After two straight tough losses at Petco Park, the Chicago Cubs ended their road trip on a positive note, riding a strong outing from Yu Darvish to a win over the San Diego Padres.
Darvish struck out 14 batters in six innings of work, allowing just two hits and two walks in his outing.
Ian Happ drove in a pair of runs for the North Siders, and Ben Zobrist registered a pinch-hit RBI in the victory.
The Padres managed to load the bases in the ninth inning, and Manny Machado was hit by a pitch to drive in a run. Rowan Wick managed to strike out Luis Urias on a stellar curve ball to strand the tying run at first, giving the Cubs a victory.
The Cubs got on the board in the very first inning, as Kris Bryant lofted a sacrifice fly to left field to score Anthony Rizzo and put Chicago ahead by a 1-0 score.
As Darvish mowed down the Padres through the first three innings of the contest, Happ smacked an RBI single to right field in the fourth, scoring Kyle Schwarber and Bryant to make it a 3-0 game.
Zobrist grounded into a fielder’s choice in the seventh inning, scoring Jason Heyward, and that was all the Cubs needed as they earned the victory.
Chicago Baseball
Unfortunately for the Cubs, the Milwaukee Brewers also won Thursday, leaving them tied in the race for the second wild card spot in the National League. The St. Louis Cardinals also beat the Colorado Rockies, leaving the Cubs four games back in the division.
The Cubs will now head home for a 10-game homestand, welcoming the Pittsburgh Pirates to Wrigley Field on Friday afternoon. First pitch is at 3:05 p.m., and Jon Lester will get the ball for the Cubs.
