Cubs' Kevin Gausman plan for Game 2 vs. Padres may require an unusually quick hook

Well, the good news for Kevin Gausman is that he doesn't have a difficult act to follow. Matthew Boyd's dud of a Game 1 performance, in conjunction with an offense that kowtowed at the alter of Michael King, has put the Chicago Cubs on the ropes in a series they were already unlikely to win.

The team's big trade deadline acquisition was officially announced as the Game 2 starter after questions about his status arose following left shoulder discomfort, and having his steady presence on the mound will be a welcome sight in a do-or-die contest. Throughout his career, including last year's World Series run with the Toronto Blue Jays, Gausman has pitched to a sturdy 3.83 ERA over 56⅓ postseason innings.

Here's the rub, though: The Padres' brightest stars are intimately familiar with the right-hander. Without that element of surprise, and with the Cubs facing elimination, it might be a short day on the mound for Gausman.

Padres' familiarity with Kevin Gausman will force Craig Counsell to get creative with his bullpen

Between Xander Bogaerts (63 career plate appearances against Gausman), Manny Machado (25), and Fernando Tatis Jr. (24), the Padres have three great hitters who have combined for well over 100 at-bats against the Cubs' Game 2 starter. Oh, and the latter two both have an OPS over 1.000 in those trips to the plate, with four long balls between them.

Considering that each of those three players homered yesterday, it's safe to say this isn't a terribly favorable situation for Gausman to be pitching in. The longer he goes in this game, the more likely he is to run into trouble against hitters who know his game very well. The Cubs already don't love having their starters face an order three times through, and that's going to be especially true tonight given this history.

Of course, this would be less concerning had the Cubs' offense not been completely neutered by King and company last night. The unit as a whole had a relatively rough go of it in September -- they ranked 13th in wRC+ and 15th in runs scored -- but their showing last night was truly disheartening.

It also doesn't help that the Cubs had to dig somewhat deep into their shaky bullpen during the blowout loss, using up Javier Assad and a trio of middle-inning relievers. That still leaves David Peterson and Colin Rea available to handle bulk duties -- as well as Daniel Palencia and Ryan Zeferjahn to tackle any high-leverage situations that might arise -- but it's not like any of those guys are inherently worth trusting more than Gausman.

Such is the conundrum facing Craig Counsell heading into Game 2. His offense is stuck in the mud, his starter is walking into an unfavorable matchup, and his bullpen isn't even in the same league as their opponent. Somehow, he'll have to navigate all of that if the Cubs want to play baseball for even a single day in the month of October.

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