The Dylan Cease who is staying was a little better than the one who was going. The Padres’ offense sputtered a bit but got one big hit and then a couple more. Their augmented bullpen did its job almost as prescribed and eventually to the end.

BOTTOM LINE: The San Diego Padres and St. Louis Cardinals play on Sunday with the three-game series tied 1-1. San Diego has a 61-50 record overall and a 35-19 record in home games. The Padres have gone 33-11 in games when they scored at least five runs.

Vasquez’s final line was four-plus innings with five runs allowed on eight hits with three strikeouts and no walks.