The San Diego Padres beat the Athletics, 7-3, on Friday night with a statement win to take the first of a three-game set. The Friars improved to 30-20 on the year behind a trio of home runs and another great bullpen performance.After the A's hung two runs in the top of the first inning, superstar Manny Machado slugged a two-run shot to even things up. When the Padres found themselves down one in the bottom of the fifth inning, it was Nick Castellanos who launched a solo home run to tie the game at three.Ramon Laureano smacked a solo shot of his own in the seventh to take the lead, and a Gavin Sheets single put another two on the board in the eighth. A Xander Bogaerts sacrifice fly added the seventh and final run of the night. Ahead of the eventual victory, manager Craig Stammen gave an update on center fielder Jackson Merrill, who was out of the lineup due to an injury.On the very first pitch of Wednesday's loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers, Merrill attempted to rob Shohei Ohtani's home run, but collided with the outfield wall."He’s just sore and bruised, and he’s day to day for when he’ll be back,” Stammen said.Craig Stammen says test results on Jackson Merrill's back came back negative, no fracture. Sore and bruised, and is day-to-day— Marty Caswell (@MartyCaswell) May 22, 2026In other news, a major trade deadline prediction has been made by an MLB insider, and appears to be on par with how president of baseball operations AJ Preller has been operating in the past.With the sheer unluckiness of the starting rotation thus far, both in terms of injury and underperforming, fans can expect the pitching roster to get a much-needed boost before the Aug. 3 deadline. Finally, superstar Manny Machado called out a reporter for questioning his hustle. The third baseman has never been known to mince words around the media nor hide his true feelings, and the same rang true this week. Here’s all the latest Padres news and stories (click the headline for the full article): Padres Will Be 'Aggressive' at Trade Deadline, Says MLB Insider Padres' Manny Machado Calls Out Reporter for Questioning His Hustle Padres Starting Pitcher Believes Major Velocity Jump is Coming Padres 'Racking Their Brains' Trying to Fix Fernando Tatis Jr. Padres Hit Jackpot With $4 Million Offseason Signing Amid Breakout Year Padres' Jake Cronenworth Still Nowhere Near Return From ConcussionPadres Tweets of the DayDo you know the Milk Man? pic.twitter.com/KpzQR1a1nV— San Diego Padres (@Padres) May 23, 2026Nick Castellanos sends one to the Western Metal Supply Co. building to tie up this ballgame 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/syqb4q7sd4— MLB (@MLB) May 23, 2026Here is your reminder than Mason Miller should get Cy Young votes:22 appearances22.2 IP0.79 ERA0.32 FIP45 strikeouts17.9 K/9517 ERA+ pic.twitter.com/DaW8j3Iabh— SleeperMLB (@SleeperMLB) May 22, 2026The Force is strong with this one. pic.twitter.com/uXH87IpUvM— San Diego Padres (@Padres) May 23, 2026Craig Stammen provides the latest update on Jackson Merrill. pic.twitter.com/F3AUggpdFr— 97.3 The Fan (@973TheFanSD) May 22, 2026Día de jonrones. pic.twitter.com/9x7ttjns3l— San Diego Padres (@Padres) May 23, 2026— 97.3 The Fan (@973TheFanSD) May 23, 2026Sign up for our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X/Twitter for the latest news.Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow