It was fitting that Jameson Taillon started the most consequential Cubs game of the season.
Taillon signed with the Cubs in 2022 precisely for moments like Thursday: A win-or-go-home playoff game at Wrigley Field.
He wanted the ball on Thursday with the pressure of facing the Padres’ challenging lineup and elimination hovering over the team after a quiet Game 2 loss. Taillon threw four scoreless innings, striking out four and walking zero batters in the Cubs’ 3-1 wild-card win over the Padres to advance to the National League Division Series for the first time since 2017.
After the Cubs failed to win the division or clinch a postseason spot last season, he lamented that Wrigley Field should be a place that teams don’t want to play at. He said, “Teams shouldn’t want to come to Wrigley Field.”
The fans were deafening in the first inning after Taillon struck out Fernando Tatis Jr. on three pitches for the first out of the game. From pitch one until a fly ball fell into center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong’s glove to clinch the win, the 40,895 fans at Wrigley Field were glued to the action on the field. Taillon’s wish from last season had turned into reality.
“Wrigley was electric tonight,” Taillon said. “The fan base brought it.”
Taillon, like shortstop Dansby Swanson and right fielder Seiya Suzuki, joined the Cubs in 2022 during the early stages of the rebuild to re-establish the club as a force. The Cubs’ 2025 playoff appearance was the culmination of the journeys of Taillon, Suzuki and Swanson.
Suzuki and Swanson each had their big moments in the first two games of the series. On Thursday, it was Taillon’s turn to step up, and he met the moment. He controlled the Padres’ hitters and executed his pitches precisely.
“It might’ve been the best I’ve ever seen him,” Swanson said.
Despite not being the loudest or most boisterous on the Cubs roster, there’s a quietness to Taillon that belies the competitor in him. He’s a locker-room connector, willing to talk about pitching with anyone. He brings a professionalism to the group while also holding players accountable.
“He’s a guy that does so much for this group that no one would ever see,” Swanson said. “[He has an] ability to hold others accountable, to say little nuggets here and there that may make a difference for a young pitcher or hitter.”
Taillon’s performance was critical in putting the Cubs’ relievers in advantageous spots.
Padres right-hander Yu Darvish had the opposite effect, allowing two runs on four hits and being chased out of the game in the second after loading the bases without recording an out.
Taillon lasted long enough to help the Cubs’ bullpen. He struck out Xander Bogaerts to end the fourth inning with a runner on second, allowing lefty Caleb Thielbar to enter in the fifth with a clean inning and against an advantageous spot of the Padres’ lineup — Thielbar faced three consecutive lefty hitters.
“I thought the game was about what Taillon gave us at the start,” manager Craig Counsell said. “I thought it was absolutely crucial. We knew we were going to have a couple of guys that were going to have to work really hard, but with him giving us four innings and getting 12 outs, he really put it together.”
Though Taillon understood Counsell’s decision, it didn’t make it any easier as Taillon watched the remaining six innings from the dugout.
“I was pretty much just leaning over the rail, paralyzed,” Taillon said. “I could feel my heart beating out of my chest. It’s weird when you feel like you have no control over something.”
The Cubs put together a complete game. Struggling stars Kyle Tucker and Pete Crow-Armstrong combined for five hits, Michael Busch clobbered his first postseason homer and Swanson was spectacular defensively.
The Cubs will have to quickly turn their attention to two games in Milwaukee, but, for now, they can relish in the celebration of surviving to play another round.
“Being able to play a part in getting this group to the next round, [and getting] to play more playoff games at Wrigley Field, that’s what I’m really excited about,” Taillon said.
