Hit batter, error, walks, misplays are costly; Padres will have to win next two games to avoid losing record on road trip

The Cardinal received five-plus scoreless innings from Miles Mikolas in a 3-0 shutout of the Padres on Friday night at Busch Stadium.

The Cardinals have bounced back from a bad road trip in a big way, returning home to win two big games against the Padres and move to within a game and a half of the final Wild Card spot. Tonight, Miles Mikolas took the ball and gave the Cardinals five scoreless innings before turning things over to Steven Matz for the next inning.

The last time the Cardinals won consecutive games before Friday night, it was June 29 and St. Louis sat a season-best nine games over .500, filled with confidence. An MLB-worst 5-13 stretch followed f

Miles Mikolas and four St. Louis Cardinals relievers combined to shut out the San Diego Padres 3-0 on Friday night. Mikolas (6-7) scattered seven hits over five-plus innings.

Manny Machado was hit twice and Willson Contreras was plunked for the second straight night as the Padres and Cardinals emptied the benches.

(KMAland) -- The Cardinals shut down the Padres in regional MLB on Friday. Check out the scores and leading stats in regional MLB below.

Mikolas (6-7) earned the win Friday against the Padres, allowing seven hits and striking out one across five scoreless innings.

A year later, the Padres find themselves in slightly better standing. They are 55-49, one game ahead of their 54-50 record last July 24. They are also entering dangerous territory. The wins and losses tell a story of year-over-year improvement. The recent trend lines do not.