The San Diego Padres enter the 2025 NL Wild Card Series on a surge, but their next test is a road clash with the Chicago Cubs. As the No. 5 seed prepares for Game 1 at Wrigley Field Tuesday, Padres manager Mike Shildt didn’t hold back when discussing the venue. He called it one of the toughest environments in baseball — a place he believes could shape the outcome of the entire series.
In a post by the Chicago Sun-Times’ Maddie Lee on the X (formerly known as Twitter) platform, she shared the manager's candid thoughts during his media session the day before Game 1.
“There’s not another ballpark, I would say, that could be any trickier than Wrigley.”
The quote echoes what players and fans have known for years — Wrigley isn’t just historic, it’s volatile. Wind off Lake Michigan, glare during day games, and ivy-covered walls combine to create one of baseball’s most unpredictable settings. And now, the entire Cubs vs. Padres series will be played there.
The Padres finished the regular season at 90-72 and enter the 2025 MLB playoffs with confidence after going 13-7 over their final 20 games, including a sweep of the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Meanwhile, the fourth-seeded Cubs finished two games ahead of San Diego and secured home-field advantage at Wrigley.
However, the Padres’ biggest strength may be their bullpen. Their late-game arms are built to shut down innings, with left-handers Wandy Peralta (3.16 ERA) and Adrian Morejon (2.09 ERA) anchoring the left side. On the right, Jeremiah Estrada (3.45 ERA) and closer Robert Suarez (2.99 ERA) round out the group. Suarez led the National League with 40 saves and joined Morejon as a 2025 All-Star.
The comments from Shildt were more than tactical. They were meant to prepare his team mentally. In a three-game series, setting the tone early matters. Wrigley Field is not just a setting. It is a factor that could shape everything for a Padres team chasing the first World Series title in franchise history.
This is only the second postseason meeting between the two and the first since 1984. For Cubs fans, Padres fans, and neutral observers, this series could come down to more than just talent. With Wrigley’s unpredictability, the ballpark itself might be the biggest X-factor.
