CHICAGO — Now that the 2025 MLB regular season is done and dusted, all focus will shift solely toward Tuesday for the Chicago Cubs.

We know a few things for sure: The Cubs will play the San Diego Padres in the NL Wild Card Series at Wrigley Field, and each of the first two games will begin at 2:08 p.m. CT. You can read more about the wild-card broadcast schedule here.

The Cubs’ postseason roster is due Tuesday at 10 a.m. CT, so that 26-man squad will come into the picture sometime ahead of Game 1. More on that in Andy Martinez’s roster projection. But some larger storylines and questions will be addressed and answered before that roster comes into play.

Here are five lingering Cubs questions as the team gears up for its first playoff action since 2020:

Who will start Game 1?

Cade Horton’s incredible second half (1.03 ERA/61.1 IP) had all signs pointing to him taking the ball in Game 1. The Cubs even had him lined up to do so. However, the rookie’s ill-timed right rib fracture and subsequent 15-day IL stint means he’ll miss the entirety of the wild-card series and most likely all of the NLDS, should the team advance.

Horton will be eligible to come off the IL near the end of the NLDS, but the Cubs won’t be able to make roster changes unless he were to replace an injured player.

But for now, the Cubs have to focus on their pitching plan for Tuesday.

Left-hander Matthew Boyd is a leading option, and while the 2025 All-Star’s second half (4-5, 4.63 ERA in 68 innings pitched) didn’t quite measure up to the numbers he posted pre-All-Star break (10-3, 2.34 ERA in 111.2 innings pitched), Boyd had a strong final regular-season start against the New York Mets in which he went 5.1 innings and allowed two earned runs to a star-studded lineup that included Juan Soto, Pete Alonso and Francisco Lindor.

The Padres are known to struggle against lefty starters this season, especially with the bottom third of their projected playoff batting order stacking three lefties in Gavin Sheets, Ryan O’Hearn and Jake Cronenworth.

The Cubs also could turn to Shota Imanaga, but that’s less likely given the Japanese southpaw pitched Thursday and would be working on four days’ rest. That, in turn, begs the question of when the Cubs could use him.

What does the playoff rotation look like?

If Boyd starts in Game 1, the Cubs are left with Imanaga, Colin Rea and Jameson Taillon as options. The Cubs very well could go with Rea for Game 2 — which could set up Imanaga to start Game 3 if necessary. That would give Imanaga the ball on six days’ rest, a situation in which he has excelled this season. Below are Imanaga’s 2025 numbers broken down by rest days:

• 4 days (8 starts): 3-4, 4.18 ERA, 47.1 IP
• 5 days (11 starts): 3-4, 4.10 ERA, 63.2 IP
• 6+ days (6 starts): 3-0, 2.41 ERA, 33.2 IP

Imanaga has struggled in September (6.51 ERA in 27.2 IP), allowing 10 home runs across his five starts this month. On the contrary, Rea went on his best run of the season in the final month, posting a 2.63 ERA across 27.1 innings in five starts.

If the Cubs win the series against the Padres — whether it’s in two games or three — with this rotation, that means Taillon would be rested and ready to start Game 1 of the NLDS in Milwaukee next Saturday.

Who will be the closer?

The Cubs have three viable options for high-leverage situations: Daniel Palencia, Brad Keller and Andrew Kittredge.

Palencia was the No. 1 option throughout the regular season and notched 22 saves in 25 opportunities with a 2.91 ERA across all appearances.

However, the shoulder strain that sidelined Palencia for most of September perhaps reframed the Cubs’ use of him. After all, he had struggled in August and September prior to his injury, pitching to an 8.03 ERA in 12.1 innings.

Keller and Kittredge took up the save opportunities in Palencia’s absence. Keller finished the year with a 2.07 ERA and three saves in 69.2 total innings, while Kittredge — whom the Cubs acquired from the Baltimore Orioles at the trade deadline — posted a 3.32 ERA with five saves as a Cub.

When Palencia returned, Counsell was firm in simply getting the 25-year-old on the mound, no matter the situation. Palencia, in turn, was excellent in the two appearances he made in the season’s final week, throwing 1.2 perfect innings with two strikeouts across both games. He entered games in the sixth and eighth inning, respectively.

Palencia’s late-season closing struggles and success in middle relief could mean the Cubs will turn to Kittredge or Keller in higher-leverage situations. Left-hander Caleb Thielbar also could be an option to get outs against lefty hitters, all of whom managed just a .161 batting average against him this season (compared to .205 vs. righties).

What can we expect from Kyle Tucker?

Tucker returned to the Cubs’ lineup Friday after he had missed action since Sept. 2 with a left calf issue. Tucker started at designated hitter in all three games against the St. Louis Cardinals, going 1-for-11 across the weekend.

Tucker did not see the field on defense at all, capping his appearances in right field this regular season at 115 games. Seiya Suzuki started in right for the bulk of the time Tucker missed.

However, Counsell said Saturday that Tucker still could play in the outfield during the wild-card series.

“Yeah, I don’t think that’s out (of the question) as of now,” Counsell said. “This is day to day — (we’re) just going to keep seeing how he feels every day.”

Tucker hit .229 in 64 postseason games with the Houston Astros, and he’s heading into the wild-card round coming off a 17-for-55 clip (.309) in his last 15 games.

The good thing for Tucker and the Cubs is that a strong lineup heating up at the right time — especially Suzuki and Pete Crow-Armstrong — means the team won’t have to solely rely on him for big moments.

“It doesn’t matter who does it [in the] postseason,” Counsell said Sunday. “It doesn’t matter if it’s Dansby [Swanson] or Matt Shaw or Pete or Kyle Tucker. I think players like Pete and Seiya — who have the ability to hit the ball hard and change games — could change games.”

Where does Moisés Ballesteros fit on the roster?

With either Tucker or Suzuki taking designated hitter duties in the wild-card round, that leaves Ballesteros the odd man out of a starting spot. Still, the rookie likely will make the playoff roster as a bench bat after putting together an impressive September in which he slashed .333/.435/.564 (.999 OPS) with two home runs and five RBI in 39 at-bats.

“He’s been an exceptional hitter since he’s been here,” Counsell said of Ballesteros on Sunday. “That’s the best development for Moisés, really, is that he’s come up to the big leagues and shown everybody what just a natural hitter he is.”

Ballesteros also caught in the major leagues for the first time Sunday, which Counsell said was “to try to cover some things that could happen in the playoffs.” Ballesteros worked with Javier Assad and helped coax a scoreless start in a 2-0 Cubs win over the Cardinals.

Essentially, Ballesteros will slot in as a backup-backup catcher and a very solid bench bat.

“In case any frankly unlikely scenarios happen,” Counsell said of Ballesteros catching.

The 21-year-old can also play first base if needed, as he did for an inning Friday.