Former Cubs reliever wanted smoke and got burned in Game 1 vs. Padres

This Cubs win just made a former reliever’s trash talk look even dumber
Wild Card Series - San Diego Padres v Chicago Cubs - Game One
Wild Card Series - San Diego Padres v Chicago Cubs - Game One | Michael Reaves/GettyImages

There has been no love lost between Jeremiah Estrada and the Chicago Cubs in recent years. A former sixth-round pick of the Cubs in 2017, Estrada made his Major League debut with the Cubs in 2022 and served as an up-and-down arm for the team over the first two years of his career. Estrada was unceremoniously designated for assignment by the Cubs in 2023, and since then, he hasn't been shy about taking out his emotions against his former team. It was the Cubs, however, that got the last laugh in Game 1 of the National League Wild Card series against Estrada's Padres.

Facing their former bullpen arm with a 2-1 lead in the eighth inning, the Cubs etched out an insurance run against Estrada to extend their lead to 3-1. Over the last two seasons with the Padres, Estrada had become a breakout reliever with the Padres, and was feeling himself ahead of the series against his former team.

This Cubs win just made a former reliever’s trash talk look even dumber

“It’s not about eff you guys,”Estrada told reporters. “It’s about, ‘This is what you guys missed out on.’”

Since he departed from the Cubs, Estrada has made it a point to make sure that Jed Hoyer is aware of the fact that he made a mistake. During an earlier game between the two teams this season, Estrada wasn't subtle about staring down Hoyer at Petco Park.

“Priorites first,” Estrada told reporters in April. “Get the job done, help the boys get a win. Second, enjoy the little things and enjoy the fact that the three times I’ve pitched against them, I’ve punched out two guys and put a zero on the board. It just feels good. It kinda feels like an ex-girfriend that messed up and made a wrong decision. You find a new girl and are like, ‘What’s up?’ You find a better version.”

Ironically, it was Hoyer's newly constructed bullpen that got the best of the Padres on Tuesday. The cast of Daniel Palencia, Drew Pomeranz, Andrew Kittredge, and Brad Keller managed to record 14 consecutive outs after Matthew Boyd departed the game in the fifth inning. In other words, no, on this day, the Cubs did not miss Estrada.

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