Machado once again shoulders load for Padres

SAN DIEGO -- If the Padres are going to do this -- if they’re going to reach the postseason and prove a legitimate threat once they get there -- Manny Machado is going to need some help.

The past two nights should make that abundantly clear.

On Friday, Machado did his thing. He's an MVP candidate, and he played like one, going 3-for-3 with a pair of walks. But the Padres also got contributions from up and down their lineup. They got a brilliant performance from their entire relief corps. It was a complete team effort, with Machado at the center of it. And guess what? They beat the Dodgers.

That. Right there. That's the formula. Jot it down. Commit it to memory.

Because sometimes it looks like it did Saturday night -- an 8-4 Dodgers victory at Petco Park in which Machado accounted for the entirety of the San Diego offense across the first eight innings

• Box score

Machado launched a pair of solo home runs, bringing him to 28 on the season -- which is shaping up to be perhaps the finest season of his remarkable 11-year career. But the rest of the offense struggled against Dodgers left-hander Julio Urías. With the loss, the Padres fell half a game behind Philadelphia into the last NL Wild Card spot, three games ahead of Milwaukee for the final playoff place.

“We’re obviously in a good situation,” Machado said. “But we can’t take that for granted. We’ve got to continue to play baseball, continue to play some good games. We’ve got a tough schedule ahead of us as well, so we can’t take that foot off the pedal.”

Of course, the biggest reason the Padres are where they are -- squarely in control of their own playoff destiny with 3 1/2 weeks remaining -- is Machado. When the offense struggled early in the season, Machado carried them. Now -- even after a revelatory Trade Deadline -- the Padres continue to rely heavily on Machado. Some nights, like this one, a bit too much.

Still, the Padres had won three straight prior to Saturday’s letdown. In those three games, they got huge contributions from elsewhere, and Machado took note.

“It’s going to take all of us to win ballgames down the road,” Machado said. “We’ve got to keep picking each other up in whatever way we can. Ultimately, we believe in the guys here. We’ve just got to continue playing some good baseball.”

Machado continues to make his case for the National League MVP Award, hitting .303/.371/.544 while playing his usual outstanding defense at third base. Entering play Saturday, Machado trailed only Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado in fWAR. But they're teammates in St. Louis. Machado, meanwhile, has often been left to shoulder a huge burden by himself.

“The one tough stretch he had, that was more due to the [ankle] injury than anything else,” said Padres manager Bob Melvin. “But he’s probably been as consistent as anybody in baseball, across the board. … He’s putting together a fantastic season.”

Machado’s first home run Saturday night was a towering blast that landed in the lowest level of the Western Metal building in right field. It tied the game at 1 in the third inning. But the Dodgers tagged Blake Snell for four runs in the top of the fifth, and the Padres never seriously threatened after that.

Machado’s second homer came in the sixth, an opposite-field blast to the beach area in right-center field -- rarefied territory for any right-handed hitter at Petco Park.

“He’s on,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. “He’s showing right now why he’s one of the elite players in the game. He’s a plus-plus defender, Platinum Glove winner, and when he’s in the box seeing it the way he is, it just seems like he’s on everything.”

When the game fell out of reach, the Padres used the opportunity to get some work for two pitchers whose presence could be crucial down the stretch. After missing nearly five months with right elbow tendinitis, Pierce Johnson pitched a 1-2-3 eighth inning. Then, Sean Manaea -- who had his turn skipped in the rotation, while he works through some struggles -- pitched a scoreless ninth. Melvin hinted afterward that it’s possible Manaea gets reinserted for his next start.

Those were two small positives on a night that saw the Padres fall to their Southern California rivals for the 11th time in 15 games this season. On Sunday, they’ll have the chance to snap a seven-series losing streak against the Dodgers.

“We played a helluva game yesterday, they came out [and won] today,” Machado said. “Tomorrow is go out there and leave it all on the field again before that off-day. We’re definitely playing a really good team and a team that we need to beat if we want to get to where we want to get to. So it’s going to be a big day tomorrow.”