Thursday notes…
- SPLITTING THE DIFFERENCE: This is the 12th of the Cubs’ 27 post-season series, regardless of length, in which they have split the first two games. They are 5-6 in third games of the previous series, including 3-4 at home. They are 3-2 overall and 2-1 at home after having won, then lost in the first two games, as they did Tuesday and yesterday. The wins at home were in the 2003 Division Series vs. the Braves and the 2017 Division Series vs. the Nationals. The loss was in the 1935 World Series vs. the Tigers. The win at home after losing, then winning, was in the 2015 Division Series vs. the Cardinals. The losses were in the 1906 World Series vs. the White Sox, the 1918 World Series vs. the Red Sox and the 2016 World Series vs. the Indians. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
- AFTER THE BLANKING: During the 2025 regular season, the Cubs were shut out, as they were yesterday, 10 times. In games after being blanked, they were 7-3 and scored an average of 7.10 runs, with at least four in every game but one. Only once were the shutout and next game both at home vs. the same opponent. On Aug. 18-19, the Cubs lost to the Brewers, 7-0, then beat them, 6-4. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
- CUBS vs. PADRES: All-time at Wrigley Field during the regular season, the Cubs lead the series, 152-110 … the Cubs lead the all-time regular season series, 285-239.
- THIS DAY IN CUBS HISTORY: The Cubs smash five home runs, including one by pitcher Rick Sutcliffe, and crush the Padres 13-0 in Game 1 of the NLCS. It happened 41 years ago today, Tuesday, Oct. 2, 1984.
Cubs lineup:
Padres lineup:
Jameson Taillon, RHP vs. Yu Darvish, RHP
Jameson Taillon has been excellent since he returned from a pair of injuries in late
August/early September. Over his six starts since then: 1.57 ERA, 0.902 WHIP, only two home runs in 34.1 innings.
Jamo faced the Padres April 14 in San Diego and held them to two runs in 5.1 innings. Fernando Tatis Jr. homered off him. Keep the ball in the ballpark today and this could be a successful outing for Taillon.
Yu Darvish missed half this season with elbow issues, and hasn’t pitched well since he returned. Over 15 starts this year he has a 5.38 ERA and has allowed 14 home runs in just 72 innings.
He doesn’t walk guys — only 19 of 268 batters faced this year — so the Cubs should look to put the ball in play. Since Darvish was on the injured list in April, he did not face the Cubs this season.
Baseball Savant" />
Baseball Savant" />
Today’s game is on ESPN. Announcers: Kevin Brown, Jessica Mendoza, Ben McDonald and Jesse Rogers.
Here is the complete MLB.com live streaming page for today.
Baseball-reference.com game preview
Please visit our SB Nation Padres site Gaslamp Ball. If you do go there to interact with Padres fans, please be respectful, abide by their individual site rules and serve as a good representation of Cub fans in general and BCB in particular.
The 2025 Game Thread procedure will be identical to previous years.
You’ll find the game preview posted separately on the front page two hours before game time (90 minutes for some early day games following night games).
At the same time, a StoryStream containing the preview will also post on the front page, titled “Cubs vs. (Team) (Day of week/date) live game discussion.” It will contain every post related to that particular game, including the First Pitch thread and the overflow thread, as well as the recap when it’s published. The recap will also live on the front page as a separate post.
You will also be able to find the preview, First Pitch Thread and the overflow thread in this section link. The StoryStream for each game can also be found in that section.
The First Pitch thread will post at five minutes before game time, then an overflow thread at 90 minutes after the scheduled game time.
Discuss amongst yourselves.
