Padres beat Cubs 10-2, take series
(AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Petco Park- San Diego, California
The San Diego Padres came into Wednesday’s game with an identity crisis.
On Monday, the offense came back from an 8-0 deficit to beat the Cubs on a late two-run homer off the bat of Fernando Tatis Jr. On Tuesday, the offense could not do anything positive in a 5-1 loss to the Cubs. The rollercoaster ride of a season continues in San Diego.
With an improved approach and a plan, the Padres attacked Kyle Hendricks with a purpose and knocked out seven runs and nine hits off the Cubs pitcher, who usually baffles them. Hendricks is a soft-tosser with an excellent change-up. The Padres’ approach of the past seemed to be incorrect as they continually tried to pull the right-hander. On Wednesday, the plan was simple- think up the middle.
San Diego continually peppered the ball the other way off Hendricks, essentially eliminating his change, and the rest is history.
The San Diego Padres need to change their philosophy overall, and it is interesting to see results like this.
Victor Rodriguez, the new hitting coach in town, is clearly making sense to the unit as a whole. If the Padres plan to compete, they will need to make more adjustments to their swings during games.
Jake Cronenworth and Jurickson Profar both homered off Hendricks on Wednesday. The blasts came in the sixth inning, as Hendricks failed to get out of the inning. Cronenworth is off to a hot start, hitting .304 on the season with a .883 OPS in the third hole. Profar is also producing early with a 1.012 OPS in his first 45 at-bats this season.
Did someone call a landscaper? pic.twitter.com/0XB1sDWufO
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) April 11, 2024
Dylan Cease continues to impress. The right-handed pitcher pitched six strong innings on Wednesday, allowing two hits and two unearned runs. Cease struck out seven and walked two, showing better command than in his past starts. His ERA is 2.16 on the season, and Cease recorded his first win as a San Diego Padre.
The Padres will head up the freeway to Los Angeles to battle the Dodgers in a three-game series that starts on Friday.
Michael King (2-0, 3.14 ERA) will face off against Yoshinobu Yamamoto (1-1, 4.09 ERA).
The first pitch is scheduled for 7:10 PM.
James was born and raised in America’s Finest City. He is a passionate baseball fan with even more passion towards his hometown Padres. Editor-In-Chief of EastVillageTimes.com. Always striving to bring you the highest quality in San Diego Sports News. Original content, with original ideas, that’s our motto. Enjoy.