Cody Bellinger, Cubs chase series win over Padres

A stint on the injured list did little to cool down the hot bat of Cody Bellinger.

Fresh off a three-hit performance, Bellinger will look to continue his good fortune at the plate Wednesday afternoon when his Chicago Cubs and the visiting San Diego Padres play the rubber match of a three-game series.

The Cubs fell for the sixth time in 10 games with a 6-3 setback in the series opener on Monday. They rebounded the following night with a 3-2 victory, courtesy of Michael Busch's walk-off homer to begin the ninth inning.

Bellinger also played a significant role on Tuesday night in his return from the 10-day injured list after recovering from two fractured ribs. The 2019 National League MVP homered to lead off the fourth inning and singled in the sixth and eighth innings.

"You want to have your best players in the lineup," Chicago manager Craig Counsell said. "You want to put your best team out there as much as you can. Getting Cody back puts us a step in the right direction."

Bellinger is 13-for-34 (.382) with four homers, eight RBIs and six runs while hitting safely in each of the past nine games he has played.

Cubs third baseman Christopher Morel, who had a sacrifice fly on Tuesday, has 10 RBIs in the past six games.

Chicago's Hayden Wesneski (2-0, 0.54 ERA) will get the start opposite San Diego's Dylan Cease (4-2, 2.55) on Wednesday in a battle of right-handers.

Wesneski, 26, recorded his second straight no-decision on Friday despite scattering three hits and striking out eight over 6 1/3 scoreless innings against the Milwaukee Brewers. He won his lone career start against the Padres, allowing one run on four hits in five innings of a 5-2 victory on April 27, 2023.

Wesneski would be wise to keep a keen eye on Jake Cronenworth, who is riding an 11-game hitting streak.

As for Cease, he is returning to Chicago after spending his first five major league seasons with the White Sox. The 28-year-old admitted that he struggled in 2023 after seeing his ERA balloon to 4.58 from 2.20 in 2022.

"It kind of took me a full year to figure out what works for me," Cease said on Monday. "That's baseball sometimes. We're not robots out there. Sometimes mechanical cues and feels can take some time.

"Last year wasn't enjoyable really in any way, but I can sit here now and say I got a lot out of it. I learned kind of what doesn't work and got back to hopefully now what is working."

It certainly was working for Cease on Friday. He allowed just one run for the third time in four starts and scattered three hits while striking out eight over 6 2/3 innings during a 7-1 road victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Cease is 3-2 with a 2.86 ERA in six career starts against the Cubs, the team that selected him in the sixth round of 2014 draft. He was traded three years later to the White Sox in a package for left-hander Jose Quintana.