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    Padres-Cubs Wild Card Game One Thread, By The Numbers

    How have Padres hitters fared against Matthew Boyd, and how have the Cubs done against Nick Pivetta?
    Brandon Glick

    By Brandon Glick

    Image courtesy of © Matt Marton-Imagn Images

    Cubs Video

    The Cubs host the Padres at Wrigley Field for game one of the best-of-three National League Wild Card Series; San Diego has tabbed Nick Pivetta as their game one starter, and the series will be played entirely at Wrigley Field.  

    Cubs hitters vs Nick Pivetta
    Pivetta, a right-hander, showed reverse splits in 2025: he allowed a .239 wOBA to left-handed batters and a .272 wOBA to right-handed batters. Chicago’s September production offers a few specific matchups to watch. Michael Busch (LHB) posted a .244/.337/.634 (.971 OPS) in September (95 PA). Ian Happ (switch-hitter) produced a .287/.382/.511 (.893 OPS) in September (110 PA). Seiya Suzuki (RHB) logged a .232/.333/.478 (.811 OPS) in September (81 PA).  

    Nick Pivetta vs. Chicago Cubs: Current Batters Table
    Rk Player B PA AB H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS SH SF IBB HBP GIDP
    1 Dansby Swanson R 35 34 10 1 0 2 5 1 11 .294 .314 .500 .814 0 0 0 0 0
    2 Kyle Tucker L 12 10 2 1 0 0 2 1 2 .200 .250 .300 .550 0 1 0 0 0
    3 Ian Happ B 11 10 3 1 0 0 0 1 6 .300 .364 .400 .764 0 0 0 0 0
    4 Justin Turner R 9 8 5 2 0 2 3 1 0 .625 .667 1.625 2.292 0 0 0 0 0
    5 Reese McGuire L 7 6 2 0 0 0 0 1 2 .333 .429 .333 .762 0 0 0 0 0
    6 Carson Kelly R 6 6 3 0 1 0 1 0 3 .500 .500 .833 1.333 0 0 0 0 0
    7 Michael Busch L 5 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 .000 .200 .000 .200 0 0 0 0 0
    8 Seiya Suzuki R 5 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 .200 .200 .200 .400 0 0 0 0 1
    9 Willi Castro B 4 4 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 .500 .500 1.000 0 0 0 0 0
    10 Nico Hoerner R 4 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 .000 0 0 0 0 0
    11 Pete Crow-Armstrong L 4 3 1 0 0 0 0 1 2 .333 .500 .333 .833 0 0 0 0 0
    12 Matt Shaw R 2 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 .500 .500 1.000 0 0 0 0 0
    Provided by Stathead.com: Found with Stathead. See Full Results.
    Generated 9/29/2025.

    Padres hitters vs Matthew Boyd
    Left-hander Matthew Boyd draws the Game 1 start for Chicago, nudging past Shota Imanaga to open the Cubs’ postseason. In 2025, Boyd held left-handed batters to a .258 wOBA and right-handed batters to a .297 wOBA. Manny Machado finished September with a .207/.250/.425 (.675 OPS), while Fernando Tatis Jr. finished the regular season with a .293/.352/.549 (.900 OPS) slash in September.  

    Matthew Boyd vs. San Diego Padres: Current Batters Table
    Rk Player B PA AB H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS SH SF IBB HBP GIDP
    1 Xander Bogaerts R 18 16 3 0 0 1 3 2 3 .188 .278 .375 .653 0 0 0 0 1
    2 Manny Machado R 14 13 5 2 0 0 3 0 3 .385 .357 .538 .896 0 1 0 0 0
    3 Luis Arráez L 9 7 3 1 0 0 0 1 1 .429 .556 .571 1.127 0 0 0 1 0
    4 Freddy Fermin R 7 7 2 1 0 0 2 0 3 .286 .286 .429 .714 0 0 0 0 0
    5 Elias Díaz R 6 5 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 .400 .500 .400 .900 0 0 0 0 0
    6 Fernando Tatis Jr. R 6 6 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 .167 .167 .167 .333 0 0 0 0 0
    7 Jackson Merrill L 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000 .000 .000 0 0 0 0 0
    8 Jose Iglesias R 3 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .333 .333 .333 .667 0 0 0 0 0
    9 Jake Cronenworth L 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 .000 .000 .000 .000 0 0 0 0 0
    Provided by Stathead.com: Found with Stathead. See Full Results.
    Generated 9/29/2025.

    Defensive context
    Outs on contact could swing this game. Chicago’s center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong ranks among MLB’s 2025 leaders with +21 Outs Above Average, providing elite gap coverage behind any starter the Cubs deploy. At shortstop, Dansby Swanson is again a positive in Statcast’s range metrics (+1 OAA at SS in 2025), a drop from previous seasons but still capable. For San Diego, Fernando Tatis Jr. brings plus defense in right field (+7 OAA), a notable factor against Wrigley’s alley-driven extra-base profile.  

