Cleveland Guardians vs. San Diego Padres Betting Preview
Thursday features the finale of a three-game series between the Cleveland Guardians (31-36) and the San Diego Padres (33-34). The Padres will host this one at Petco Park, with first pitch scheduled for 8:40 pm ET.
After taking the first two games of this series, the Padres will be looking for the sweep Thursday. In Wednesday’s 5-0 win, the Padres’ Fernando Tatis Jr had three hits, including his 14th home run of the season. Michael Wacha picked up the win after firing 6.2 scoreless innings.
The Padres are the favorites in the finale. They are -152 to win, while the Guardians’ moneyline sits at +128. The runline features Cleveland +1.5 -154, and the over/under for total runs is eight (-110).
Guardians Hope To Salvage Finale
Despite sitting 31-36 overall, the Guardians still sit in second in the AL Central, 3.5 games behind the Minnesota Twins. Looking to keep pace in the division, the Guardians will hope to salvage the finale on the road, where they are 15-19 this season.
Taking the ball in this one is lefty Logan Allen. In nine games, he is 3-2 with a 3.31 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, and he has 51 strikeouts in 51.2 innings. Allen was roughed up in his last start after giving up five earned runs in six innings during a no-decision against the Astros.
Offensively, the Guardians rank 27th overall, averaging just 3.83 runs per game (4.24 on the road). They are led by perennial All-Star Jose Ramirez, who is hitting .281/.349/.490 with ten home runs, 38 runs batted in, and 38 runs scored.
Padres Hoping For Hot Streak
The Padres have been relatively mediocre to this point as they sit fourth in the NL West, 7.5 games behind the Arizona Diamondbacks. Still, they have won seven of their last ten and five of their last six. They will try to stay hot and hope to sweep the Guardians at home.
The Padres rank 22nd in the majors in scoring, averaging 4.24 runs per game (3.66 at home). After constructing a lineup of stars, Wednesday’s slugfest is what San Diego envisioned as Tatis Jr, Manny Machado, Juan Soto, and Nelson Cruz all homered.
Leading the Padres’ offense on the season is Tatis Jr. In 198 at bats, he is hitting .283/.341/.561 with a team-leading 14 home runs and 34 runs batted in. He also has 33 runs scored and ten stolen bases.
On the mound for the finale is lefty Ryan Weathers. The 23-year-old is 1-4 with a 4.93 ERA, 1.49 WHIP, and 25 strikeouts over 38.1 innings of work. In his last three outings combined, Weathers has given up eight earned runs in 8.2 innings.
Take The Guardians On The Runline
Looking at the trends, the Guardians are 1-4 in their last five games against the NL West and 2-6 in their last eight interleague games. The UNDER has hit in six of their last seven games at Petco Park.
For San Diego, they are 5-1 in their last six games. In 16 of their last 19 home games and 8 of their last 11 overall, the UNDER has hit.
Undoubtedly, the Padres are the hotter team as of late, but Ryan Weathers has been far from sensational as of late. On the flip side, Logan Allen has pitched well in most of his starts except for his last one, where he gave up five earned runs.
Don’t be surprised if the Padres win this one, but expect it to be much closer than the previous two contests. For that reason, take Cleveland +1.5 (-154) on the runline.
