Padres and Yankees open the playoffs with convincing wins

The San Diego Padres and the New York Yankees got off to a strong start in the Major League Baseball Wild Card Series by defeating the Chicago Cubs and the Boston Red Sox, respectively, in the opening games of their best-of-three series.

In San Diego, Petco Park became the scene of a night of celebration. The Padres defeated the Cubs 8-0 in Game 1 of the National League Wild Card Series, with a dominant performance by pitcher Michael King and home runs by Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado.

King began the game by striking out Pete Crow-Armstrong on three pitches and then retired the side in order. In the bottom of the first inning, Tatis Jr. connected on the first pitch he saw and sent the ball over the center-field fence.

Two batters later, Machado also hit a home run off Chicago's left-hander, Matthew Boyd, further fueling the excitement in the stadium.

King held the Cubs hitless through the seventh inning. With one out in that inning, Nico Hoerner broke the no-hit bid with a soft single down the third-base line.

By then, San Diego already held a 7-0 lead. King finished his outing with seven innings, allowing only that one hit.

The pitcher's performance came exactly 28 years after Kevin Brown struck out 16 Astros batters in the 1998 National League Division Series, a performance considered one of the most outstanding single-game performances by a pitcher in Padres history.

The victory puts San Diego one win away from advancing to the National League Division Series, where they would face Milwaukee.

Yankees also strike first

In New York, the Yankees had an equally dominant night, defeating the Boston Red Sox 9-0 in Game 1 of the American League Wild Card Series.

Right-hander Cam Schlittler struck out 10 batters over 6.1 scoreless innings, while Ben Rice led the offense with two home runs and six RBIs.

Schlittler, a native of Walpole, Massachusetts, and a Red Sox fan during his childhood, opened the game with a 100.6 mph pitch. The right-hander threw 117 pitches, a career high, and allowed two singles and one walk.

Austin Wells drove in the Yankees' first run with a single in the second inning off Payton Tolle.

Rice, who led the Yankees with 41 home runs during the regular season, hit his first home run of the game off left-hander Erik Miller. He later added an RBI single in the seventh inning and capped off his offensive performance with a grand slam in the eighth.