Machado reaches 300-homer mark with epic 2nd-deck blast

PHILADELPHIA -- Manny Machado reached a milestone at Citizens Bank Park on Saturday, hitting his 300th career home run to give the Padres a one-run lead over the Phillies in Game 1 of a doubleheader.

His home run was the lone bright spot in an otherwise tough day for the Padres, who dropped both games of the twin bill, 6-4 and 9-4.

The two games saw San Diego’s bullpen implode. Once a strength, the Padres’ relievers allowed a combined 10 earned runs in 7 1/3 innings.

“This was a miserable day,” Padres manager Bob Melvin said. “We came off a good night [on Friday]. Lost a tough one [in the first game], and [the second game] got away from us. It was not a well-played game by us.”

Machado played well enough to reach the milestone. With the score tied at 3, he swung at a 2-2 pitch from Phillies left-hander Matt Strahm and cranked the ball into the second deck. The exit velocity was 108.5 mph, and the blast traveled a Statcast-projected 425 feet.

“It’s a pretty awesome milestone to complete,” Machado said. “I’m very blessed to have one [homer] in the big leagues. God blessed me with 299 more. Hopefully, there will be more, and a couple of more wins as well.”

As he ran the bases, Machado said he thought about his family, who helped him along the way.

“The hard work that they dedicated to me -- even until now, they are my support group,” Machado said. “I love to have them by my side through all this. It’s just pretty special.”

However, his heroics lasted only a half-inning. San Diego lost the lead in the bottom of the eighth when Philadelphia scored three unanswered runs against the Padres’ bullpen.

“Manny hits a big homer, and we can’t hold the lead, again,” Melvin said.

Machado became the 11th active player to reach the 300-homer plateau. Evan Longoria (342) and Nolan Arenado (318) are the only other third basemen on the list. Machado is one of just 18 third basemen in AL/NL history to reach the mark, doing so at 31 years and nine days old. Eddie Mathews is the only third baseman to hit his 300th home run at a younger age than Machado.

As he reaches the milestone, Machado has been one of the Padres’ hottest hitters. He has homered in three consecutive games and five of his past six. Machado is also 15-for-43 (.349) with eight home runs and 18 RBIs in July.

“It seems like he reaches a ton of milestones here,” Melvin said. “He has been absolutely on fire. Now he has over 50 RBIs just over the halfway point. What he has done the last couple of weeks -- I don’t want to say you expect it from him; it has been pretty torrid.”

Former Major Leaguer Yonder Alonso, Machado's brother-in-law, talked about the importance of Machado reaching the milestone, even though it came during a loss. Alonso has known Machado since the latter was 15 years old.

“I think, personally for him and the family, it’s just a great number to get to,” Alonso told MLB.com. “Who would have thought a kid from Miami, a kid who went to Brito [Miami Private School] would be in the big leagues and not only play in the big leagues for a long time but have the career he has had for a long time?”

Asked if he saw Machado’s baseball talent back when Machado was a teenager, Alonso said, “People have asked me that. We don’t see Manny as a player. It’s who he is as a person, with his family and friends and what he does for the community. That’s more the No. 1 thing for me. The baseball stuff is something he was obviously blessed to do. … When you look at his career, he has been lucky and consistent. Yeah, it has been great.”

Despite being swept in the doubleheader and falling to 44-49 on the season, 10 games behind the Dodgers in the National League West and 7 1/2 behind the Giants, who have the third and final NL Wild Card spot, Machado believes the Padres still have the talent to make a run at the postseason.

“We have the players. We all believe in each other. We are not going to take anything for granted,” he said. “It’s not going to be easy. We have to fight for it. We have to go above and beyond. Days like today are a grind. …

“That first game was a tough one. That slipped away from us. [The Phillies] fought back and we came up a little short. Obviously, that second game, we could have done a little bit better offensively. … [Sunday] is going to be a big day. We have two [good pitchers] on the mound [Padres right-hander Seth Lugo and Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler], and we have to try to come up with the victory.”