Padres 6, Twins 2: France's Bat and Vásquez's Two-Hitter Hold the Wild Card

Two-run first, then a fifth that put Minnesota away

August 21, 2026 - San Diego - Ty France took Connor Prielipp deep with two outs in the first, Manny Machado already aboard, and Petco Park had its lead before the Twins could settle in.

France finished with three RBI. Randy Vásquez and two relievers combined on a two-hitter. The San Diego Padres beat the Minnesota Twins 6-2 and held the National League's third wild-card spot. Minnesota dropped a game behind Texas in the AL wild-card race.

San Diego has won nine of 12 and 19 of 26. Minnesota came in off a sweep of Atlanta and left with a fourth loss in seven.

Clemens tied it. The fifth untied it for good.

Vásquez's only real mistake was a two-out, two-run triple from Kody Clemens in the fourth. Byron Buxton and Josh Bell scored. 2-2. Then San Diego answered with four runs in the fifth on four hits, a walk, and a sacrifice fly.

Fernando Tatis Jr., Luis Rengifo, and Machado hit consecutive RBI singles. France's sacrifice fly scored Rengifo. 6-2, and the Padres never looked back. Prielipp (3-7) lasted six innings, six runs, eight hits, seven strikeouts, two walks. France's first-inning homer traveled 421 feet to left-center, his 18th of the year.

Sixteen straight outs after the fourth

Vásquez (9-6) matched his career long with seven innings. Two runs. Two hits. Three strikeouts. Zero walks. Bradgley Rodriguez threw a perfect eighth. Mason Miller struck out the side in the ninth. San Diego retired the final 16 Twins batters.

That is how you protect a wild-card seat on a Friday night when both clubs still have October math on the whiteboard. Length from the starter. Zeroes from the back end. Enough offense from France and the middle of the order to make the two-run blip in the fourth feel temporary.

Minnesota had just swept the NL East-leading Braves. This was supposed to be a measuring stick series between clubs still alive in wild-card math. San Diego took the opener without needing a late rally. France did the early damage. Vásquez did the quiet work. Miller slammed the door with three punchouts.

AthX Engine liked the arm as much as the bat

AthX Engine put San Diego at 13 team fantasy points, third on the slate behind Arizona and Cleveland. Vásquez scored 22 pitching fantasy points, tied for second among all arms Friday. France scored 10 hitting fantasy points. Fantasy points measure the night's production. Price is what the market pays next.

What's next

Dean Kremer starts for Minnesota. Casey Mize goes for San Diego. One series opener does not decide a wild card, but a two-hitter with France driving in three is the kind of card AthX Engine files under keep watching.

Marketplace

*Sources: ESPN recap, ESPN box score, MLB schedule, AthX Engine scoring. Information only; not financial advice.*