Credit: Joseph Ray
After a shutout win over the Cubs on Friday night, the Padres’ pitching equation began to take shape. San Diego used five pitchers to hold the Cubs offense to seven hits, as well as an 0-for-8 mark with runners in scoring position.
The Rotation Battle Intensifies
German Marquez made his second Cactus League start, and the results were much stronger this time around. Marquez fired off three scoreless innings against a Cubs lineup without many regulars, striking out three batters. The right-hander leaned on his two strongest offerings in this outing, throwing 54% four-seam fastballs and 31% knuckle-curves.
While both pitches were down in velocity from last season, the fastball did see an increase in velocity as the game progressed. Marquez went from a 93.2 mph average in the first inning to a 94.4 mph average velocity in the third. While he threw only five combined sinkers, sliders, and changeups, the slider averaged 90.4 mph, up 1.6 mph from 2025.
Another member of the rotation competition also made a statement. Marco Gonzales pitched three shutout innings of relief, striking out five Cubs. The veteran left-hander rode his changeup to an efficient outing, as all five punchouts came on the cambio. Batters only swung at three of 13 fastballs thrown, but came up empty on each swing. Gonzales also didn’t allow a barrel on any batted ball against him, which allowed him to work around three hits allowed.
Craig Stammen discusses the performances from German Marquez and Marco Gonzales in the Padres’ 3-0 win against the Cubs.
Each pitched three scoreless innings. pic.twitter.com/NDIkd16imt
— 97.3 The Fan (@973TheFanSD) March 7, 2026
Late Inning Demo
The Padres ran out three of their late-inning arms to close out their win. Adrian Morejon threw a scoreless seventh inning, striking out three batters. Morejon’s velocity was already elite, but was up across the board. His sinker averaged 15+ inches of horizontal break and came out of his hand at a blistering 99.3 mph on average. His changeup averaged 91.6 mph (up 1.1 mph from 2025), and his changeup was up to 89.7 mph (2.2 mph harder than his 2025 average). Jeremiah Estrada came in for the eighth inning and struck out two against his former club. While Estrada’s velocity was significantly below his season-average (between 2.7 & 4.9 mph below), his ability to miss bats did not suffer. David Morgan threw a scoreless ninth inning for the save, striking out one batter. Morgan used his sinker to work around a hit and walk in the inning, using both his fastballs effectively.
Graphic by Thomas Nestico (@TJStats)
Patience, Batter Batter
The Padres’ lineup battled its way to their first run against Cubs starter Ben Brown. Miguel Andujar doubled with one out in the first inning, and Jake Cronenworth worked a walk. Brown hit Nick Castellanos with a sinker to load the bases, and four low pitches later, Gavin Sheets worked a walk to score the Padres’ first run of the game.
San Diego got to Brown once more in the third, as a hit batter and line drive single set the Padres up with runners on the corners; Miguel Andujar made a bold choice to go first-to-third, and the gamble paid off. Nick Castellanos barreled up a ground ball up the middle at 104.7 mph, and while Scott Kingery stopped the ball from going into center field, his flip to shortstop Jefferson Rojas was late. This resulted in an infield single, allowing Andujar to score. A walk and out later, Ty France swung out swinging on a curveball in the dirt, but the ball got away from catcher Moises Ballasteros, allowing France to reach and Jake Cronenworth to score.
Next Game Preview
The Padres continue their Spring Training on Saturday against the Guardians in Goodyear. Michael King is scheduled to start, looking to shake off his rough outing against the Athletics.
The first pitch is set for 12:05 pm Pacific, with the game to be televised.
A born and raised San Diegan, Diego Garcia is a lifetime Padres fan and self-proclaimed baseball nerd. Diego wrote about baseball on his own site between 2021-22 before joining the East Village Times team in 2024. He also posts baseball content on his YouTube channel “Stat Nerd Baseball”, creating content around trades, hypotheticals, player analyses, the San Diego Padres, and MLB as a whole.
A 2024 graduate of San Diego State, Diego aims to grow as a writer and content creator in the baseball community.
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