The San Diego Padres are still in the thick of a division race despite losing five of their last six games. The Padres came up short in their series against the Minnesota Twins. And on Wednesday the team gave the ball to Nestor Cortes as it tried to avoid a sweep by the Baltimore Orioles.

Unfortunately, Cortes had a rough day at the office. The veteran lefty allowed back-to-back-to-back homers to the Orioles in the top of the third inning.

Cortes began his outing by giving up a leadoff home run to Jackson Holliday. And after blanking Baltimore in the second inning the wheels fell off in the third. Colton Cowser struck first with a three-run blast off Cortes. Coby Mayo followed with a solo shot. And on the very next pitch, Alex Jackson made it three straight dingers.

Padres buried early after Nestor Cortes homer-fest

Sep 3, 2025; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres starting pitcher Nestor Cortes (65) throws a pitch during the first inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Petco Park.
David Frerker-Imagn Images

Cortes was pulled after the four-homer barrage but the damage was done. He allowed six runs on seven hits and three walks over 2.1 innings and Baltimore jumped out to a 7-0 lead early.

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The eighth-year pro has given up home runs in bunches this season. With Wednesday’s outing, Cortes has now surrendered at least three homers in a single inning three different times this season.

The New York Yankees welcomed Cortes back to the Bronx with a 20-9 stomping in March when he was still with the Milwaukee Brewers. New York started off the game with three straight dongs as Paul Goldschmidt, Cody Bellinger and Aaron Judge went back-to-back-to-back. Austin Wells added a fourth deep shot later in the first inning. The pitcher allowed five homers and eight runs in two innings of work.

The Padres landed Cortes in a trade at the deadline and he’d been pretty reliable over his first five starts. But the San Francisco Giants touched him up in August. Heliot Ramos led off with a solo shot and Rafael Devers followed for back-to-back bombs. Wilmer Flores then added a two-run blast, making it three homers in the first inning.

Despite getting buried early by the Orioles on Wednesday, the Padres battled back. San Diego’s bullpen shut down Baltimore’s offense after the third inning. But the team fell short, losing 7-5.

In addition to dropping four straight games the Padres have suffered some devastating injuries. While the team is gearing up for a playoff push, Jason Adam and Xander Bogaerts could miss the rest of the season.