The Padres own the second-best road record in baseball at 20-11. They get the good timing to take on the reeling, rebuilding Cubs, who have lost six in a row. The Cubs are a season-worst 13 games under .500. 

The Cubs enter this matchup with their confidence down and their bullpen battered after giving up 28 runs, including 11 homers, in getting swept three games by the Yankees.

San Diego owns a big starting pitching matchup edge, too, with Yu Darvish against Justin Steele, who is 1-5 with a 4.79 ERA. 

Darvish isn't the power pitcher of past seasons, but he's still very effective with eight of 11 quality starts. San Diego is 7-2 in his last nine starts.