Two outs, ninth inning, a 98 mph fastball from Mason Miller — and Oneil Cruz sent it to right field at Petco Park for the only run of the game. Pirates 1, Padres 0.
That swing was Cruz’s 17th home run of the 2026 season, and it did something no one had managed in over a year: it ended Miller’s streak of 73 consecutive appearances without allowing a home run, a run he’d been building since August 5, 2025.
Why That Streak Was So Hard to Break
Miller didn’t get to 73 appearances without giving up a homer by accident. Entering Tuesday night, the Padres’ All-Star closer carried a 0.81 ERA and 32 saves — numbers ESPN had been comparing to the best single-season reliever performances in league history.
A big part of the formula was adjustment. After surrendering five home runs in 2025 — all on the fastball — Miller made a deliberate choice: hide it. He dropped his walk rate from 4.1 BB/9 in 2025 down to 1.6, and started throwing his slider more than 52% of the time, using the heater as a surprise weapon.
That plan worked for 73 straight appearances. Then came Tuesday.
The last time anyone had taken him deep was August 5, 2025 — Lourdes Gurriel Jr. of Arizona, in just Miller’s second outing with San Diego after being acquired from the Athletics at that year’s trade deadline. From that moment until Cruz’s blast, nothing.
Cruz and the Fastball Nobody Else Wanted to See
Oneil Cruz leads all of baseball in average exit velocity in 2026 at 96.0 mph, with a hard-contact rate of 59.2%. When he makes contact, he means it.
Miller went to the 98 mph fastball as his surprise pitch with two outs in the ninth. Cruz didn’t miss it. The home run was also his 52nd RBI of the season.
The context makes the moment even more unlikely. Pittsburgh had lost 13 of their last 15 games against San Diego heading into this series. The Padres were riding a 21-7 stretch that had them firmly in postseason position. One swing changed the night.
And then there’s this: Miller is a Pittsburgh native. Coming home to Petco Park, facing his former neighbors, and giving up the only run of the game to the hardest hitter in baseball — that’s the kind of irony the sport saves for moments worth remembering.
A Pitching Duel That Deserved More Recognition
The game was more than just that one swing. Paul Skenes threw six scoreless innings on three hits — described by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette as his best start in months. Michael King matched him with seven innings of five-hit ball and seven strikeouts. Neither pitcher factored into the decision.
- Gregory Soto (6-4) earned the win with a clean eighth inning.
- Mason Montgomery picked up his sixth save of the year.
In the end, one of the best pitching performances of the week came down to a single at-bat: Cruz in the ninth, against the one reliever who’d gone more than a year without giving one up.
