Padres' Dylan Cease Touches 100 — And 63 — In the Same Start

When the San Diego Padres acquired Dylan Cease, they knew they were getting a front-end starter with filthy stuff.

But unleashing two pitches in one at-bat with a 30-plus mph difference is just one of the reasons why the Padres made the deal for the former Chicago White Sox ace.

In the fourth inning agains the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday, Cease backed up a 96.4 mph four-seamer with a 63.4 mph changeup. The 33 mph difference is the largest velocity split by a pitcher this year.

“I’m disappointed it was a ball,” Cease said with a smile. “But you break it out in the sixth, sometimes it happens. Yeah, just throw another wrinkle in there and I think it kind of sets up similar pitches well, so the more that they have to focus on different things, the better for me.”

Cease went on to turn his second consecutive quality start of the season striking out seven and allowing two unearned runs on two hits and two walks. He flirted with triple digits multiple times peaking at 99.6 twice.

“I was just synced up, coming out good,” he said. “ … We’ve had a couple of weeks post-Korea to build up now and yeah, I think it’s all just clicking.”

His two unearned runs came in the form of a two-run homer off the bat of Michael Busch directly after Gold Glove shortstop Ha-Seong Kim’s third error of the season, all in his last four games.

Kim has looked uncharastically out of sorts throughout the start of the season.

“I’m definitely having some bad breaks defensively and offensively,” Kim said afterward through interpreter David Lee. “Obviously I was pretty disappointed about (the home run). But the game still continues even though whatever happened, so I just tried to focus on the rest of the game.”

However, manager Mike Shildt isn't worried. Especially, because Kim responded with his bat.

“Things are going to happen,” Shildt said. “It’s really about how you respond. I think our team has been an indicator of that. … Like today, boom. We score, they score, we punch right back. Kimmy doesn’t get an opportunity to make a play, stays present, goes and has a good at-bat and helps us go take the lead the next inning.

“That’s the sign of a good player and a good team.”