Fernando Tatis Jr.’s run-scoring hit leading off the 10th lifted the Padres to a 3-2 victory over the White Sox Friday.
Chicago’s Lenyn Sosa had tried to pull his last-place team back in it, hitting a game-tying two-run homer with two outs in the ninth inning, but the White Sox still ended up losing their 118th game
Chicago (36-118) needs to go 7-1 in its final eight games to avoid matching the post-1900 record of 120 losses by the 1962 expansion New York Mets.
Chicago is 9-47 since the All-Star break. They trail the American League Central leading Guardians by more than 50 games.
San Diego, on the other hand, (88-66) maintained a two-game lead over Arizona for the top National League wild card and are four games back of Los Angeles in the NL West.
Suarez blew a save for the sixth time in 39 chances, including three of his last six. Gavin Sheets walked with two outs in the ninth, and Sosa capped a nine-pitch at-bat by sending a 100.4 mph fastball over the middle of the plate into the left-center field seats.
Tyler Wade, who entered as a pinch runner in the ninth inning, threw out Bryan Ramos at the plate in the 10th when he tried to score from third on Dominic Fletcher’s grounder to second base off Adrian Morejon (3-2).
With automatic runner Brandon Lockridge on second in the bottom half of the 10th, Tatis hit an opposite-field drive against Justin Anderson (1-2) that bounced on three hops to the right-center field wall for his second walk-off hit.
The Padres took the lead earlier then rookie Jackson Merrill hit a two-run double in the sixth off Gus Varland.
Padres starter Joe Musgrove matched his season high of nine strikeouts, allowing four hits in what manager Mike Shildt called “a really strong six” innings.
Martín Pérez (4-5, 4.36 ERA) is set to face Chicago’s Chris Flexen (2-14, 5.09 ERA) Saturday as the Padres conclude their 2024 home schedule.