The Los Angeles Angels (68-70, 30-36 away) and the San Diego Padres (73-64, 43-30 home) begin a two-game interleague California series on Tuesday, September 7th. The two franchises squared off for the first time last month, splitting a pair of contests in L.A.
Tuesday’s first pitch is scheduled for 10:10 p.m. EST inside Petco Park in San Diego, CA. According to oddsmakers, San Diego (-410) is a heavy favorite, and the total run over-under is placed at 7.5.
What to Know – Los Angeles Angels
With Los Angeles all but officially eliminated from the playoffs, the Angels have nothing but pride to play for in what turned out to be a disappointing season for the Halos. The Angels sit in fourth place in the American League West, 12.5 games behind the Houston Astros.
The Angels are expected to hand the ball over to left-hander Packy Naughton (0-1, 4.00 ERA, 1.78 WHIP). The start will be the 25-year old’s second of his career, after notching his first start last week against the Yankees. Naughton lasted 3.2 innings, surrendering three earned runs on six hits with two walks and two strikeouts.
Offensively, the Halos average 4.5 runs per game thanks to a lineup that has a .313 on-base percentage and .415 slugging percentage. The Angels have missed having All-Star outfielder Mike Trout in the lineup, but the emergence of Shohei Ohtani as the front-runner for AL MVP has been fun to watch. Ohtani leads the majors in home runs (43) and has driven in 93 runs.
What to Know – San Diego Padres
San Diego finds itself on the fence in a heated playoff race for the final spot in the NL wild card. If the playoffs began today, the Padres would be in. San Diego owns a one-game lead over the Cincinnati Reds with the Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals, and New York Mets, all with a chance.
Blake Snell (7-5, 4.31 ERA, 1.38 WHIP) is the tentative starter for the Padres. The left-hander was stellar in August, going 3-1 over six starts with a 1.72 ERA. Snell blanked the Diamondbacks in his last outing, hurling 7.0 innings of no-hit ball with two walks and ten strikeouts.
The Padres average 4.6 runs per game and rank in the league’s upper half in both on-base percentage (.324) and slugging percentage (.405). Shortstop Frenando Tatis Jr. is the favorite to be the MVP in the NL. The All-Star infielder has hit 37 home runs and driven in 85 runs this year.
The Pick is In
The Padres are fighting for a playoff spot and need to win with a tough stretch of contests on the horizon. San Diego has had better success against lefties than righties, so the Padres should attack Naughton early and often.
While the Angels have nothing to play for, the lineup is still good enough to scratch a few runs across against Snell. We will stay away from the money and run line and jump on the over in this one.
Betting Pick: Angels/Padres Over 7.5
