On Tuesday night, the Chicago Cubs became the first team to hand the San Diego Padres a home loss this season.
On Wednesday afternoon, Chicago has a chance to end what shaped up as a difficult swing through National League West powers Los Angeles and San Diego with a 4-2 record if it can win the series finale at Petco Park.
The Cubs were victorious in the type of game the Padres have mastered early this season. They won the bullpen battle when Nico Hoerner tripled home the tiebreaking run in the 10th and Caleb Thielbar retired three-time batting champion Luis Arraez with runners at the corners in the bottom of the inning as Chicago won 2-1.
It was the type of win Chicago needed after having to sit injured Seiya Suzuki (right wrist) for a third straight game and send top prospect Matt Shaw, a 23-year-old third baseman, to Triple-A Iowa.
Shaw hit just .172 with a homer, three RBIs and 18 strikeouts in his first 58 MLB at-bats.
“You have to see adversity or struggles as a time to grow,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said of Shaw’s demotion. “For prospects, there hasn’t been much baseball struggle. That’s the nature of them getting here at a young age. … Matt’s going to go down, and he understands.”
Counsell played Gage Workman at third on Tuesday night but has other options, such as veteran Justin Turner and utility man Jon Berti. Former Miami Marlins player Vidal Brujan also could fit into the mix at some point.
Chicago will aim for a series win behind left-hander Matthew Boyd (1-1, 1.59 ERA), who is coming off a 3-0 loss Friday night against the Dodgers. Boyd fanned seven in six innings and gave up only four hits, but one was Tommy Edman’s three-run homer that provided the only offense of the night.
Boyd’s win was a 7-1 decision over San Diego on April 5. He scattered five hits over six scoreless innings in his lone career meeting with the Padres.
The pitcher Boyd defeated on that day will look to turn the tables in this series finale.
Right-hander Nick Pivetta (2-1, 1.59 ERA) sailed through an 8-0 win Friday against Colorado, fanning 10 over seven shutout innings and permitting only three hits. It was a far cry from his outing against the Cubs, who taxed him for 76 pitches in three innings as Pivetta walked three and yielded six hits.
Pivetta is 1-2 with a 4.74 ERA in five career encounters (four starts) with Chicago.
San Diego saw multiple winning streaks end on Arraez’s flyout to left. The team was 11-0 at Petco Park before the loss and had won 15 straight home games, dating to last September. The Padres also had won five in a row and tied the franchise record for the best start to a season, set by the 1998 team that reached the World Series.
It will be interesting to see how San Diego deals with center fielders Jackson Merrill and Brandon Lockridge out with hamstring injuries. Tyler Wade and Jason Heyward manned center field on Monday and Tuesday night, but neither is an appealing option against left-handed pitchers.
Connor Joe, who was called up Monday, could get time in center field against lefties. All-Star right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. is not an option, according to manager Mike Shildt.
“I feel like we’ve got a significant strength there,” Shildt said of his right fielder. “Let’s keep that a strength.”
–Field Level Media
