Heading into the National League Wild Card Series against the Chicago Cubs the belief was that Michael King would start Game 1, Nick Pivetta would start Game 2 and Walker Buehler would start Game 3 if he was needed. The San Diego Padres ensured he would not be needed with a two-game sweep of the Cubs, which earned them the opportunity to face the top-seeded Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Division Series.
As a result of San Diego’s quick work of Chicago, the Padres had two days off to rest
and prepare for their NLDS matchup with the Brewers. That also allowed time for San Diego manager Craig Stammen and his staff to look at the rotation and the best way to get the most out of that group to give them a chance to win and advance to the National League Championship Series against the winner of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves.
The prevailing thought, at least among much of the Friar Faithful, was that Buehler would take the mound in Game 1 and depending on how the game went, Stammen and the Padres would lineup their starters for the remainder of the series accordingly. That thought was put to rest on Friday when it was announced that trade deadline acquisition Robbie Ray would get the ball in Game 1. The left-hander has had an up-and-down tenure in San Diego since being acquired from the San Francisco Giants, but he is an established veteran with many years of experience and an American League Cy Young Award (2021) on his resume.
Ray had a season record of 10-6 with a 3.08 ERA in 22 games with the Giants, making him one of the top trade candidates at the deadline this year. The addition of the left-hander and former Detroit Tigers pitcher Casey Mize was considered one of Padres general manager A.J. Preller’s most successful deadlines in his tenure in San Diego. Since being acquired, Ray has a record of 3-2 with a 5.02 ERA in nine games. He also had 57 walks and 107 strikeouts with San Francisco and has 27 and 33 in the same categories with San Diego.
It is surprising to see Stammen going with Ray against Misiorowski who is the clear favorite to win the Nationals League Cy Young Award for the 2026 season, but it is understandable when you consider the Padres bullpen. All that Ray has to do is get through four innings, at worst three, and San Diego can lean on the bullpen to cover the rest of the game. The roster for the NLDS has not yet been announced but the names that will surely be there like David Morgan, Yuki Matsui, Bradgley Rodriguez, Adrian Morejon and Mason Miller would be enough to cover five innings if Ray can get through four. Any additional arm like Wandy Peralta, Randy Vasquez, Kyle Hart or even Joe Musgrove would simply allow for matchup flexibility and would serve as “break glass in case of emergency” arms in the series opener.
The idea is for the Padres to split the two games in Milwaukee to give them a chance to clinch the NLDS and move onto the NLCS in front of the 47,000-plus fans who packed Petco Park in the Wild Card Series. San Diego has a clear home field advantage and the only drawback from the series against Chicago is that is no longer a secret. The Brewers know they HAVE to get two at home or they run the risk of their 103 win season coming to an abrupt end in America’s Finest City.
The series kicks off tonight at 5:30 p.m.
Padres News:
- Cheri Bell of Gaslamp Ball recaps one of the most successful weeks in Padres history.
- Xander Bogaerts and his new split-grip technique at the plate is batting .500 in two postseason games. Sure it’s not a large sample size, but if he can keep it up, it might be enough at the right time to put the Padres past the Brewers.
- With Jacob Misiorowski and Mason Miller taking the mound, there will be no shortage of heat in the NLDS.
- The San Diego offense has gotten hot at the right time and it will need to stay hot against the top pitcher in the NL to have a chance to win Game 1.
- Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union-Tribune is calling his shot and says the Padres will win the NLDS.
- Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts is once again using the Padres to motivate his team, this time he is taking quotes from the new San Diego owners out of context.
Baseball News:
- Tarik Skubal, not Yoshinobu Yamamoto will start Game 1 of the NLDS for the Dodgers.
- The major league season may be coming to a close, but the Arizona Fall League is just getting started.
- Here is the schedule for all the NLDS action.
