The Cubs came out of a back-and-forth game Wednesday with a 5-3 loss to the Padres.
Left-hander Drew Smyly held the Padres to two runs through five innings. The start didn’t match the dominance of his last, when Smyly carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning against the Dodgers. But it kept the Cubs in the game.
The one at-bat he was replaying in his head after the game was against Jake Cronenworth with two runners on in the fourth inning.
It started with an automatic ball on a pitch timer violation. Cronenworth watched a curveball in the dirt for another ball and a sinker on the outer third for a strike. Smyly came back with another curve, and this one Cronenworth drove into the right field corner for a two-run triple.
“I wish I could have gone longer,” Smyly said, “but the fourth inning was a little taxing.”
As soon as the Cubs fell behind in the fourth, Trey Mancini erased the Padres’ 2-0 lead with a two-run home run in the bottom half of the inning. He’s had eight hits in his last 19 at-bats, after a slow start to the season.
The next inning, Nico Hoerner, who is on a 21-game on-base streak, added to the Cubs’ lead with an RBI single into center field.
The Padres surged back in the seventh inning. Ha-Seong Kim led off with a single, and then Cubs reliever Brandon Hughes walked pinch hitter Trent Grisham. Jose Azocar laid down a sacrifice bunt to push two runners into scoring position. Fernando Tatís Jr., who Cubs fans had been booing all series, came through with a two-run single. The Padres took a 4-3 lead.
Cubs reliever Julian Merryweather took the mound in the ninth inning to hold the game within striking distance. He gave up a leadoff single to Kim, a ground ball through the right side of the infield. He struck out Grisham and induced a fly out from Azocar. But then Tatís hit another RBI single. Merryweather struck out Soto to end the inning.
The Cubs got one more chance for a comeback, against Padres closer Josh Hader.
Yan Gomes gave the Cubs hope with two outs, driving a double into the left-field corner. Nelson Velázquez drew a nine-pitch walk. But Hoerner popped out in foul territory for the last out of the game.
Cold welcome to Wrigley for Tatís
As Tatís walked toward the dugout Wednesday afternoon before the game, a fan in a Cubs jersey yelled to him, “I liked your dance yesterday.”
She was referring to a moment in the Cubs’ 6-0 win Tuesday that made its rounds on social media. In the fifth inning, the Bally Sports broadcast showed Tatís dancing in right field along to Cubs fans’ “steroids” chants.
Tatís returned from his 80-game banned substance suspension last week.
The taunts from Cubs fans continued Wednesday. The game opened with thunderous boos as Tatís stepped into the batter’s box to lead off.
Quotable
“One of the most impressive guys I’ve ever played with. He’s wise beyond his years. ... And it’s to watch as a teammate.” — Mancini on Hoerner