Chicago Cubs @ San Diego Padres – Series Preview (April 27-29): Overview, Game and Broadcast Info, Starting Pitchers, W2W4
After reeling off 10 consecutive wins, the Cubs (17-11) finally returned to Earth a bit as they lost the final two games to the two-time defending champion Dodgers this weekend. The powerful LA offense went off on Saturday and Sunday, outscoring Craig Counsell‘s squad 18-4 to take the series.
Next up for Chicago is a three-game set with their 2025 Wild Card opponent, the Padres, at Petco Park starting Monday night. The Pads are off to a great start in 2026, applying pressure to Los Angeles in the National League West through a month of action.
San Diego (18-9) has had decent pitching this year with a 3.96 team ERA that is the 12th-best in MLB. Their top two starters so far have been Michael King and Randy Vasquez, but the rest of the rotation has not been very good.
The bullpen has been uneven, with one very notable exception. Closer Mason Miller is having an incredible start to the season with 10 saves and 27 strikeouts in 13.1 innings. Just for emphasis, that means 27 of the 40 total outs he has recorded have come via strikeout. He also leads baseball with a -0.47 FIP, which means he’d actually be better with no defense behind him.
The Friars’ offense hasn’t been very productive so far, boasting a .693 team OPS that is all the way down at 23rd in MLB. Even more surprising, they have just 25 homers through 27 games, a number that seems almost certain to go up dramatically with the power up and down the roster.
Xander Bogaerts has been the Padres’ most consistent hitter in April with a .780 OPS and four homers. Fernando Tatis Jr. has been eerily quiet with just four doubles and no home runs the entire season. It feels like the entire lineup is a slumbering beast ready to wake up at any moment.
Petco Park has been a house of horrors for the Cubs in recent years, and San Diego has a good team. If the Cubs can avoid being behind late and having to face Miller in a save situation, they have a decent chance to win the series and escape the West Coast mostly intact.
Game Time and Broadcast Info
- Monday, April 27 at 8:40pm CT on Marquee.
- Tuesday, April 28 at 8:40pm CT on Marquee.
- Wednesday, April 29 at 3:10pm CT on Marquee.
Starting Pitchers
| Date | Pitcher | Age | T | ERA | W/L | FIP | K/BB |
| 4/27 | Matthew Boyd | 35 | L | 5.79 | 1-1 | 1.56 | 7.33 |
| Randy Vasquez | 27 | R | 1.88 | 2–0 | 2.53 | 3.75 | |
| 4/28 | Edward Cabrera | 28 | R | 2.73 | 2-0 | 3.63 | 2.00 |
| Walker Buehler | 31 | R | 5.75 | 1-2 | 3.27 | 2.22 | |
| 4/29 | Jameson Taillon | 34 | R | 4.55 | 1-1 | 6.02 | 2.08 |
| Matt Waldron | 29 | R | 12.46 | 0-1 | 6.24 | 1.75 |
What to Watch For
- The Cubs have been constantly shuffling pieces in the bullpen with injuries piling up. Expect more of the same in this series.
- Moisés Ballesteros has six hits in his last four starts.
- Michael Busch has raised his batting average by 70 points during a seven-game hitting streak.
- Boyd should not have a pitch limit in his second start off the injured list.
