San Diego defeated Chicago 4-1 on Wednesday night at Petco Park, completing a two-game sweep in the National League Wild Card Series. Gavin Sheets hit a pinch-hit, two-run home run in the fifth inning to break open the game, sending the Padres to the NL Division Series against the Milwaukee Brewers.
Petco Park Sweep Cures Last Year’s Exit
The Padres spent September as the hottest team in baseball, surging into the postseason and securing a Wild Card Series at Petco Park. That strong finish brought sweet revenge for San Diego after their 2025 season came to an end with a Wild Card Series exit at Wrigley Field. The two teams played 18 innings at Petco Park this week, and the Padres led after 17 of them.
Michael King started the night by throwing a fastball past Pete Crow-Armstrong, and Joe Musgrove punctuated his triumphant return to the mound with a game-ending strikeout.
Gavin Sheets Delivers Decisive Swing in Game 2
Game 2 brought a different kind of postseason energy with tension mixed into the celebration. San Diego jumped in front in the second inning when Xander Bogaerts hit an RBI single and Ethan Salas drove in a run with a sacrifice fly. Salas made history by becoming the youngest player in history to catch a postseason game, as well as the youngest player at any position to record a postseason sacrifice fly since the statistic was fully tracked in 1954.
The Cubs scratched a run back against Nick Pivetta in the fourth inning and worked their way into the Padres bullpen. With two outs, a runner aboard, and the top of the Chicago lineup looming in the fifth, Cubs manager Craig Counsell turned to right-hander Daniel Palencia. Gavin Sheets strode to the on-deck circle, then, eventually, the batter’s box.
Sheets had spent most of September in a walking boot while playing through a plantar plate tear in his left foot. He took all of one plate appearance across two games in the series, but he made it count. Palencia threw a 100.8 mph fastball at the bottom of the zone on the inner half, and Sheets turned on it for a pinch-hit, two-run home run that marked the hardest pitch any Padre has ever homered on in the regular season or postseason.
Next Stop Milwaukee for the National League Division Series
With a 4-1 victory secured, the Padres lockdown bullpen took over to close out the win. The sweep advances San Diego to the National League Division Series against the Milwaukee Brewers.
Milwaukee finished the regular season with the majors’ best record and has Jacob Misiorowski lined up to start Game 1 on Saturday night. San Diego secured a trip to the NL Division Series with momentum firmly on their side after dispatching the Cubs in two games that were never really close.
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