What's happened
The San Diego Padres have swept the Chicago Cubs in the wild-card series, holding Chicago to just one run across two games. The Padres now face the Milwaukee Brewers in the NLDS as they seek to maintain their hot streak and push toward a first World Series since 1998.
What's behind the headline?
- The Padres have transformed their postseason profile with a historically strong showing from the pitching staff and a disciplined approach at the plate. - The Cubs, despite one of the greatest individual campaigns in franchise history from Pete Crow-Armstrong, have been unable to translate regular-season dominance into October success. - The NLDS pairing sets up a clash of power and pitching, with San Diego seeking to leverage rest advantages and bullpen depth to push deeper into the playoffs.
How we got here
San Diego capped a dominant wild-card series by shutting out the Cubs over two games. New owners Kwanza Jones and Jose E. Feliciano have infused the club with energy and resources, and the team is riding a multi-game hot streak into the NLDS against Milwaukee.
Our analysis
New York Post and New York Times reports on Padres-Cubs wild-card sweep; MLB stats cited by OptaSTATS; coverage of Padres ownership and clubhouse celebrations.
Go deeper
- Will the Padres carry this hot form into the NLDS against the Brewers?
- How will the Brewers respond to San Diego's run of playoff dominance?
- What other players from either team could redefine the series?
More on these topics
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Chicago Cubs - Baseball team
The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago, Illinois. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball as a member club of the National League Central division.
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San Diego Padres - Baseball team
The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego, California. They compete in Major League Baseball as a member club of the National League West division.
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Milwaukee Brewers - Baseball team
The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. They compete in Major League Baseball as a member club of the National League Central division.
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San Diego - City in California
San Diego is a city in the U.S. state of California on the coast of the Pacific Ocean, approximately 120 miles south of Los Angeles and immediately adjacent to the border with Mexico.
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Pete Crow-Armstrong - Baseball player
Peter Crow-Armstrong is an American professional baseball outfielder in the Chicago Cubs organization.
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New York Post - Newspaper
The New York Post is a daily newspaper in New York City. The Post also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com and the entertainment site Decider.com. The modern version of the paper is published in tabloid format.
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Alex Bregman - Baseball third baseman
Alexander David Bregman is an American professional baseball third baseman and shortstop for the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball.
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Chicago - City in Illinois
Chicago, officially the City of Chicago, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois, and the third-most-populous city in the United States.
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California - US State
California is a state in the Pacific Region of the United States. With 39.5 million residents across a total area of about 163,696 square miles, California is the most populous U.S. state and the third-largest by area, and is also the world's thirty-fourt