Padres catcher Victor Caratini. (Ray Acevedo-USA TODAY Sports)
The San Diego Padres and the Cincinnati Reds produced a fireworks show in the ninth inning with matching rallies and a walk-off homer.
The ninth inning between the Padres and Reds on Thursday night was absolutely bonkers.
What had been a tight pitching battle turned into a batter’s delight as the two teams went off with hits and home runs to thrill the 40,000 fans in attendance.
The best of the bunch? A walk-off home run from Victor Caratini to hand the Padres a well-earned win.
That was just one of a handful of home run highlights from the ninth inning at a raucous Petco Park.
The ninth inning between the Padres and Reds held wild swings and highlights
The game was tied in the first place courtesy of an Eric Hosmer moonshot to make it 4-4.
Going into the ninth, the Padres were sitting pretty. Fernando Tatis Jr. homered in the sixth to break up a no-hitter for Reds pitcher Wade Miley. That highlight was quickly followed by another deep shot from Manny Machado in the seventh. San Diego led 2-0 going into the final frame.
However, the Reds had some tricks up their sleeves as the wheels fell off for closer Mark Melancon. The rally began with Kyle Farmer driving in Joey Votto and Tyler Stephenson following with an RBI single to score Scott Heineman.
Jonathan India appeared to break hearts in San Diego with a two-run homer to left field, giving Cincinnati a 4-2 lead.
The fans who stuck around at Petco got rewarded with an electric finish from the Padres.
San Diego is now 39-32 with some feel-good momentum to help shake off what has been a tough stretch for the team. They had lost nine of their last 11 before Thursday.
The Reds fell to 35-32, ending a six-game winning streak.