SAN DIEGO -- The Chicago Cubs will start left-hander Matthew Boyd in Game 1 of their wild-card series against the San Diego Padres on Tuesday night, opposite righty Michael King.
Cubs manager Craig Counsell said right-hander Kevin Gausman, who has been dealing with soreness in his left shoulder, “is gonna pitch this series” but was noncommittal about his plans beyond the opener.
Alex Bregman’s availability on defense is also an unknown.
Bregman suffered multiple fractures to his left cheek area after being struck by a foul ball while in the on-deck circle on Sept. 20. But he returned to the lineup five days later and was back in there for Sunday’s regular-season finale, going 4-for-4 with two home runs as the team’s designated hitter against the Boston Red Sox.
Bregman took ground balls at third base at the start of Monday’s workout from Petco Park, but Counsell was undecided about his ability to play the field when he addressed the media hours later. Counsell acknowledged that Bregman had a “much better day” than he did on Saturday, the last time he took ground balls, but obvious obstacles remain.
“The fractures are not healed,” Counsell said. “It’s just how he’s feeling kind of just pain-wise and things like that, moving around. Swelling is just much less. He still has fractures in his face, and I think that’s kind of what we have to weigh.”
The Cubs would start either Pedro Ramirez or Matt Shaw at third base if Bregman is slotted in at DH.
Padres manager Craig Stammen was coy about his team’s plans after Game 1, but Nick Pivetta is widely expected to start Game 2 and either Robbie Ray or Walker Buehler could open a potential Game 3.
For the Cubs, Boyd and Gausman were seen as a toss-up coming in.
Gausman put up a 4.83 ERA in nine starts after being acquired from the Toronto Blue Jays on Aug. 2. He injured his non-throwing shoulder on a diving tag play in his last start on Wednesday, but the 35-year-old right-hander threw a bullpen session on Sunday and reportedly felt good. The Cubs, though, will continue to monitor him.
In Boyd, they’ll turn to someone who limited the Padres to one run in 4 1/3 innings in Game 1 of last year’s wild-card series from Wrigley Field, leading the Cubs to a win. Gausman, Clay Holmes, Shota Imanaga and David Peterson all remain options for Games 2 and 3, unless they’re used out of the bullpen in Game 1.
For Counsell, roles are irrelevant in a best-of-three series like this.
“We have 27 outs,” Counsell said. “We just have to figure out how to get 27 outs. The order that that happens, starter, reliever, closer, setup man -- those words don’t matter. We’re just trying to get 27 outs.”
