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San Diego Padres: 3 takeaways from Tuesday's loss to Chicago Cubs

By Jonathan Northall |
Apr 25, 2023; Chicago, Illinois, USA; San Diego Padres right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. (23)
Apr 25, 2023; Chicago, Illinois, USA; San Diego Padres right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. (23) / Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports
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The San Diego Padres dropped the first of a three-game stint at Wrigley Field on Tuesday night, with the Chicago Cubs winning 6-0. It was a disappointing evening as the Padres batters failed and Blake Snell's slump in form continued.

It was not so much the scoreline as the performance after taking the series against the Diamondbacks. Dropping below .500 once again, the Padres need to find a way back quickly. How? Let's take a look at three key points from Chicago.

San Diego Padres: Don't leave runners in scoring positions, convert them

The Padres managed to get runners in scoring position (RISP) on eight occasions against the Cubs, yet they failed to convert any. You can't win games if you don't score, and the Padres are making a habit of it. According to Statmuse, the Padres have a team average of .214 with RISP. That places the Padres in dead last place in that table.

The Padres have 88 RBI for the season to further the point on leaving runners. This is 17 short of the league average. In comparison, the Cubs have 121, which was evidenced by a 2-for-9 RISP against the Padres.

Having lost five games so far by one or two runs, the RISP / RBI issue is massively hurting San Diego's chances for success. With the score only 2-0 going into the eighth inning, the Padres were still in reach, yet drew another blank before the Cubs iced the game at the bottom of the eighth.

San Diego Padres v Chicago Cubs
San Diego Padres v Chicago Cubs / Michael Reaves/GettyImages

San Diego Padres need to take the heat from Blake Snell

Blake Snell came into the Cubs game with many questions being asked about his suitability in the starting rotation. None were answered. Snell is a shadow of the pitcher he has been. For example, he's not a 5.48 ERA pitcher. Well, he is in 2023 and the Padres need to act to protect him.

Snell's pitching numbers tell a story. He's throwing more fastballs in 2023, yet he's been homered against four times already (two short of last year's total). Perhaps it's a drop in velocity, according to Baseball Savant, with 94.5 mph vs 95.8, and 12.3% barrel percentage suggests that batters are reading Snell and making him pay.

The Padres need to replace Snell in the rotation and work with him to determine the issue. Snell is a Cy Young award winner and is 30 years old. He's got plenty left in his arm, yet something is not right.

San Diego Padres v Chicago Cubs
San Diego Padres v Chicago Cubs / Michael Reaves/GettyImages

San Diego Padres will have off nights, but how do they respond to them?

With a batting lineup including Fernando Tatís Jr., Juan Soto, Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts, etc., it is understandable why fans may be frustrated when they don't fire. The Padres were limited to five hits by the Cubs. Justin Steele and the Cubs' bullpen managed to keep the Padres batters as cold as the 41-degree evening at Wrigley Field.

Precedent for a response has already been set in 2023 when the New York Mets shut out the Padres with a 5-0 beating in the first game of their series two weeks ago. In the next game, the Padres won 4-2, so they know how to respond. Now it's a matter of if they will in Chicago.

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