    Notes On Key Matchups

    • Cubs LHB (Busch, etc.) vs Pivetta (R): Pivetta’s 2025 wOBA allowed to LHB was .239; Busch carried a .971 OPS in September.
    • Cubs RHB (Suzuki, etc.) vs Pivetta: Pivetta allowed a .272 wOBA to RHB; Suzuki posted an .811 OPS in September.  
    • Padres RHB (Tatis, Machado) vs Boyd (L): Boyd allowed a .297 wOBA to RHB; Machado logged a .675 OPS in September; Tatis finished with a .353 season wOBA

    Writer | Director | Author

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    Featured Comments

    squally1313

    squally1313 2,225

    Posted

    If Pivetta can keep that fastball at the top of the zone (or above), he's going to be tough. If it starts coming down to the middle of the zone, there's a few guys that can definitely take advantage.

    PeanutPunch33

    PeanutPunch33 209

    Posted

    huge that Boyd kept them to 1 run instead of more that inning

    • Like 1
    SpongeWorthy

    SpongeWorthy 377

    Posted

    1 minute ago, squally1313 said:

    If Pivetta can keep that fastball at the top of the zone (or above), he's going to be tough. If it starts coming down to the middle of the zone, there's a few guys that can definitely take advantage.

    image.thumb.png.dcc47ea0dd40551657de999f29bf37e4.pngnick pivetta? the guy that kissed charles barkley on the lips? 

    Cubbies1996

    Cubbies1996 101

    Posted

    2 minutes ago, Irrelevant Dude said:

    We aren't scoring today. (Prove me wrong)

    100% correct (please prove us wrong)

    Stratos

    Stratos 503

    Posted

    Pete needs to spend all winter working on his swing decisions.

    • Like 1
    Post Count Padder

    Post Count Padder 195

    Posted

    Boyd striking out Arraez swinging is an anomaly. Maybe we do have a shot.

    Guest

    Guest

    Posted

    boyd looked like 1st half of the season Boyd on that last K. Very nice

    Jason Ross

    Jason Ross 2,541

    Posted

    Fun strikeout there. 

    Cubbies1996

    Cubbies1996 101

    Posted

    Missing so many pitches right down the middle 

    Guest

    Guest

    Posted

    Making this guy look like Sandy Koufax so far smh

    Hortonhearsawho

    Hortonhearsawho 84

    Posted

    5 minutes ago, Post Count Padder said:

    Boyd striking out Arraez swinging is an anomaly. Maybe we do have a shot.

    Won't matter since we won't score any runs. 

    Irrelevant Dude

    Irrelevant Dude 1,546

    Posted

    I've had enough.  Switched over to Pat and Ron for audio.  I can't listen to these TV guys.

    • Like 1
    • Haha 1
    JHBulls

    JHBulls 856

    Posted

    At least a strikeout didn’t end the inning. Progress. 

    Cubbies1996

    Cubbies1996 101

    Posted

    What a disgusting showing so far on offense. Not playing the ****** cardinals anymore fellas

    UMFan83

    UMFan83 3,016

    Posted

    6 more outs until the superpen is ready to slam the door.

    SpongeWorthy

    SpongeWorthy 377

    Posted

    pivetta is spotting up but some pretty bad chase going on here

    Stratos

    Stratos 503

    Posted

    I think Pete should try a bunt next PA.

    Stratos

    Stratos 503

    Posted

    1 minute ago, SpongeWorthy said:

    pivetta is spotting up but some pretty bad chase going on here

    Savant says he gets tons of ride on his 4-seam, and a big 12-6 hook

    ILMindState

    ILMindState 277

    Posted

    We're gonna score 1 run this whole series aren't we

    • Like 1
    Tangled Up in Plaid

    Tangled Up in Plaid 409

    Posted

    Just now, ILMindState said:

    We're gonna score 0 runs this whole series aren't we

     

    UMFan83

    UMFan83 3,016

    Posted

    Just now, ILMindState said:

    We're gonna score 1 run this whole series aren't we

    It's a WC round tradition!

    Guest

    Guest

    Posted

    Ball not bouncing our way today. Not good

    squally1313

    squally1313 2,225

    Posted

    Baseball being dumb to the Padres benefit: 2

    Baseball being dumb to the Cubs benefit: 0

    • Like 1
    Manny Trillos Brother

    Manny Trillos Brother 15

    Posted

    In fairness, there's been what? 2 hard hit balls off Boyd? One of them was the out to Dansby.



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