30 Eric Hosmer 1B

Hosmer went 3-for-4 with a home run and an RBI single in a loss to the Reds on Saturday.

The veteran first baseman was below the Mendoza Line coming into Saturday, so he badly needed the multi-hit game he recorded. Hosmer was just 1-for-19 his last five games, but he's now batting .213 with two home runs, 11 RBI and eight runs in 80 at-bats this season.

Hosmer is slashing just .194/.270/.284 over his first 67 at-bats.

Coming off his disappointing first campaign with San Diego, Hosmer was the club's presumptive No. 2 hitter coming out of spring training, with the hope some offseason adjustments and some increased talent around him would lead to a rebound campaign. That hasn't materialized thus far, however, as the veteran has a meager .554 OPS over San Diego's first 18 games. There's still plenty of time for him to turn it around, but the early-season slump seems to have cost him his regular spot near the top of the order for the time being.

Hosmer is on the bench Tuesday against the Padres.

Hosmer sits for the first time this season, with Wil Myers moving in from the outfield to play first base. Hosmer is hitting just .244 with a .692 OPS this season, so it may be in the Padres' interest to sit him more frequently, especially against lefties like Tuesday's starter Derek Holland. No such plan has been announced by the team, however, so Tuesday's off day looks like simply a routine one.

Hosmer went 1-for-4 with a solo homer in San Diego's 6-4 win Saturday against the Cardinals.

Hosmer provided the Padres' second run with a homer in the seventh inning off John Gant to cut the Cardinal lead to one run. The homer was just the 29-year old's fourth extra base hit of the season, and his batting average now stands at .265 for the season.

Hosmer is starting at first base and hitting sixth Wednesday against the Diamondbacks.

Hosmer will drop to the bottom third of the order for the first time all year with southpaw Robbie Ray toeing the rubber for the opposition. While the first baseman has occupied the two hole against right-handers this season, he hasn't hit higher than fifth against same-handed pitching, a trend that could continue given Hosmer hit just .179 against lefties in 2018 (compared to .295 against righties).