Perhaps the most significant part of the MLB Wild Card Round, as the San Diego Padres learned on Tuesday afternoon, is that there truly is no margin of error in a best-of-three series.
The Padres mustered just four hits and struck out six times in a 3-1 loss to the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Not only are the Padres now one game away from elimination, but they likely woke up Wednesday morning bemoaning all of their missed opportunities. Mike Shildt’s club failed to record a hit in 4 2/3 innings against Chicago’s bullpen and went 2-for-7 with runners in scoring position.
“Our clubhouse right now is disappointed, but nobody is hanging their head,” Shildt said postgame. “This is a good club that knows what they’re capable of doing and is eager to show up and go and compete tomorrow.”
Incredibly, Tuesday marked the Padres’ second consecutive playoff game in which a bullpen held them without a base runner for at least four innings. Blake Treinen and the Los Angeles Dodgers closed the Padres out with ease during a 2-0 Dodgers victory in Game 5 of last year’s NLDS.
San Diego has scored only one run in its last 33 postseason innings, and longtime Padres executive A. J. Preller’s risky trade deadline strategy is about to go up in flames.
Should A. J. Preller and the Padres regret their trade deadline moves?
Dansby Swanson saves a run! #Postseason pic.twitter.com/YsGOZtXyYM
— MLB (@MLB) September 30, 2025
Preller has an extensive history of wheeling and dealing, and he lived up to his reputation this past summer. San Diego made five trades by the time the clock hit triple zeroes on the trade deadline, notably adding Athletics closer Mason Miller and Orioles All-Star slugger Ryan O’Hearn.
At the time, the concern was that the Padres gambled too much on adequate players, outside of the flamethrowing Miller. We won’t fault O’Hearn, who went 0-for-3 on Tuesday, too much after Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson robbed him of hits in consecutive innings. However, it’s clear that the Padres missed outfielder Ramón Laureano, who hit .269 with nine homers, 30 RBIs, and an .812 OPS over 198 plate appearances. Unfortunately for the Padres, Laureano remains out with a fractured right index finger, and his presence as a right-handed bat would have been welcome against Cubs lefty Matthew Boyd.
Although Miller struck out the side in a scoreless seventh inning, the damage was already done. San Diego’s offense couldn’t get it going, and, for as talented as Miller is, the Padres didn’t acquire him to hit against the Cubs’ bullpen.
Rallying from a Game 1 loss in a best-of-five series is challenging enough, especially if you open on the road. The Padres not only face elimination on Wednesday afternoon, but they’re stuck at Wrigley Field even with a Game 2 victory.
Hindsight is always 20/20, and most of Preller’s moves worked out in the regular season. Miller dominated opponents to a 0.77 ERA and 45-10 K-BB ratio in 23 1/3 innings, Laureano manned left field well, and O’Hearn posted a .736 OPS in 50 games. History won’t remember the positives of those trades, though, if the Padres can’t advance beyond the Wild Card Round — and the odds are certainly stacked against them now.