Padres vs. Dodgers Odds
| Padres Odds | +150 |
| Dodgers Odds | -175 |
| Over/Under | 9.5 |
| Time | 7:08 p.m. ET |
| TV | ESPN |
When the Padres made their big-name deadline moves, these are the moments they had in mind. They wanted to compete with the Dodgers, their Big Brother who hasn’t let them win yet.
Since the deadline, the Padres are 15-14 while the Dodgers are 21-8 as the lead in the division has grown to 18 during this stretch.
The Dodgers are also 4-1 against the Padres since the August 2nd deadline date, including a double-digit clobbering just last night.
Will Smith – Los Angeles Dodgers (20)
pic.twitter.com/DHV3j73iIX— MLB HR Videos (@MLBHRVideos) September 4, 2022
Comparing your team to the Dodgers is a futile endeavor, but the Padres haven’t been world-beaters in any sense of the word. They’re hanging on to the second Wild Card spot by one game over the Phillies, although Philadelphia has a three-game lead over the next-best team in Milwaukee.
Either way, the games grow ever more important for the Padres. Can they beat Big Brother on the sport’s biggest stage tonight?
Let’s talk about Juan Soto.
Nationals got their guy ?? pic.twitter.com/vadKDxnTuV
— Talkin' Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) September 3, 2022
I don’t want to drag Soto for accumulating 0.9 War in just 24 games (about a six-WAR pace over a full season), but his debut in SoCal has been slightly underwhelming. He’s hit some uber-long home run balls, but he’s only hit three of them in 24 games. A .250/.417/.417 slash line is better than most, but is a .833 OPS worthy of the great Soto?
But what does Soto do better than anyone?
As Billy Beane says:'
Soto has walked 24 times to 13 strikeouts during his time with the Padres. That is staggering, and it’s helped keep him afloat during a .265 BABIP period, which has kept his average to .250 and his extra-base hits down.
Don’t worry, Padres fans, brighter days are ahead with this generational superstar.
The rest of the offense is slightly worrisome. Manny Machado is tremendous, but not a single other Padres hitter (outside Soto) has an OPS+ above 111. Consistently stringing together offensive performances across the lineup has been a problem for San Diego this season.
Starting Pitcher: Mike Clevinger (RHP)'