Mason Miller did it again.
The Padres’ closer entered the bottom of the ninth inning with a 6-4 lead and pitched as he has since last August. Miller retired three Diamondbacks to secure a win for the Padres in Game 1 of MLB’s Mexico City Series. The 27-year-old induced a weak flyout from Alek Thomas, then groundouts from Jorge Barrosa and Ketel Marte to end it.
By tossing that scoreless ninth, Miller has now gone 34 2/3 consecutive innings without allowing a run. The streak dates back to last season, and breaks the previous Padres franchise record of 33 2/3 set by Cla Meredith in 2006. We've been over this before, but Miller is essentially unhittable right now.
So far in 2026, Miller has struck out 27 hitters in 13 1/3 innings. As stated, he hasn’t allowed a run, has surrendered just three hits and two walks. His WHIP is an absurd 0.38, and opponents are hitting .071 off of him. He leads MLB with 10 saves.
Miller isn’t the only pitcher who stepped up on Saturday for the Padres. Starter Germán Márquez was excellent over six innings, save for a four-batter stretch in the second inning. Márquez allowed singles to Ildemaro Vargas and Nolan Arenado, then a two-run double by Jose Fernandez. Alek Thomas followed with a two-run home run to give the Diamondbacks a 4-0 lead. Márquez was solid after that as he only allowed those four runs and six hits over six innings. He wound up getting the win thanks to San Diego’s lineup.
Ty France led the way offensively for the Padres with two solo home runs. A four-run seventh put San Diego in front, thanks to a two-RBI single by Gavin Sheets and sacrifice flies by Freddy Fermin and Ramon Laureano.
Arizona starter Zac Gallen left the game before the fourth inning after taking a line drive from Fermin off his pitching shoulder in the third inning. He finished the frame but was replaced by Brandon Pfaadt in the fourth. Diamondbacks shortstop Geraldo Perdomo also left the game in the seventh inning after appearing to injure his ankle.
The Padres improved to 18-8 with the win and remain in first place in the NL West. The loss dropped the Diamondbacks to 14-12.
The two teams will be back at it again tomorrow at 4 p.m. ET on MLB.TV.
Relive the game via our live blog below.
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Mexico City Series Game 1 preview
San Diego enters the game on a roll. The Friars currently occupy first place in the NL West with a record of 17–8. They have won 15 of their last 18 games after a 2–5 start, and that has come with both Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado scuffling at the plate to begin the season. Guys like Ramón Laureano and Xander Bogaerts have picked up the slack early in the season, but the Padres need their stars to star if they're going to keep rolling.
Germán Márquez will be on the mound for San Diego, and he’s someone who is used to pitching at altitude. Márquez spent the first 10 seasons of his career with the Rockies. In 2026, he has made four starts for the Padres and is 2-1 with a 3.86 ERA, a 1.39 WHIP and 15 strikeouts against six walks in 18 2/3 innings. He was excellent in his last outing against the Angels, tossing 5 2/3 scoreless innings while allowing two hits and two walks. In his other road start, he threw five scoreless against the Pirates and allowed six hits and one walk. He has allowed four runs in each of his two home starts.
Arizona enters the series at 14–11 and in third place in the division. They have lost three of four following a four-game winning streak. Corbin Carroll has been on fire to start the season, slashing .296/.396/.580 with three home runs, six doubles and four triples. Ildemar Vargas has been a nice surprise as well, as he’s hitting .357 with five home runs, 16 RBIs, and a 1.046 OPS. Those two have been carrying an offense that ranks 16th in runs scored.
The Diamondbacks will send Zac Gallen out to the mound on Saturday. He’s 1-1 with a 3.51 ERA, a 1.48 WHIP and 14 strikeouts against seven walks in 25 2/3 innings so far this season. He allowed two runs and nine hits in 5 2/3 innings against the Blue Jays in his last outing. Gallen has been with Arizona since 2019, and re-signed this offseason on a one-year, $22.025 million deal. We'll see how he handles the altitude.
Check in for all the updates from Mexico City on our live blog below.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Mason Miller Sets Franchise Record as Padres Top Diamondbacks in Mexico City.
