Colorado Rockies at San Diego Padres Betting Preview
Saturday night features an N.L. West showdown as the Colorado Rockies (38-51) square off with the San Diego Padres (53-38). The Padres will host this one at Petco Park, with the first pitch scheduled for 10:10 pm ET.
This will be the second game of a three-game series between the two teams. On Friday, the Padres won the opener, 4-2.
In the win, five pitchers combined for San Diego to give up two runs on four hits. Mark Melancon picked up his 27th save while Jake Cronenworth, Manny Machado, Tommy Pham, and Wil Myers all had two hits apiece.
Kyle Freeland picked up the loss for Colorado after going five innings and allowing three runs. Trevor Story went one for three with a run scored.
The Padres are the favorites Saturday playing at home. They are -184 to win while the Rockies’ moneyline sits at +154. The runline features Colorado +1.5 (-140), and the over/under for total runs is 7.5.
Pitching Matchup
The Rockies will send German Marquez to the mound on Saturday. Marquez has been solid this season as he is 7-6 with a 3.59 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, and has struck out 105 in 105.1 innings.
Marquez may be auditioning for another team as he is one of several Rockies’ players that could potentially be moved at the deadline.
The Padres will counter with righty Joe Musgrove. Acquired in the offseason, Musgrove has gotten off to a 5-6 start with a 2.97 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, and 110 strikeouts in 94 innings pitched.
By The Numbers
The Padres hold a slight edge offensively. They rank 11th in the majors averaging 4.70 runs per game. The Rockies rank 16th averaging 4.34 runs (although just 2.83 on the road).
Defensively, it is all San Diego. They rank sixth in scoring defense, allowing opponents just 3.83 runs per game. The Rockies fall to 25th, allowing 4.92 runs (5.38 on the road).
Rockies Hope To Avoid Road Woes
At 38-50 and 17 games back in the division, this is looking like a lost season for the Colorado Rockies. Despite their record, they have been phenomenal at home as they are 31-17 at Coors Field.
The problem, though, is their play on the road. Coming into play Saturday, they are an abysmal 7-33 when playing on the road this season.
Being so far out of it, the Rockies will definitely be sellers at the trade deadline, and one interesting name that could be on the move is Trevor Story. On the season, Story is hitting .253/.327/.448 with 11 home runs, 42 runs batted in, 42 runs scored, and 17 stolen bases.
In his career, Story is also three for nine against Joe Musgrove.
Padres Aim To Hang Around In The N.L. West
Undoubtedly, the N.L. West is going to be the most interesting division to watch in the second half. The top three hold three of the four best records in the National League, and the top three are separated by just four games.
With the Padres currently in the third spot, they will look to keep pace with the Giants and Dodgers. They will also look to build on their solid home record of 31-17.
Fernando Tatis Jr. continues to show the world every day why he is one of the most exciting players in the game. He is currently hitting .294/.374/.675 with 28 home runs, 60 runs batted in, 67 runs scored, and 20 stolen bases in 265 at-bats.
There are also a few players who have had success against Marquez in their careers. Manny Machado is hitting .429 in 14 at-bats while Wil Myers has homered twice and Eric Hosmer once off the righty.
Taking Padres To Win
This matchup screams Padres all the way, but the only hesitation from taking them to cover the 1.5 runline is German Marquez. He has been solid this season and has ace-quality stuff when he is on.
Ultimately, the Padres to win is still the right play, but if Marquez can pitch like he is capable of, it could be close. Take San Diego -184.
