The Chicago Cubs entered the postseason leading MLB with 850 runs, but their offensive potential didn’t translate into Game 1 against the San Diego Padres. After going 5-1 in the regular season, Chicago was held to just 3 hits in an 8-0 loss on Tuesday. San Diego landed the first punch early and dictated the tempo till the last moment. And according to a former Cub, the biggest difference was how aggressively the Padres attacked, allowing little room for response.
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“They flipped the game plan, and the Cubs could not respond,” Jason Kipnis said on Marquee Sports Network. “Or at least just didn’t respond. It looked like they were just kind of flat-footed, kind of lackadaisical.”
The Cubs entered Petco Park for the Wild Card Series with a lot of confidence. At the bottom of the first inning, Fernando Tatis Jr. hit the very first pitch from Matthew Boyd for a 405-ft home run. Manny Machado followed suit with another to put the Padres ahead by 2-0. The same duo added another RBI in the 3rd before Xander Bogaerts hit another home run in the 4th.
That’s what ex-Cubs 2B Jason Kipnis highlighted when he said they flipped the game. “Every way they played, the energy they had, the attacking first, the throwing the first punch, the coming out swinging.”
By the 7th inning, the Cubs were trailing 8-0. But San Diego’s offense firing up wasn’t the only problem. Michael King dominated the Chicago lineup. He allowed just 1 hit and 3 walks over 7.0 innings. Yuki Matsui followed with a hitless inning. Joe Musgrove entered the mound in the final inning to wrap it up. He allowed two hits, but the Cubs couldn’t capitalize on the two singles.
The regular season offered a very different picture. The Cubs faced the Padres a total of six times. They had a 2-1 victory at Petco Park and swept San Diego at Wrigley Field. They outscored the Padres 55-28 across those games. And it’s not just them.
The Cubs were sixth in MLB with a .251 batting average and 1,398 hits. They were 3rd in the league with a +147 run differential. But then again, Chicago has been one of the most inconsistent teams in MLB this year.
They had two 10-game winning streaks followed by a 10-game losing streak this regular season. While their ups-and-downs were off the charts, they somehow managed to secure a playoff spot with an 89-73 record.
The Padres, on the other hand, were 91-71 and entered as the No. 4 seed. The overall numbers suggested a close fight. Instead, San Diego routed the Cubs with a three-hit shutout win. Hence, Jason Kipnis, a former All-Star second baseman and longtime Cubs player, said, “You wanted to see a little bit more fight than that.”
While the game is over, the biggest concern is that Chicago has little time to correct the problems they faced in Game 1.
Cubs face crucial test as postseason fate hangs in balance
Boyd had already allowed two solo homers in the first inning. Then the Padres just kept targeting his changeups. And the game was already slipping when he allowed 3 more runs in the fifth. Carson Kelly’s passed ball did the damage, and they were never able to spark a comeback.
Manager Craig Counsell reflected on the tough defeat, saying, “You never want to play from behind.” Unfortunately, that’s exactly what they had to do.
But the Cubs know that there is little value in dwelling on an 8-0 loss when Game 2 is looming. That’s why Alex Bregman acknowledged the magnitude of their performance and urged the team to focus on the task at hand.
“You flush it, turn the page. You’ve got to [move on] this time of the year,” the third baseman said after the loss.
Game 1 of the NL Wild Card Series exposed the Chicago Cubs’ weaknesses. More importantly, it established that strong regular-season numbers or head-to-head records don’t automatically translate into a win in the postseason. San Diego had set the tone early, and the Cubs struggled to find an answer. Plus, the way they attacked the Chicago rotation proved that they came to the playoffs prepared.
The Cubs now have to not only respond to that but also win both games to proceed to the Divisional Series. And the fans eagerly wait to see more fight in them.