The San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks will square off in an NL West clash on Thursday. First pitch from Chase Field is at 6:40 p.m. PT. The Padres are slight favorites and the game total is 9.5.
San Diego (8-11 SU and 8-11 RL) avoided a sweep with a 1-0 win over Atlanta on Wednesday. The Padres will start veteran right-hander Michael Wacha (2-1 with a 6.06 ERA and 1.47 WHIP) in the series opener.
Arizona (11-8 SU and 13-6 RL) lost its series finale versus St. Louis 14-5 on Wednesday but won the previous two matchups. The D-Backs will start 25-year-old righty Ryne Nelson (1-0 with a 3.71 ERA and 1.18 WHIP) on Thursday.
San Diego earned a much-needed victory in its series finale on Wednesday against Atlanta. The one-run win was a significant momentum boost, even if the Padres failed to break out offensively. After scoring five total runs over their last four games, is SD pent-up or slumping?
San Diego scores 3.65 runs per game (25th) and hits .223 (28th) with a .691 OPS (22nd). The Padres have hit 23 long balls (8th) and stolen nine bases (22nd). The SD pitching staff has posted a 4.08 ERA (12th) and 1.36 WHIP (19th) with six quality starts.
That ball is Juan gone… very gone ??#BringTheGold pic.twitter.com/MDrlWnTcHm
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) April 19, 2023
Wacha gets the nod on Thursday after winning two of his first three outings. He did lose his last start, though, giving up seven runs on 11 hits, including two home runs, versus Milwaukee. The 31-year-old beat Colorado and Atlanta in his first two outings, lasting six innings in each appearance. He has a 3:1 K/BB ratio this year in his first season in sunny SoCal.