Tatis and Merrill combine for 4 RBIs as the Padres beat the Cardinals 6-1

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Fernando Tatis Jr. and Jackson Merrill each drove in two runs and finished with three hits as the San Diego Padres avoided a series sweep with a 6-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday.

Tatis, who also stole a base, is 17 for 48 (.354) with four doubles and a home run in his last 11 games. Merrill highlighted his three-hit effort with a two-run homer in the ninth inning, his eighth of the season.

San Diego pounded out 14 hits, but went 4 for 14 with runners in scoring position and left 10 runners on base. In consecutive losses to St. Louis, the Padres had scored just two runs and managed five total hits.

Griffin Canning (1-5) worked 4 1/3 innings, allowing four hits and a run in relief. It was his sixth career relief appearance. He has made eight starts this season. Bradgley Rodriguez started the second bullpen game of the series for the Padres. He pitched the first inning.

Kyle Leahy (5-4) pitched six innings in taking the loss as the Cardinals had their six-game home winning streak halted.

Merrill singled in the first inning, sending Samad Taylor to third. Manny Machado’s sacrifice fly scored Taylor, giving the Padres a 1-0 lead.

San Diego made it 2-0 in the fourth inning when Xander Bogaerts’ one-out RBI single scored Machado, who led off the inning with a double.

The Padres extended their lead to 3-0 in the fifth on an RBI double by Tatis. His run-scoring single in the ninth accounted for the final run.

St. Louis cut San Diego's lead to 3-1 when Alec Burleson extended his hitting streak to 17 games with an RBI single in the fifth.

Padres: After an off day Thursday, San Diego sends RHP Randy Vásquez (6-4, 3.63 ERA) against the Rangers on Friday. Texas has not named a starter.

Cardinals: LHP Matthew Liberatore (3-3, 4.71 ERA) takes on Royals LHP Noah Cameron (3-4, 4.11) in Kansas City on Thursday.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Kyle Leahy throws the first pitch during the first inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres Wednesday, June 17, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Lexie Knight)

San Diego Padres' Xander Bogaerts slides to second while St. Louis Cardinals' Masyn Winn, right, throws to first during the second inning of a baseball game Wednesday, June 17, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Lexie Knight)

San Diego Padres Kyle Hart pitches during the bottom of the seventh inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Wednesday, June 17, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Lexie Knight)

St. Louis Cardinals Masyn Winn, right, is out at second after San Diego Padres Will Wagner, left, tags him during the sixth inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, June 17, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Lexie Knight)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Tom Dreesen, who along with partner Tim Reid formed one of America's first interracial stand-up comedy duos and later spent years as Frank Sinatra's opening act, died Wednesday. He was 86.

Dreesen died at his home in Los Angeles, according to publicist Lori De Waal. A cause of death was not provided.

After meeting in Chicago, Dreesen and Reid, who was Black, formed “Tim and Tom” in 1969. Against a backdrop of simmering racial tension, they used humor to address social issues and promote understanding between audiences of different backgrounds. They worked together until the mid-1970s. Reid went on to solo success playing DJ Venus Flytrap on the popular TV sitcom “WKRP in Cincinnati,” where Dreesen was a guest star.

“When I was a kid I found an album he and his comedy partner did called Tim and Tom and took it home and played it and it was one of the albums that changed the course of my life. So great,” comedian and filmmaker Mike Binder wrote on X.

After splitting with Reid, Dreesen honed a solo comedy act, making over 500 national TV appearances, including 60 visits to “The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson." He also was a frequent guest and sometime guest host on “The Late Show with David Letterman." Their friendship dated to the early 1970s when both worked at The Comedy Store in West Hollywood, California.

Dreesen's final TV appearance came last week on “Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen,” which replaced Stephen Colbert's canceled CBS late-night show.

Dreesen was Sinatra's opening act for 14 years and became close with the entertainer.

“If he loved you, he worshipped the ground you walked on,” Dreesen told The Desert Sun newspaper in 2014. ”In a lot of ways, he was like a father to me. I didn’t have a father that really cared that much where I was and what I did. But Frank would give me advice and counsel, and then he was a buddy in a lot of ways. I thought the world of him."

Dressen also toured with Sinatra's fellow Rat Pack member Sammy Davis Jr., as well as Liza Minnelli, Smokey Robinson, Gladys Knight and Tony Orlando.

“He was one of the most brilliant comedians of all time. Tonight, he'll once again be opening for Dean, Frank and Sammy,” Deana Martin, a daughter of Dean Martin, posted on X.

In 2008, he co-wrote the book “Tim and Tom: An American Comedy Act in Black and White” and in 2020 he authored his memoir.

Dreesen acted in such TV shows as “Columbo,” “Murder, She Wrote," and “Touched by an Angel.” His film roles included “Spaceballs,” “Man on the Moon” and “Trouble With the Curve,” as well as the HBO movies “The Rat Pack” and “Lansky.”

Dreesen was active in charitable work, motivational speaking and veterans’ causes, including serving as ambassador for the Gary Sinise Foundation.

"America lost one of our great comedians and patriots, and I lost a dear friend,” Sinise posted on X.

He was born on Sept. 11, 1939, in Chicago and raised as one of eight children in suburban Harvey. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy at age 17 and after getting out in 1960 he returned home to work a series of jobs, including selling insurance.

Dreesen is survived by daughters Amy and Jennifer from his marriage to Maryellen Subock, which ended in divorce in 1984, as well as seven grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his son Tommy.

FILE - Comedian Tom Dreesen talks to the media during a news conference in La Quinta, Calif., on Jan. 18, 2011. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson, File)