroics lift Padres past Mets, snap six-game skid

SAN DIEGO, Calif. — The Padres (33-30) snapped a six-game losing streak on Saturday night thanks to strong defense and the bat of an unlikely hero in a 3-2 victory over the New York Mets (28-36).

That hero was catcher Freddy Fermin, who rounded the bases with plenty of emotion after hitting his first home run of the season and giving his team a much-needed 3-2 lead. That home run could be what changes the Padres season, or so they hope.

“He works his ass off every day,” Padres center fielder Jackson Merrill said. “So for him to get that moment means a lot. Hopefully that's the exorcism for all of us. I feel like out of all of us, he needed it the most. It's huge to see that, so hopefully it sparks a fire, and we keep going with it.”

San Diego is not out of the woods offensively by any stretch, but this was a much-needed win for a team that had lost 10 of its previous 11 games entering Saturday. During that stretch, the offense had been largely ineffective.

“Those games are all in the past,” Padres manager Craig Stammen said. “We've got to put up a brick wall almost every day and say today is the only day that we can do anything in about it.”

Padres starting pitcher Griffin Canning delivered one of his better outings of the season, allowing three hits, one earned run, and striking out six over five innings.

The Mets scored first in the top of the second inning. Marcus Semien drew a walk as the second batter of the inning, and AJ Ewing followed with a single to right field. Two batters later, Brett Baty singled to center, bringing Semien home for an early 1-0 lead.

“I think today proved it's kind of a team thing,” Canning said. “I think everyone had their role and everyone played their part. Just trying to go out there and put up zeros or a one there just to keep the team in the game.”

David Frerker-Imagn Images

Jun 6, 2026; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres starting pitcher Griffin Canning (17) throws a pitch during the first inning against the New York Mets at Petco Park.

The Padres answered in the bottom of the third. Second baseman Sung-mun Song worked a five-pitch walk and later stole second base while Fernando Tatis Jr. was at the plate. With a full count, Tatis Jr. lined a ball up the middle that ricocheted off second base and into the outfield, allowing Song to race home and tie the game 1-1.

San Diego had another chance to take the lead later in the inning when Ty France drew a walk, putting two runners aboard. However, Manny Machado struck out on four pitches against Mets starter Nolan McLean to end the threat.

Things got strange in the bottom of the fifth inning. Song opened the frame with a single, and Fermin followed with a sacrifice bunt to move him into scoring position. Tatis Jr. then reached on an infield hit after Bo Bichette made a diving stop but could not complete the play. Merrill later popped out to center field, but Song advanced to third.

On the fourth pitch of France's at-bat, Tatis Jr. attempted to steal second base. For some reason, Song broke for home while catcher Luis Torrens still had the ball in his hand. After a brief rundown, McLean tagged Song out, keeping the game tied at 1-1.

“Song definitely didn't read the pump fake, thought he was throwing through to second, and then going on that,” Stammen explained. “We just got to practice that a little bit more, and make sure we communicate with him properly, and he understands what we're looking for in that situation. I'll take the blame for that.”

The Padres received a strong sixth inning from reliever Adrian Morejón, who struck out two batters and got Bichette to ground out.

The Mets regained the lead in the seventh when reliever Bradgley Rodríguez threw just one pitch to Semien, who launched it into left-center field for his seventh home run of the season, giving New York a 2-1 advantage.

The lead did not last long.

With two outs in the bottom of the seventh, Song reached on an infield hit after a ball trickled down the third-base line. Reliever Austin Warren tried to field it and beat Song to first base but tripped and fell. Fermin followed and crushed the first pitch he saw into left field. Petco Park erupted as Fermin's first home run of the season gave San Diego a 3-2 lead.

Fermin entered the game batting .126 and provided a much-needed spark for the Padres offense.

“I’ve never been a part of a slump as long as that has ever been, but everything like that has to come to an end eventually,” Fermin said. “Good thing it came at a time where we came out with the victory and that's what matters at the end of the day.”

David Frerker-Imagn Images

Jun 6, 2026; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres second baseman Sung-Mun Song (24) celebrates after hitting a single during the fifth inning against the New York Mets at Petco Park.

In the top of the eighth inning, Carson Benge and Bichette singled off reliever Jason Adam to put two runners on base. Juan Soto stepped to the plate to a chorus of boos from Padres fans. On Adam's first pitch, Soto hit a ground ball toward second base. Song fielded it cleanly and quickly turned a double play after tagging Benge at second.

The perfect image from this series came moments later as Soto stood in disbelief before smiling after Song's tremendous defensive play. Petco Park roared in appreciation of the play and took the opportunity to continue booing the former Padres star, as they had throughout the series.

“Welcome back,” chuckled Merrill to Soto. “We can just play good defense and make stuff happen. Song's a gritty player, loves playing baseball, he's got a smile on his face, always, so he's looking for the best outcome and he did it.”

Saturday marked Mason Miller's first save opportunity since May 29 against the Washington Nationals. He walked one batter, struck out one, and induced two flyouts to secure the victory.

“That's a huge lift off your shoulders,” Stammen said. “Hopefully create some more belief, like, ‘yeah, we are a good team. We have done this for most of the season.’ A lot of wins like this, and this is how we're going to win going forward in the season.”

The Padres will wrap up the series against the Mets on Sunday at 1:10 p.m. when Randy Vásquez (5-3) takes the mound against Sean Manaea (0-1).