Fernando Tatis Jr. went 3-for-5 with three RBIs and Walker Buehler worked six solid innings Tuesday night as the San Diego Padres beat the Atlanta Braves 8-3 at Truist Park, evening the three-game series at one game apiece.
Ty France added an RBI single and rookie catcher Luis Campusano extended his hot streak with two hits for San Diego, which improved to 48-48 and stayed in the National League wild-card race. The Padres had dropped five of seven coming in.
Reynaldo López took the loss for Atlanta, allowing four runs on seven hits in five innings. López is now 4-2 with a 3.50 ERA but has given up at least four runs in three of his last five starts. The Braves offense managed only six hits and went 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position, leaving the bases loaded in the seventh against San Diego’s Adrian Morejon.
Atlanta manager Walt Weiss stopped short of naming a starter for Wednesday’s middle game but said right-hander Martín Pérez is an option. If Pérez does not get the call, the Braves have few alternatives — JR Ritchie, depending on whether he is used Tuesday, is realistically the only other option.
Chris Sale is slated to start Thursday’s series finale before the team heads to Baltimore for three games against the Orioles. Sale has allowed two earned runs or fewer in four of his last five starts.
The Braves placed infielder Ha-Seong Kim on the 10-day injured list Tuesday with right middle finger inflammation and transferred catcher Sean Murphy to the 60-day injured list with a fractured left middle finger.
The two teams meet again Wednesday at 7:20 p.m. at Truist Park.
Source: ESPN game recap, “Padres 8-3 Braves (Jul 21, 2026) Final Score”; CBS46 / WANF, “Everybody’s favorite teammate: Braves make difficult decision to release infielder Kyle Farmer,” July 21, 2026.
