Padres pregame: Lineup unchanged for Game 2 of Wild-Card Series vs. Cubs

CHICAGO — The Padres, more or less, are stuck.

With Ramón Laureano unavailable — and with manager Mike Shildt’s unwilling to sit Luis Arraez against left-handers or move him down in the order or swap in switch-hitter Bryce Johnson for Gavin Sheets or change the lineup at all — there are going to be left-handed pockets of Padres for the Cubs to throw left-handers at in Wednesday’s Game 2 of the National League Wild Card Series at Wrigley Field.

The Cubs did just that in Game 1, holding the trio of Ryan O’Hearn, Sheets and Jake Cronenworth hitless in nine at-bats.

Left-hander Matthew Boyd took down the first two at-bats against that trio. Left-hander Drew Pomeranz got the last run through that pocket.

The Cubs will open with right-hander Andrew Kittredge, but the expectation is that left-hander Shota Imanaga will take down bulk innings in relief.

That did not lead Shildt to make any changes to his Game 2 lineup for Wednesday’s 12:08 p.m. start on ABC.

How we’re lining up for Game 2. pic.twitter.com/ggCZgBPNIa

— San Diego Padres (@Padres) October 1, 2025

“There was a time where I didn’t play the lefties and people were going crazy,” Shildt said. “All right, so we have lefties that are really talented and they’re going to play and they’re going to hit and they’ve been doing it since they were old enough to pick up a bat. I had a lineup in 2010 in Johnson City that had six straight left-handed hitters, won the league and set a league record for wins. I think we’re going to be OK.”

They’ll have to be. It’s difficult to foresee any of O’Hearn, Sheets or Cronenworth facing a right-hander unless they can force Game 3.

They seem to know it, too.

“Feels like I haven’t seen a righty in the last three weeks,” Cronenworth said with a laugh. “It goes back to the preparation piece, kind of looking at who you’re going to face, see how they operated yesterday, you know, not just early in the game, but when Boyd came out and how they’ve matched up against us three there at the bottom, just seeing what they’ve got and how they’re going to move forward after Kittredge comes out of the game.”

O’Hearn added: “I mean, I’ve been working on like a left-handed angle in the cage, left-handed breaking balls in the cage, stuff like that. It is what it is. Laurey’s out, so it’s my time to step up and go out there and put together the best at-bats that I can, and hopefully they’ll be falling in.”

The top of the order will only see Kittredge once, and the Padres’ left-handed hitters aren’t the only ones who’ve struggled against lefties.

The team ranked 19th in OPS (.690) against lefties this year, with O’Hearn leading the way with a 1.059 in 45 plate appearances since arriving in a trade from Baltimore.

Laureano was second with a .990 OPS, followed by Manny Machado (.825).

Here is how the rest of the Padres on the postseason roster have fared against lefties:

• SS Xander Bogaerts (.774)
• C Martín Maldonado (.766)
• 2B Jake Cronenworth (.726)
• OF Fernando Tatis Jr. (.723)
• OF Bryce Johnson (.697)
• DH Gavin Sheets (.669)
• INF Jose Iglesias (.660)
• OF Jackson Merrill (.648)
• 1B Luis Arraez (.644)
• C Freddy Fermin (.395)
• C Luis Campusano (.000)

Here is how the Cubs will line up for Game 2:

October baseball at the Friendly Confines! pic.twitter.com/qmGbXxmfcs

— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) October 1, 2025

Wednesday’s pitching matchup

Padres RHP Dylan Cease (8-12, 4.55 ERA)

He was the Cubs’ sixth-round pick in 2014 and was later flipped to the White Sox in the Jose Quintana trade. Cease has made eight starts against his original organization (2.47 ERA) and three starts at Wrigley Field (2.50 ERA). His only start this year against the Cubs was in April at Petco Park, where he allowed three runs — two earned — in 5⅔ innings in a no-decision. He struck out six, walked one and allowed a homer to 1B Michael Busch.

Cease discussed his postseason history and the momentum he hoped to take into Game 2 here.

Here is how Cease has fared against current Cubs:

Cubs RHP Andrew Kittredge (4-3, 3.40 ERA)

He struck out a batter in a scoreless inning on Tuesday and will open Wednesday’s game as the Cubs likely look to insert a lefty — perhaps Shota Imanaga (9-8, 3.75 ERA) — against a pocket of the Padres’ left-handed hitters. Kittredge had a 3.32 ERA in 21⅓ innings after arriving at the trade deadline. Imanaga had a 5.97 ERA over his last six starts of the season, but opposing lefties have a .603 OPS off him in his career in the majors and he has a 1.40 ERA in three career starts against the Padres. Imanaga also has a 7.20 ERA in the first inning this season.

Here is how Imanaga has fared against current Padres: