Machado homer lifts Padres over Cubs to even series

VIDEO SHOWS: HIGHLIGHTS OF CHICAGO CUBS V SAN DIEGO PADRES MLB GAME  SHOWS: CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, UNITED STATES (OCTOBER 1, 2O25) (MLB – See restrictions) TOP 1ST  1. ANDREW KITTREDGE GETTING READY FOR PITCHING/ MANNY MANCHADO CLOSE-UP 2. KITTREDGE STRIKES OUT MANCHADO  3. REPLAY OF KITTREDGE'S STRIKE OUT  4. KITTREDGE PITCHING AND ITS REPLAY  5. FERNANDO TATIS JR. SCORES THE PADRES' FIRST RUN ON A SACRIFICE FLY BY JACKSON MERRILL/ MERRILL CELEBRATING WITH TEAMMATES  TOP 3RD 6. SHOTA IMANAGA GETS MANNY MACHADO TO FLY OUT, WORKING OUT OF A ONE-ON, NO-OUT JAM AND STRANDS FREDDY FREMIN AT THIRD BASE/ IMANAGA CLOSE-UP  TOP 5TH  7. MACHADO ADDS TO PADRES' LEAD WITH A TWO-RUN HOME RUN/ MACHADO CELEBRATING/ PADRES' PLAYERS CELEBRATING/ MACHADO CELEBRATING 8. REPLAY OF MACHADO'S HOME RUN AND CELEBRATIONS  BOTTOM 5TH, 6TH AND 7TH  9. VARIOUS OF ADRIAN MOREJON'S SCORELESS INNINGS AND STRIKEOUTS/ MOREJON CLOSE-UP  BOTTOM 7TH AND 8TH  10. VARIOUS OF MASON MILLER'S STRIKE OUTS/ MILLER'S CLOSE-UP BOTTOM 8TH  11. FERNANDO TATIS JR. RANGES TO HIS LEFT AND MAKES A GOOD JUMPING CATCH/ TATIS CELEBRATING/ ROBERT SUAREZ CLOSE-UP/ TATIS CLOSE-UP 12. REPLAYS OF THE CATCH AND CELEBRATION  BOTTOM 9TH  13. SUAREZ CLOSES THE GAME, INDUCING A DOUBLE PLAY FROM CUBS' SEIYA SUZUKI AFTER KYLE TUCKER'S ONE-OUT SINGLE AND PADRES WIN 3-0 OVERS CUBS  14. VARIOUS OF PADRES PLAYERS CELEBRATING  STORY: Manny Machado hit a two-run homer in the fifth inning to lead the San Diego Padres to a 3-0 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday (October 1), levelling their National League wild-card series at one win apiece. The decisive Game 3 of the best-of-three series will take place Thursday afternoon in Chicago, with the winner advancing to face the top-seeded Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Division Series. Fernando Tatis Jr. scored the Padres' first run on a sacrifice fly by Jackson Merrill in the opening inning, while Luis Arraez contributed two of San Diego's seven hits. Machado's blast, his 12th career postseason homer, came off Cubs reliever Shota Imanaga and extended the Padres' lead to 3-0.  San Diego's bullpen played a pivotal role, with Adrian Morejon (1-0) throwing 2 1/3 scoreless innings in relief of starter Dylan Cease. Morejon benefited from a lucky bounce in the sixth inning when Nico Hoerner's hard-hit ball deflected off his foot directly to first baseman Arraez for an easy out. Robert Suarez closed the game, inducing a double play from Seiya Suzuki after Kyle Tucker's one-out single in the ninth. The Cubs struggled offensively, with Mason Miller striking out five consecutive batters early but exiting after hitting Michael Busch with a pitch. Starter Andrew Kittredge (0-1) allowed one run on two hits in one inning, while Imanaga gave up Machado's homer after cruising through the early frames. Imanaga led the National League in regular-season home runs allowed with 31, tied for second-most overall. Tatis ignited the Padres' offense in the first inning with a leadoff single, advancing to second on an Arraez base hit and then stealing third during a double steal. Merrill drove him home with a sacrifice fly to the warning track in right field. Machado's fifth-inning homer off Imanaga cemented the Padres' lead after Tatis drew a walk earlier in the inning. (Production: Suramya Kaushik) More MLB content is available on Reuters Connect here: https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?sources=mlbimagen

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