Padres 2, Cubs 1: The new guys debut

Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY SportsI’ll be glad when the 2024 MLB regular season begins, if for no other reason than we’ll have TV coverage, video highlights and photos from every game.

There was TV, after a fashion, for Monday’s Cubs 2-1 loss to the Padres, an internet-only, two-camera feed on the Padres website.

Two new non-roster invitees, Dominic Smith and Garrett Cooper, made their debuts as Cubs in this game, and both contributed. Smith had two hits, a single and a double, in three at-bats, and Cooper doubled in Christopher Morel with a run in the top of the fifth. So those were good debut games for both hitters. Here’s Cooper’s RBI double:

Garrett Cooper's first Cubs hit drives in the Cubs…