The Los Angeles Dodgers (71-39) are set to kick off a 10-game homestand at Dodger Stadium, a place where they’ve had a lot of success thus far this season by posting a 40-14 record. On deck is divisional rival San Diego Padres (50-57) who currently find themselves 19.5 games behind the Dodgers for the NL West crown. This will be a 4-game series starting tonight (August 1st) through Sunday (August 4th). The Padres are coming off a brutal month of July after going 8-16, while the Dodgers come into this series with a 2-game winning streak and a 14-10 record in July.
These two teams have met 9 times so far this season, and it’s been much closer than many Dodger fans are accustomed to. From Kirby Yates meltdowns to Hunter Renfroe walk-off grand slams, The Dodgers only hold a slim 5-4 season series margin, with the Padres winning the last 3 games back in July at Dodger Stadium right before the All-Star break. The Padres are currently 13th in the NL in runs scored with 473, while the Dodgers sit at the top with 595 runs. The Padres are also 13th in team batting average at .244, but they surprisingly hit better on the road by ranking 3rd in the NL with a .253 team road average, though the Dodgers do hit .272 at Dodger Stadium.
The Dodgers are currently posting a 2.57 team ERA at home, while the Padres as a team have a 4.51 ERA in 2019, but on the road they are last in the NL with a 4.92 team ERA. The bullpen hasn’t been the biggest strength of San Diego like in years past, they are up to a 4.53 bullpen ERA, which ranks 9th.
The pitching probable matchups are set to be:
Thursday Aug. 1
Joey Lucchesi (7-5) 4.12 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 20 starts, 107 K’s vs
Clayton Kershaw (9-2) 2.85 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 18 starts, 117 K’s
Summary: Kershaw is 6-0 at home with a 2.30 ERA. He has made 3 starts this season against the Padres going 1-0 along with a 3.15 ERA. In his career against the Padres, Kershaw has made 37 starts going 19-6 with a 2.00 ERA. Former Dodger and the new San Diego man who was willing to bet his $300 million contract that they win a World Series before the Dodgers, Manny Machado, has already made a statement with 2 home runs and 5 RBIs off Kershaw hitting 4-9 (.444). Eric Hosmer has hit Kershaw well too by batting 9-24 (.375) with 1 home run and 4 RBIs. Lucceshi has made 5 career starts against the Dodgers and so far is 1-3 with a 6.75 ERA
Friday Aug. 2
Eric Lauer (5-8) 4.52 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, 19 starts, 81 K’s vs
Dustin May (6-5) 3.38 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 20 starts, 110 K’s (AA-AAA)
Summary: This will be Dustin May’s major league debut and first career start. May is the top ranked pitcher in the Dodgers farm system, and the right-hander is ranked 35th in all of MLB by mlb.com. Lauer has begun to establish himself as a thorn in the Dodgers side. In his career against the Dodgers, he’s made 5 starts holding the Dodgers to a 1.47 ERA and posting a 3-0 record.
Saturday Aug. 3
TBD vs
Walker Buehler (9-2) 3.38 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 20 starts, 137 K’s
Summary: The Padres haven’t officially announced their starter for Saturday but look for it to be the young right-handed thrower Cal Quantrill. He’s made 9 starts/14 appearances going 4-2 with a 3.57 ERA. Buehler looks to rebound after a rough outing against the Nationals by allowing 7 runs (4 ER) in 5.1 innings.
Sunday Aug. 4
Chris Paddack (7-5) 2.78 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, 18 starts, 104 K’s vs
Kenta Maeda (7-8) 4.07 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 21 starts, 118 K’s
Summary: Kenta Maeda hasn’t been credited with a win since May 31. Since then he’s been 0-6. Over Maeda’s last 7 appearances, he’s pitched 29 innings with a 4.97 ERA (0-4). He’s looking to turn it around in August against a team he’s had success against in the past with a career 6-4 record. Chris Paddack rebounded nicely after getting roughed up his first time out against the Dodgers by surrendering 6 runs. His last time out against the Dodgers, he went 5.2 innings allowing only 3 hits and no runs.
Final thoughts and prediction:
Watch out for Manny Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr. The 20-year old, Tatis Jr., is batting .329 with 19 home runs, while Machado is up to 26 home runs, 67 RBIs, and hitting .278. Cody Bellinger will break his 13 game home run drought, and Will Smith will have multiple RBIs in this series as well. Max Muncy will be efficient by batting over .300 in this 4 game series. Prediction: Dodgers win 3 of the 4 games against the Padres.
photo credit: ESPN