After a great top of the 1st inning to take a 3-0, you had to feel this game would be different in a good way from the first two games of the series when the offense could only score a run in each game.

It was definitely different but in a wild way as things quickly unraveled in the bottom of the inning when Kyle Hart had no control, Logan Gillaspie came in and balked in two runs and then gave up a two run homer in the 2nd. This looked like one of those long getaway days already being down 7-3 heading into the top of the 3rd.

But credit to Logan Gillaspie for pitching a total of 4 innings and the rest of the bullpen (Morejon, Estrada, Adam and Suarez) all holding it down from there as the Cubs wouldn’t score again after that homer in the 2nd. The Padres were able to chip away and take the lead in the 9th, even if it was on an error by Justin Turner at 1st that should have been an inning-ending double play.

Great comeback win and reminiscent of what last year’s team did where it always battled and as Mike Shildt likes to call them the “grit squad”. It takes the pitching to hold up as it did today to make the comeback and you can’t say enough good things about what they were able to do as the offense had many chances (3 for 16 with RISP oof) and could have come back many times earlier in the game.

A couple of things:

• I still don’t know what the two balks are that Gillaspie did in the 1st inning. These are the times it would be good for the ump to get on the mic to explain what they’re doing.
• Regardless of a righty or lefty pitcher, seems like the top of the lineup should stay the way it was today:
  1. Tatis
  2. Arraez
  3. Machado
  4. Merrill
  5. Cronenworth
  6. Bogaerts

I can see switching Cronenworth and Bogaerts so it alternates right-left and I get the concerns about Cronenworth against lefties but having Machado and Bogaerts back to back has lead to many wasted scoring opportunities where guys are on 1st and 2nd and no outs and then we end up with 3 outs and no runs (strikeouts, double plays, etc).

I see having Merrill in between as a way to split up Machado and Bogaerts both because of them being righties (having Merrill in between gives the pitcher a different look from the other side), Merrill’s speed to beat out ground balls (in reality both Machado and Bogaerts aren’t quick so any ground balls have a high chance for a double plays) and Merrill has shown a big knack for being clutch in his 1+ year in the majors so far.

So I would keep them alternating regardless of who the pitcher is. Merrill has shown enough against lefties where he doesn’t need to be moved down in the lineup just because its a lefty. As far as the rest of the lineup, Sheets has been pretty productive but holding out comment to see how the others like Heyward, Gurriel and the catchers do until we get a little further into the season.