Machado and Miller Shine in Padres’ Victory Over Cubs
In an exciting National League Wild Card Series matchup, the San Diego Padres defeated the Chicago Cubs with a score of 3-0. The game, played on Wednesday, was marked by outstanding performances from Manny Machado and Mason Miller, who led their team to victory and forced a decisive third game. Manny Machado hit a two-run homer, while Mason Miller continued his dominance on the mound, solidifying the Padres’ defense. The first sacrifice hit of the game came from Jackson Merrill, allowing San Diego to avoid elimination after their loss on Tuesday. Cubs’ starting pitcher Dylan Cease struck out five batters in 3 2/3 innings before giving way to his team’s bullpen. The final showdown of this best-of-three series will take place at Wrigley Field on Thursday. The Padres, with playoff experience, seek to replicate their 2020 success, when, after losing the first game, they managed to advance with two consecutive victories against St. Louis. Machado also stood out in the second game of that series with a home run. Chicago, for its part, recorded four hits in the game. This is the franchise’s first playoff appearance in five years, and they haven’t advanced since eliminating Washington in the 2017 National League Division Series. San Diego took the lead in the first inning thanks to Merrill’s fly ball, driving in Fernando Tatis Jr. Chicago’s starting pitcher, Andrew Kittredge, was replaced by Shota Imanaga in the second inning. In the fourth inning, the Cubs threatened with runners on first and second with two outs, but Adrian Morejon entered the mound and retired Pete Crow-Armstrong. The Padres extended their lead in the fifth inning with Machado’s home run, which traveled 404 feet, after a walk to Tatis. San Diego’s bullpen, with Miller and Robert Suarez, combined to throw 14 pitches over 100 mph, demonstrating their strength. Morejon threw 2 1/3 perfect innings before Miller impressed with his velocity, striking out five consecutive batters. The 6’5″ pitcher reached 104.5 mph on a called strike to Carson Kelly in the seventh inning, the fastest pitch in the postseason since Statcast began recording data in 2008. Miller, acquired in a trade on July 31, also had an outstanding performance in the second game, striking out three batters in the seventh inning. Miller was replaced after hitting Michael Busch with a pitch in the eighth inning. Suarez took care of retiring Nico Hoerner before earning the save. For the next game, Yu Darvish will be the pitcher for the Padres on Thursday. The starting pitcher for the Cubs has not yet been confirmed. Darvish, who played for the Cubs for three seasons before being traded to the Padres in December 2020, expressed his satisfaction with pitching at Wrigley Field.“Yes, this place did me good. The organization and the fans also did me good”
Yu Darvish
