Padres offense has nowhere to go but up

Well just like that, a promising homestand came to a screeching halt on Monday night after the Chicago Cubs won 6-0. I said yesterday the Cubs starter ERA ranked 27th in baseball and the Padres needed to expose their starters for who they are. Instead, the complete opposite happened as the Padres only collected three hits over the course of nine innings.

Hitter of the game: (Monday vs Chicago)

Only three hitters received a knock in the hit column. All were singles and neither reached second base during their limited time on the basepaths. I don’t think it’s wise to choose a “hitter of the game” based on Monday night's performance.

A completely depressing showing for what was supposed to be an exciting night celebrating Tony Gwynn’s birthdate. There was Manny Machado pre-game wearing the Gwynn t-shirt jersey during batting practice. Gwynn was one of the best hitters baseball has ever seen at the plate and Monday’s showing by these 2022 San Diego Padres was not a representation of that.

The silver lining, there can only be improvement moving forward. It is very unlikely for the Padres to go another 30 or so innings with scoring once in said innings. It’s been a tough May for everyone at the plate not named Machado. Despite the lack of success, this team is still winning games but the switch does need to turn on sooner than later.

Pitcher of the game: (Monday vs Chicago)

While rookie LHP MacKenzie Gore put together a decent outing. Five innings and three earned runs don’t scream “pitcher of the game to me”. Sure three runs should be more than enough to keep an offense in striking distance. But, it wasn’t on Monday night.

No deserving of a pitcher of the game for me. Two of the three relievers saw a run come across. Yes, Ray Kerr was the sole arm to not have a run come in, but his stuff wasn’t exactly electric during a 6-0 ball game.

If the bats continue to struggle this is going to be the unit that will need to pick up the slack and give the offense an opportunity to win the game on one swing of the bat. Similar to Sunday’s game vs Miami when Jorge Alfaro walked it off.

What to watch: Game 2 vs Chicago

Wade Miley will make his Cubs debut Tuesday night vs Mike Clevinger. Last season Miley supported a 3.37 ERA while going 12-7 for the Reds.

Clevinger will make his first-ever start at Petco with the friar faithful in the stands. I would look for Clevinger to build off his last and build off the energy from the crowd as this game goes into the 4th and 5th innings.

I don’t think either pitcher will make it past the 5th inning unless the pitch count is incredible in their favor. I go out on a limb and say the Padres will score in at least two innings this game.