Gavin Sheets' pinch-hit homer
propels dominant Padres past Cubs 4-1 for 2-game Wild Card sweep
[October 01, 2026]
By GREG BEACHAM
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Pinch-hitter Gavin Sheets blasted a two-run homer,
five Padres pitchers combined on a five-hitter, and San Diego swept
the Chicago Cubs out of the NL Wild Card Series with a 4-1 victory
in Game 2 on Wednesday night.
Xander Bogaerts drove in the first run for the surging Padres, who
followed up their 8-0 victory in Tuesday's opener with another
dominant mound performance. The Cubs led the majors in runs and the
NL in homers this year, but they managed just eight hits — seven
singles — over 18 innings against San Diego's inspired staff.
Ethan Salas drove in a run while becoming the youngest player to
catch a postseason game in major league history for the Padres,
whose 20-3 surge since Sept. 5 has them looking like a threat in the
NL. With their fifth playoff series victory in the past seven years,
the Padres advanced to face the MLB-best Milwaukee Brewers in an NL
division series this weekend.
“It's our entire group coming together, finding ways to win
ballgames over and over,” Fernando Tatis Jr. said between puffs on a
cigar in the Padres' beer-soaked clubhouse. “This feels great, but
we've already been to this part before, and we're all so hungry to
go farther.”
One year after the Cubs eliminated the Padres in three tough Wild
Card games at Wrigley Field, the Padres reversed the result in two
romps before frenzied sellout crowds at Petco Park.
“It’s nice to finish in two,” manager Craig Stammen said. “Saves our
bullpen a little bit, and we can decide who’s going to start Game 1.
We haven’t decided that yet, but it definitely sets us up better
with two days off. Get those guys fresh and ready to go.”
Nico Hoerner had half of the Cubs’ hits in the series, and he drove
in Chicago’s only run in the fourth inning. He also got their only
extra-base hit of the series with a ninth-inning double off Mason
Miller, but the Padres’ vaunted closer calmly finished the save and
set off another massive celebration on the field.
“It didn’t go well here,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “We just
didn’t play well enough. They’re playing really well. We just
couldn’t get anything going offensively, obviously. Look, when
you’re in this position, you’re going to be disappointed. You’re
going to feel unfulfilled, and that’s just dominating everything you
feel right now. Maybe as you reflect, I think I can get to some
better places. Right now, that’s all I feel.”
Probable NL MVP Pete Crow-Armstrong and veteran slugger Alex Bregman
struggled mightily atop the Cubs’ lineup in San Diego, going a
combined 0 for 15 with a walk and eight strikeouts over these two
games. Bregman played just over a week after he was hit in the face
with a foul ball.
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San Diego Padres Gavin Sheets celebrates his two-run home run
against the Chicago Cubs in the fourth inning of Game 2 of the
National League Wild Card baseball playoff series Wednesday, Sept.
30, 2026, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
“Those were the two guys we marked as we don’t want those guys to
beat us in this series,” Stammen said. “We tried our best to set up
our pitching to handle them. In the first game, we were just lucky
we got out to a bigger lead. It’s a lot easier to pitch to those
guys with a bigger lead.”
After hitting two homers in the first inning of Game 1, the Padres
waited until the second inning of Game 2 to take a 2-0 lead. Ty
France led off with a double off Kevin Gausman and scored on
Bogaerts’ single before Salas hit a line-drive flyout to center,
scoring Jackson Merrill.
Salas, the prized 20-year-old prospect recalled Sept. 1, also became
the youngest player to appear in a postseason game for the Padres.
Chicago finally scored when Seiya Suzuki singled and eventually came
home on Hoerner’s ground ball to center off Nick Pivetta. Stammen
immediately yanked his starter in favor of his intimidating bullpen,
and Bradgley Rodríguez escaped a bases-loaded jam.
Rodríguez also pitched the fifth to earn the victory in his
postseason debut.
“Those guys, they're so good at what they do,” Pivetta said. “It was
a pleasure to watch.”
After Bogaerts’ double chased Gausman in the fourth, Sheets crushed
a 100.8 mph fastball from Daniel Palencia into the right-field
bleachers. Sheets, the fan-favorite outfielder who is playing with a
nagging plantar injury in his left foot, delivered his second career
postseason homer and his first since 2021 as a White Sox rookie.
“That was one of the cooler home runs I've ever seen,” Merrill said.
The shot was the Padres’ first pinch-hit postseason homer since
2005, and their long-suffering fans’ cheers rattled the park.
Up next
Game 1 of the division series is Saturday in Milwaukee. The Padres
took four of six from the Brewers this season, even sweeping a
three-game series at Petco Park in August.
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