Xander Bogaerts has wasted no time making himself part of the Padres’ October story.
The veteran shortstop delivered four hits in eight at-bats as San Diego knocked out the Chicago Cubs in two games in the Wild Card round, and he did it in a way that fit the moment perfectly: hard contact, timely hits and a few loud outs mixed in for good measure.
Bogaerts, who turns 34 on Thursday and is in the third year of the 11-year, $280-million deal he signed with San Diego in December 2022, was right in the middle of both wins. He hit seventh in Tuesday’s 8-0 opener and went 2-for-4, highlighted by a rocket of a home run that landed in the balconies of the Western Supply Co. building in left and pushed the Padres ahead 4-0 after four innings.
A day later, batting sixth, Bogaerts stayed just as sharp in the 4-1 clincher. He opened the scoring with an RBI single that brought home Ty France in the second inning, then added a one-out double into the left-center gap in the fourth before scoring on Gavin Sheets’ two-run homer.
Even the outs carried some sting. In the sixth inning Wednesday, Bogaerts drove a line shot toward Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner.
Bogaerts slowed up out of the box, thinking the ball would be caught, but it clipped off Hoerner’s glove and dropped. Hoerner recovered quickly and got Bogaerts at first by a whisker.
Bogaerts also handled the final out of the series, fielding a grounder from Chicago catcher Carson Kelly and firing to France at first to set off another celebration in San Diego.
This surge didn’t come out of nowhere. Bogaerts was already heating up late in the regular season, going 11-for-31 over his final 10 games, a .355 clip that included a double, triple, home run, three RBIs and nine runs scored.
If that version of Bogaerts sticks, San Diego gets a lot more dangerous. Hitting in the sixth or seventh spot, he gives the Padres another dangerous bat behind Fernando Tatis JR., Manny Machado, Jackson Merrill and France.
The reward for the Wild Card sweep is a trip to the NL Division Series and a first-ever playoff matchup with the Milwaukee Brewers, the NL’s top seed. Game 1 is set for Saturday at 5:30 p.m. PT on FS1, with Jacob Misiorowski expected to start for Milwaukee.
Bogaerts is already looking ahead.
"We know who they’re throwing Game 1,” Bogaerts said in the celebratory San Diego locker room following Wednesday's win, as reported by MLB.com's A.J. Cassavell.
“So let’s celebrate today. And then be ready for that fastball.”
The Padres went 4-2 against Milwaukee during the 2026 regular season, dropping two of three in Milwaukee in May before sweeping a three-game series at Petco Park in August. Four of those six games were decided by one or two runs, with the Brewers also taking a 7-1 win on May 14 and San Diego answering with an 11-2 rout on Aug. 11.
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