Chicago Cubs pitcher Matthew Boyd said he was “grateful” for the opportunity to start the wild-card series opener Tuesday against the San Diego Padres and broke down in tears when speaking to the media about his journey.
“I’m a sucker for this sort of thing,” he said before choking up. “You think about a career, you think about … this is cool for so many different reasons. It’s cool because you never know when the opportunity presents itself. I waited my first eight years to get a chance for the postseason (with the Mariners in 2022), and didn’t really get to be a part of it. On the field, I only threw one out. You never know when the opportunity is going to come again.
“To do it with the Cubs, to do it with this group, it will never be like this again. When we come back here, the personnel will not be the same. It’s a good group of guys and it’s unique to this moment, and that’s it.”
Boyd then teared up again, talking about his grandfather.
“He would be extremely proud,” he said. “My grandfather grew up in Chicago, grew up a Cubs fan (and winning in 2016) was one of the happiest days of his life. And to be a Cub, it’s pretty cool.”
With Nick Pivetta going for the Padres in Game 1, San Diego manager Mike Shildt named another right-hander, Dylan Cease, as his Game 2 starter.
The former Cubs prospect is 1-9 with a 5.58 ERA on the road, and 2-1 in his career at Wrigley with a 2.50 ERA in three starts, all when he pitched for the White Sox.
Why Cease?
“Multiple decisions, multiple things,” Shildt said. “Dylan’s been good, throwing the ball more consistently lately. If indeed there’s a Game 3 and (Yu) Darvish is in play, it gives him an extra day’s rest. Dylan’s rested. He’s thrown the ball well here. He’s thrown the ball well against this club. And Dylan has a big arm, and we feel he’s the guy we feel is the best suited for Game 2.”
Asked if Shota Imanaga would be the Game 2 starter, Cubs manager Craig Counsell said he wouldn’t divulge his starter until after Tuesday’s game.
Kyle Tucker isn’t expected back in right field for Game 1
After missing about three weeks because of his left calf strain, Kyle Tucker returned to the lineup for the final weekend of the regular season, though only in the designated hitter role.
The Cubs hoped his calf would feel good enough for Tucker to play right field when the postseason started. But, at least for Game 1, that is not expected to come to fruition. Instead, Tucker is positioned to DH again on Tuesday.
“We’re continuing to see some progress, but the fact that we didn’t get him out there means we’re just probably going to go day-to-day here with that,” Counsell said of Tucker playing right field. “That’s where we’re at.”
After coming off the injured list, Tucker went 1-for-11 with one walk and two strikeouts over the weekend.
Motivated Miguel Amaya, hoping to make a case for roster inclusion
Catcher Miguel Amaya joined the team for Monday’s workout as the Cubs consider who to include on their wild-card roster, which is due to the league by 10 a.m. Tuesday.
Getting back from his ankle sprain, an injury that initially looked much worse when he landed in a heap past first base in Toronto last month, has motivated Amaya through the rehab process. He had been told by doctors he would be out 8-10 weeks when he sustained the injury on Aug. 13.
“In my mind, I say I still have a chance to come back, and I put all the hard work, and that’s why I’m here,” Amaya said Monday.
Amaya ran the bases during Monday’s workout, saying he had to check that box. Even with as optimistic as Amaya sounded with how he is feeling — though he didn’t go as far as to say his ankle is 100% healed — his lack of at-bats could work against him being included on the wild-card roster. Between May 24, when he suffered an oblique injury that sidelined him nearly three months, and Monday, Amaya recorded only three big-league at-bats and 14 last week at Triple A.
As for Monday afternoon before the Cubs’ workout, Amaya said he had not been told whether he could be included on the squad.
“I feel good to go,” he said.
Day baseball at Wrigley Field to present a challenge
Padres manager Mike Shildt has spent enough time in the visitors dugout at Wrigley Field to know how unpredictable the ballpark can play.
Shildt’s four seasons at the helm for St. Louis and his last two years in San Diego have given him an idea of how the ballpark and its elements could create unique challenges this week. The Padres’ 2 p.m. Monday workout provided a glimpse of how the shadows might play during games Tuesday and Wednesday, both of which start at 2:08 p.m. The early weather report indicates the wind will be blowing in for the first two games.
“I’m sure there’s a metric or somebody’s got an absolute to it, but there’s not another ballpark we could say that can be any trickier than Wrigley,” Shildt said Monday. “We’re aware of it. We’ve spent some time. We created our workout time around it. It’s really just about continued awareness of the environment and making sure we’re communicating consistently as the game goes and know that in the second it could be different than the fourth and could be different than the seventh. And the time of game, we’re going to see shadows and sun balls.
“We’re aware of all of that, and just a matter of being present with what the game’s presenting us, including the elements.”