San Diego Padres Catcher Makes Franchise History in Game 2 of Wild Card Series

San Diego Padres catcher Kyle Higashioka made franchise history in a 5-4 elimination game against the Atlanta Braves in a National League Wild Card Series on Wednesday.

Teren Kowatsch | 6 Hours Ago

San Diego Padres catcher Kyle Higashioka hits a home run in a National League playoff game against the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday at Petco Park. / Denis Poroy-Imagn Images

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The San Diego Padres are officially heading to the National League Divisional Series after beating the Atlanta Braves 5-4 in Game 2 of a National League Wild Card Series on Wednesday at Petco Park in San Diego.

All of the Padres' runs came in the second inning and the Braves, who were down 5-1 through two frames, nearly made the comeback to keep their season alive and force an if-necessary Game 3 on Thursday.

But it wasn't meant to be and San Diego will face the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS in pursuit of its first National League pennant since 1998.

And Padres catcher Kyle Higashioka can be considered a big reason why.

On top of catching Game 1 starter Michael King's seven-inning, 12-strikeout shutout outing on Tuesday, Higashioka made his presence felt at the plate, as well.

Higashioka hit a solo home run on Tuesday and Wednesday. His homer on Wednesday tied the game at 1-1 before Manny Machado and Jackson Merrill brought in two more runs apiece — all in the second inning.

According to ESPN's broadcast, those two homers made Higashioka the first catcher in San Diego history to have a home run in two consecutive playoff games.

Everyone at @PetcoPark is currently gettin' Higgy with it! pic.twitter.com/teXdxRYpJP
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) October 3, 2024

Higashioka is in his eighth major league season but the first with the Padres. He was acquired in the blockbuster trade that sent Juan Soto to the New York Yankees, where Higashioka played all seven years of his career prior.

Higashioka this season set single-season career-highs in home runs (17) and RBIs (45) while playing just 84 games. He batted .220 in the regular season.

The usual players you would expect (Machado, Merrill, Fernando Tatis Jr., Luis Arraez) all made their presence felt during San Diego's Wild Card sweep. But players like Higashioka stepped up, too.

And that trend will need to continue if the Padres hope to beat their NL West foes and World Series favorite the Dodgers.