The San Diego Padres (74-68, 30-37 away) begin an important four-game series with the San Francisco Giants (93-50, 45-23 home) with playoff implications on the line. San Francisco owns a 5-4 record against the Padres in contests this season.
The first pitch for Monday’s game is at 9:45 p.m. EST inside Oracle Park in San Francisco, CA. According to oddsmakers, the contest is a pick-em, and the run total over-under is at 8.
What to Know – San Diego Padres
San Diego needs to pick up the winning if they want to make it into the postseason. The Padres were swept by the Dodgers over the weekend and have dropped four of their last five contests. San Diego is tied with the Cincinnati Reds for the final spot in the NL wild card.
Right-hander Yu Darvish (8-9, 3.95 ERA, 1.05 WHIP) is the expected starting pitcher for the visitors. Darvish has struggled over the last three months after an impressive start on the mound. The 35-year old hurling posted his best outing of the second half in his previous start, firing 6.0 innings of one-run ball in a victory over the Anges.
The Padres’ offense scores 4.5 runs per game behind a .322 on-base percentage and .399 slugging percentage. Shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. headlines the offense with 38 home runs and 89 runs driven in. Third baseman Manny Machado has driven in a team-high 90 runs, six shy of matching his career-high.
What to Know – San Francisco Giants
The Giants carry a seven-game winning streak into the series against the Padres, sweeping the Rockies and Cubs last week. San Francisco has the best record in baseball and own a 2.5 game lead over the Dodgers in the NL West division. The Giants are 9-1 over their last ten contests.
San Francisco will use right-hander Dominic Leone (3-3, 3.71 ERA, 1.34 WHIP) as an opener in the contest. Leone hasn’t pitched more than two innings this season and is making just his third start. The 29-year old hasn’t surrendered a run over his last five appearances on the mound.
Offensively, the Giants average 4.9 runs per game and sport a .327 on-base and .439 slugging percentage. Utility man Kris Bryant, who joined San Francisco at the trade deadline, has hit six home runs and driven in 15 runs in 34 games as a Giant. Shortstop Brandon Crawford, the host’s best hitter, missed Sunday’s contest with a wrist injury and is listed as day-to-day.
The Pick is In
San Diego needs to win, and they need to win now with under a month remaining in the regular season. Darvish will try and follow up his best outing in months with another against a solid lineup.
The Giants will use their bullpen in the series opener to try and keep the Padres offense at bay. San Francisco’s bullpen has been elite, but we think the Padres plate enough runs to end the Giants winning streak and take the series opener.
Betting Preview: San Diego Padres ML
