Chicago Cubs Score and Recap (9/30/26): Padres 4, Cubs 1 – Offense Fails to Materialize as Season Ends

The Cubs’ season came to an end Wednesday night as the Padres won the second game of their Wild Card series at Petco Park. The offense stayed ice cold, scoring just a one run, as the clock struck midnight on 2026.

San Diego took the lead against Kevin Gausman in the bottom of the 2nd when Xander Bogaerts hit an RBI single and Ethan Salas added a sacrifice fly to make it 2-0. The Cubs scored their only run of the series with a Nico Hoerner knock against Nick Pivetta in the top of the 4th.

The Pads landed the big blow of the game in the bottom of the frame when pinch-hitter Gavin Sheets hit a two-run homer against Daniel Palencia that increased the advantage to 4-1. The North Siders got completely shut down by the bullpen after that, with only three men reaching base in the final five innings. (Box score)

Key Moment

After the Hoerner RBI single, Chicago had two on with one out trailing 2-1 in the top of the 4th. San Diego pulled Pivetta and brought in reliever Bradgley Rodriguez, who struck out Matt Shaw. After Carson Kelly was hit by a pitch, Rodriguez got Dansby Swanson to pop out.

Why the Cubs Lost

The offense just could not do anything on Wednesday night, and four runs were more than enough for the Padres to win.

Stats That Matter

• Gausman was fine but didn’t get any help: 3.1 IP, 3 R, 5 H, 1 K, and 0 BB.
• Hoerner was the only Cubs player to do much on offense with a single and a double.
• Pete Crow-Armstrong went 0-for-7 with four strikeouts and a walk in the series.

Bottom Line

It’s hard not to be disappointed with how the season ended for the Cubs. The lineup that had the highest team OPS in baseball ran out of gas in the final two weeks. The myriad pitching issues probably meant they weren’t going to win the World Series regardless, but to go out with only one run in the two-game series was unexpected. Labor issues that might lead to a work stoppage mean the Cubs could have longer to stew on what happened at the end of the season.

On Deck

The plan is for Chicago to begin spring training in Mesa in February 2027, but that is subject to change.