Morning Mound Visit: Mike Soroka to be shut down for two weeks

StatsSAC | Talking Chop: Mike Soroka hasn’t made his 2021 debut yet and he won’t for a while longer. Soroka, who was training at the alternate site as he works his way back from a torn Achilles, experienced shoulder discomfort and will be shut down for two weeks.

Russell Carleton | Baseball Prospectus $: In a vacuum, the four-player outfield should be a net positive in most situations, but like the shift, there may be unintended consequences. Removing a fielder from the infield and placing them in the outfield presents the simple question of who covers the vacated base and the more complicated question of how, if at all, it changes hitter tendencies.

Eric Stephen | True Blue LA: Cody Bellinger is still day-to-day after getting spiked in the calf during Monday’s game. Test results showed no structural damage or stress fractures in Bellinger’s leg, but an IL stint is still on the table.

Quick Hits

Darin Ruf hit his second homer of the year with a little help from Padres center fielder Jorge Mateo.

In a similar play, Seth Brown fared a little better against a would-be home run from Austin Barnes.

Joc Pederson got his first hit of the year at a crucial time. The Cubs were trailing by one in the eighth after Brandon Woodruff pitched six perfect innings, but Pederson tied it up with a solo bomb off Devin Williams. (The Cubs still lost in extras).