SAN DIEGO — Fernando Tatis Jr. hit a go-ahead, two-run residence run with two outs within the eighth — two innings after the Padres scored seven runs — and San Diego surprised the Chicago Cubs 9-8 Monday evening.
On the twentieth anniversary of the primary Padres recreation at Petco Park, Tatis exuberantly celebrated the second that totally erased an 8-0 deficit. He held his bat out together with his left arm as he watched the ball sail into the left-field seats, flipped it, hollered and pumped his fists as he began his trot. He was carrying customized cleats honoring the late Corridor of Famer Tony Gwynn. Rookie Jackson Merrill was aboard on a leadoff stroll off Adbert Alzolay (1-1).
“It was superb. However all credit score to the boys,” Tatis stated. “We had been down 8-0, and we had been by no means out of the sport. We stored constructing, we stored taking good at-bats in opposition to robust pitches. The boys began executing. We began transferring the road, we stored believing in one another and that was simply the ultimate blow.”
The win tied the Padres’ largest comeback in franchise historical past. The opposite three video games they gained after trailing by eight runs: Might 23, 1970, on the San Francisco Giants; June 10, 1974, versus the Pittsburgh Pirates; and July 8, 2021, versus the Washington Nationals.
The Cubs, in the meantime, entered Monday having gained 234 consecutive video games they led by eight or extra runs. Their final such loss got here on June 28, 2002, on the Chicago White Sox.
Along with his branding firm Xample, Tatis plans to unveil 50 pairs of customized cleats this season. His selection for Monday evening, that includes totally different designs on every cleat, honored Gwynn, often called Mr. Padre, who performed his total 20-season profession in San Diego. Gwynn died in 2014 at age 54.
“Positively the footwear,” Tatis stated with amusing. “The facility got here from above. All the time grateful. Positively a bit bit impressed at present. I will maintain taking part in with them. Hopefully, they maintain sending good luck. Simply completely happy I used to be carrying these footwear at present.”
As Padres supervisor Mike Shildt stated, “It was an enormous homer. Spectacular. Spectacular man. Actual happy with him.”
Tatis slammed into the wall in proper after simply lacking Dansby Swanson‘s two-run triple within the fourth that gave the Cubs an 8-0 lead.
Shildt stated Tatis got here as much as him within the dugout and stated, “Man, only a recreation of inches.”
“I stated, ‘Yeah, generally issues do not work out and we have to maintain combating.’ This was when it was 8-0,” the supervisor defined, “and he stated, ‘Don’t be concerned, we will maintain combating,’ and he patted me on the again.”
Wandy Peralta (1-0) acquired the win and Robert Suarez the save, his fourth.
Cubs right-hander Javier Assad, who grew up throughout the border, in Tijuana, took a two-hit shutout and an 8-0 lead into the sixth earlier than the Padres pulled inside a run within the sixth that was highlighted by two-run homers by Jake Cronenworth and Xander Bogaerts. The Padres had 5 hits, a stroll and an error that inning.
Assad allowed a leadoff stroll to Tatis earlier than being chased by Cronenworth’s two-run homer — his first of the season — to proper. Jose Cuas got here on for Chicago, and the following three Padres batters reached, beginning with Manny Machado on an error by shortstop Swanson that made three of the runs unearned. Ha-Seong Kim smacked a two-run triple, and Luis Campusano hit an RBI grounder. Bogaerts capped the scoring with a two-run shot off Luke Little for his first homer of the marketing campaign. Tatis flied out to proper to finish the inning.
Assad allowed two runs and three hits, with seven strikeouts and three walks.
San Diego’s Yu Darvish, who pitched for the Cubs from 2018 to 2020, threw 42 pitches within the second inning, when the Cubs scored 4 runs on three hits, two walks and successful batter. Darvish twice loaded the bases, and Ian Happ and Cody Bellinger every hit a two-run single.
Darvish acquired by way of a fast third inning however was achieved for the evening after permitting 4 runs and 4 hits whereas hanging out 4 and strolling three. It was simply the tenth time in 281 profession begins, together with the postseason, that Darvish went three or fewer innings.
The Cubs then jumped on Pedro Avila for 4 extra runs within the fourth. After the Cubs loaded the bases with one out, Bellinger hit a sacrifice fly, Christopher Morel hit an RBI double and Swanson tripled in two extra.
ESPN Stats & Data and The Related Press contributed to this report.
