The Chicago Cubs and San Diego Padres meet again, this time in wild-card matchup that is do-or-die for the Cubs after the Padres dominated Game 1 with an 8-0 victory. San Diego controlled the opener from start to finish, getting excellent pitching from Michael King and timely offense to put itself one win away from advancing. With the pressure now squarely on the Cubs, the Padres remain at Petco Park needing just one more victory to close out the best-of-three series. Considering how Game 1 unfolded and the matchup on the mound, San Diego appears to have the upper hand once again.
The Cubs will hand the ball to Kevin Gausman, who enters with a 9-12 record and a 4.51 ERA. Gausman has had an inconsistent season and has been vulnerable to giving up hard contact, something that could be costly against a Padres lineup coming off an eight-run performance. San Diego counters with Nick Pivetta, who is 3-2 with a stellar 2.86 ERA since returning to the rotation. Pivetta has looked sharp down the stretch, consistently attacking hitters and giving the Padres quality innings. With the momentum from Game 1, the advantage on the mound and the home crowd behind them, San Diego is in an excellent position to finish the job and punch its ticket to the next round.
Cubs vs Padres prediction: San Diego ML (-135) available at time of publishing. Playable to -145.
