Series Preview: Cubs vs. Padres originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
The Chicago Cubs are looking to bounce back after a tough series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, but things aren’t going to get any easier as they are now facing the dangerous San Diego Padres in a three-game series at the Friendly Confines this week.
The Padres come into the series with a 12-12 record and are in third place in the National League West, while the Cubs trail the Pittsburgh Pirates by three games in the National League Central.
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Here is our preview of the upcoming series.
Schedule and Probable Pitchers:
Tuesday – 6:40 p.m. (Blake Snell vs. Justin Steele)
Wednesday – 6:40 p.m. (Michael Wacha vs. Drew Smyly)
Thursday – 1:20 p.m. (Seth Lugo vs. Hayden Wesneski)
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The Trends:
The Cubs had not lost a series since their opening set with the Milwaukee Brewers at Wrigley Field, but the Los Angeles Dodgers, powered by the hot bats of James Outman and Max Muncy, took three-of-four from the North Siders over the weekend.
Buoyed by the return of Fernando Tatis Jr. from suspension, the Padres were able to get things trending in the right direction, taking three-of-four from the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field.
Padres to Watch:
-Manny Machado has only hit one home run so far this season, which came on April 13 against the Milwaukee Brewers. Since that date, his batting average has dipped to .220, and his OPS stands at a paltry .536.
-Tatis Jr. has registered a hit in each of his last three games, including a home run in Saturday’s win over the Diamondbacks. He is 3-for-18 with an RBI and a walk since returning from a suspension for PED’s.
-Seth Lugo was saddled with a loss to the Diamondbacks in his last outing, but he has three quality starts and 23 strikeouts to his credit in four appearances this season. He leads Padres starters with a 2.78 ERA.
-Josh Hader has six consecutive scoreless outings as the Padres’ closer, earning four saves and dropping his ERA to 0.82 in the process. He’s struck out 16 batters and walked four in 11 innings, giving up just three hits as he’s earned eight total saves this season.
Cubs to Watch:
-With Kyle Hendricks starting a rehab assignment this week, all eyes are on Cubs pitcher Hayden Wesneski, who has struggled to find his form in the early going this season.
According to Statcast, his four-seam fastball is getting crushed by opponents this season to the tune of a .481 batting average against, and his cutter’s effectiveness has been diminished, with his “put-away” percentage dropping to 6.7% with the pitch.
His sweeper has been an effective pitch and he’s deployed it more, but he’ll have to get one of his other pitches going to ensure it’s effectiveness.
-Nico Hoerner has successfully reached base in his last 19 games, setting a career high, and has reached base in 20 of 21 games for the Cubs this season.
In the process, he’s boosted his batting average to 3.55 and his on-base percentage to .400, and to top it all off he hit home runs in back-to-back games on Friday and Saturday, his first and second long balls of the season.
-Drew Smyly didn’t turn any heads with his first start of the season, allowing six earned runs to the Cincinnati Reds, but he has sure turned things around in recent starts, giving up two earned runs, striking out 20 batters and walking just three in 18.1 innings of work.
Of course, he took a perfect game into the eighth inning of his last start against the Dodgers, but lost it on an infield single where he collided with catcher Yan Gomes.
