At the beginning of the season it would have been heresy to suggest the Padres might want to consider trading Dylan Cease. At the All-Star break he'd been so inconsistent the right-hander with the filthy stuff was popping up in trade rumors.

On Friday night at Nationals Park, where he threw a no-hitter a year ago, Cease put the trade talk away for a bit with one of his best outings of the year. He struck out 10 in 5.1 shutout innings and watched Manny Machado hit a 9th inning grand slam to push the Padres to a 7-2 win to start the second half of the year.

Cease set the tone early, striking out the side in the 1st inning with a heavy dose of low-90's sliders and a rejuvenated fastball that touched triple digits. However, took a no-decision because once again the San Diego offense took a w

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