Clayton Richard (0-2, 5.75 ERA) and Robbie Ray (6-11, 4.47 ERA) start in the third of a four-game series between the San Diego Padres (52-70) and the Arizona Diamondbacks (50-72) at Petco Park. The Padres won the last game 7-4, and San Diego leads the series 2-0. Action begins at 8:40 p.m. ET on Saturday, Aug. 20 and can be seen on FSAZ and FSSD.
Richard pitched 5.0 innings in his most recent start, surrendering two runs, striking out three and walking three in a 5-1 defeat to the Mets. Yangervis Solarte (.289, 44 Rs, 13 HRs, 52 RBIs, 1 SB) went 1 for 4 yesterday with two runs. Ray went 5.0 innings, surrendering two, striking out five and walking two in a 10-6 win over the Mets in his last outing. Paul Goldschmidt (.301, 79 Rs, 18 HRs, 74 RBIs, 19 SBs) went 1 for 3 yesterday with one stolen base.
Arizona takes on San Diego as a -127 favorite. The Over/Under (O/U) for the matchup is sitting at eight runs. The Padres have recorded an overall money line of -160 and have shown a weak performance as an underdog this season with a record of 38-63. San Diego has recorded a disappointing 2-7 record as the underdog over its last 10 games. The Padres have seen a decline in scoring as of late, averaging 3.1 runs during the last 10 games compared to their season average of 4.4 runs per game. San Diego is one of the best in the MLB in terms of steals, swiping 102 bases.
In games where it is the favorite, Arizona has a 24-24 record and an overall money line of -1,918. They have managed to pull off a perfect record over their last ten games playing as the favorite, and have a 5-5 SU record over the same span. Offensively, the Diamondbacks have really picked up the pace in the last 10 games. They have exceeded their season average of 4.6 runs per game by averaging 6.2 during that stretch. The Diamondbacks are tough outs for opponents, ranking third in the NL with 9.3 hits per road game. The Diamondbacks are an excellent base stealing team with 100 stolen bases, ranking fifth in the MLB. The Diamondbacks have established a reputation of overwhelming hitters with an NL-best 8.0 strikeouts per road game, making them one of the top five teams in the league.
The Padres lead the season series, 6-5. The Padres have a 15-16 record against left-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Ray takes the mound. Richard (LHP) will be on the hill against the Diamondbacks, who have a 16-16 record against left-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – ARI, O/U – Over
Notes
San Diego is 1-5-1 SU in its last 7 games,.
San Diego is 2-3-1 SU in its last 6 games, when playing at home against Arizona.
The Padres are 21-27 against their divisional rivals, while the Diamondbacks are 20-30 against their division.
The Padres managed to give up eight walks in their last game. They’ll have to pick it up against the Diamondbacks who are coming in with a 0-3 record against opponents who give up that many walks or more.
It looks like the Padres have a slight leg up on the Diamondbacks, as the Padres have won their last two games while the Diamondbacks have lost their last two.
When they outhit their opponents, the Diamondbacks are 37-15. The Padres have a 38-9 record when outhitting opponents.
Ranking 20th, San Diego is in the bottom half of the league in runs, scoring 534 this season. Arizona ranks in the top half at 11th with 558.
San Diego and Arizona both rank near the bottom of the league in walks. San Diego sits at 21st with 348 this season and Arizona ranks 22nd with 347.
The Padres are 43-36 when they hit at least one home run. The Diamondbacks perform similarly when they hit one or more homers with a 42-40 record.
