‘All Hands On Deck’
The San Diego Padres won Game 2 of the Wild Card Series against the Chicago Cubs 3-0 with outstanding performances from the pitching staff used in the game. Starter Dylan Cease pitched 3.2 innings, only allowing three hits and no runs with five strikeouts and one walk. He threw 69 pitches and was lifted with two outs in the fourth for lefty Adrian Morejon.
Cease had been dominant, even striking out the first two hitters of the 4th inning but, with only a 1-0 lead, Padres Manager Mike Shildt took him out in favor of Morejon when Cease allowed a double to Seiya Suzuki and Carson Kelly was intentionally walked.
Morejon then pitched 2.1 innings of no-hit ball followed by Mason Miller throwing 1.2 innings of no-hit ball. Morejon threw 33 pitches in his outing and Miller threw 27 pitches in his appearance. Over the first two games, Morejon threw 42 pitches and Miller threw 40 pitches.
David Morgan, Bradgley Rodriguez, Randy Vasquez and Michael King have not pitched in either of the first two games. One of either Vasquez or King has to be held back for a start on Friday if the Padres advance. Wandy Peralta only pitched 0.1 innings with no hits and a strikeout in Game 1, so he will also be available.
Jeremiah Estrada has had a difficult time the last month of the season. He pitched in 12 games and 11 innings in September with 10 hits and seven runs allowed for a 5.73 ERA. His appearance in Tuesday’s game consisted of 0.2 innings with a hit and a run, with a walk.
Yu Darvish leads the charge
Yu Darvish has only made it through five innings maximum in his last three starts. On Sept. 26, his last start, he went five innings and threw 79 pitches. He allowed six hits and two runs. Darvish has not looked quite right since coming back from his elbow issues that kept him out of the rotation until July. But in his last three starts he has minimized the damage, not allowing more than three runs in his five innings.
Darvish will mostly like be followed by Peralta or Morgan, depending on the circumstances. With Morgan and Rodriguez both being rookies, putting either of them in pressure-packed situations could backfire on the team. If you assume King is held back, Vasquez would likely be the last to be put in due to his inconsistent performances over the season. He is capable of dominance (see seven innings pitched, one hit performance versus Milwaukee on 9/23), but can also miss badly with his pitches. Should the offense put up bigger numbers, he could be seen in a short stint to eat an inning or two.
Morejon and Miller
Shildt, in his postgame remarks on Wednesday, said both Morejon and Miller would be consulted on Thursday regarding their availability. Under normal circumstances, neither would be used for tomorrow’s game. But these aren’t normal circumstances and “All hands on deck” were the words out of Shildt’s mouth when asked about their availability.
Morgan, Rodriguez and Vasquez all pitched on Sunday, the last day of the season. It makes sense they will all be asked to extend their appearances, if they are effective, and Morejon/Miller would only be called on in a close and/or crucial situation.
Robert Suarez is the closer, he continues to have Shildt’s confidence to close games. There is no way to switch roles now, so Suarez will be the guy if a closer is needed tomorrow.
In a perfect world, Darvish is good and the bullpen does what it has done all year. The offense was better in Game 2, they need to really shine in Game 3.
Category: General Sports
