Struggles vs. Rox continue despite Machado and Vásquez's effort

SAN DIEGO -- The Padres were rolling, talking about winning the NL West after sweeping the Dodgers in a two-game set and compiling a 10-2 record since the All-Star break.

But the brakes were applied to that chatter because the Colorado Rockies were visiting on Friday night, and locals knew what that meant.

San Diego fell to the Rockies, 5-2, at Petco Park. If that's surprising, you haven't been paying attention.

It marked the fifth straight time that the last-place Rockies defeated the Padres this season, putting Colorado at 6-2 against San Diego.

“We’ve got to change that starting tommorrow,’’ Padres second baseman Xander Bogaerts said. “I mean, these guys probably feel good playing against us.’’

The Padres’ recent recipe for success was simple: timely hitting, solid pitching and a never-say-die attitude that produced multiple come-from-behind victories.

But in the opener of this weekend's series, those attributes were spotted in limited quantities.

Yet, it appeared the Padres would prevail for half of the game.

Thanks to solo home runs by Manny Machado and Donovan Solano and some escapes by southpaw starter Randy Vásquez, the Padres were leading 2-1 after five innings.

Manager Mike Shildt lifted Vásquez (one run, three hits) in favor of Jeremiah Estrada to start the sixth, previewing the parade of lights-out relievers the Padres will deploy after their haul at the Trade Deadline.

“I was confident in the bullpen, and I am still confident,’’ Vásquez said through a translator. “We have a lot of talent in that bullpen.’’

In a perfect Padres world, an effective Estrada would pass the baton to Jason Adam in the seventh, followed by one-inning stints from Tanner Scott and Robert Suarez.

Scott and Adam were among critical pickups acquired recently by A.J. Preller, the team’s aggressive president of baseball operations.

That plan may still be a winning blueprint in the season’s final months and, should they qualify, in the playoffs.

But the Rockies were patient with Estrada (3-2), and their reward was a three-run inning that saw them seize a lead they would never relinquish.

Estrada’s command was askew as he walked his first two batters. But when Brendan Rodgers hit a grounder to the left of shortstop Ha-Seong Kim, it appeared the Padres would turn their third double play.

“Throwing strikes and defense go hand-in-hand,’’ Shildt said. “That would have clearly been an above-average play but sometimes you get on your heels. I’m not going to say [Kim] was, but I always look and see what happened before that.’’

In what was later ruled a single, the ball bounced off Kim’s glove and into center field to load the bases. Estrada would fan Michael Toglia on a 98 mph, four-seamer for the second out, but Kris Bryant didn’t go as easily.

Bryant, the Golden Spikes Award winner at the University of San Diego, flared a single to short center field to chase in a pair of runners for a 3-2 Rockies advantage.

The Padres were in a 5-2 hole in the eighth when Jurickson Profar lifted a ball over the right-center fence, only for Brenton Doyle to haul it in on a sensational catch.

“That was a tough time of the game right there,’’ Bogaerts said. “...It sucked the air out of the whole ballpark.’’

It was the Rockies' time to shine, a rare occurrence against anyone else this season but the Padres. The question is whether San Diego can quickly turn the page before getting ambushed by Colorado again.

“We don’t talk about it and make this thing bigger than it is,’’ Shildt said. “I understand the question. I get it. We need to get the lead, hold the lead, and bring it home.’’

The Rockies always bring their ‘A’ game against the Padres, who have been more than A-OK lately. But the favored team didn’t win, and the Padres are bent on changing that sometime this weekend.