Padres Series Preview: Padres Set to Battle Rockies at Petco Park
The San Diego Padres are coming off an appalling series against the Seattle Mariners. Now the Padres will definitely look to turn things around against the Colorado Rockies. The Padres would have one of their better series of the year earlier this season against the Rockies.
In that series the Friars would manage to out score the Rockies 32-15 in a three game set at Coors Field. Since then the Pads and Rox would face each other one other time. That series would also go the Padres way as they would take two out of three games from the Rockies. Overall the Padres have done quite well against the Rockies this year as they have gone 4-2 in six games. The Padres as a whole really need some type of boost to morale and play in general.
The way the Padres have been performing recently can turn out to be very unhealthy for the team. The fact of the matter is that we need some of these players to pick it up so we can ship them out of here ASAP. The players also need to start performing a bit more just to generate some sort of self-respect and to please the bitter fans. This season is lost, there’s no denying that. But the Friars can not keep on having the type of losses they have had. The Padres are currently the laughing-stock of the MLB after Thursday night’s performance. To lose a nine run lead is just something you don’t see too often. It is also something that is inexcusable.
The Padres have suffered moments like that earlier this season. We saw it when James Shields gave up a home run to Bartolo Colon. The Padres can simply not continue to do these sorts of things. It is an injustice to not only the fans but to themselves. All I hope from this series is to not see another one of “those moments”. The Padres are capable of performing at a decent level. We saw the glimmer of hope in the third game of the Mariners series. They are capable of getting some W’s on the board. They are also capable of playing some respectable baseball. If your going to lose a game don’t become the mockery of the MLB, while you’re doing it.
Pitching Matchups
Chris Rusin vs Drew Pomeranz 7:40 p.m.
Chad Bettis vs Andrew Cashner 7:10 p.m.
Jon Gray vs James Shields 6:10 p.m.
If you think the Padres pitchers are in a rough patch. You might want to check the numbers on the guys going for the Rox in this series. The Rockies pitching is something that is always a weak point within their team. Chris Rusin is the pitcher who has the best ERA of the pitchers going in this series and he’s at 4.75 on the season. Safe to say the Padres have a decent chance in this series.
Drew Pomeranz had his worst start of the season his last time out. Pomeranz would go five innings and give up six runs. I am confident that Pomeranz can bounce back and have a quality start on Friday night. Now the Rockies offense is no joke.They are fourth in the National League as a team in home runs, with 68. Nolan Arenado is tied for most home runs in all of MLB with 17.
The Padres pitchers will face a tough task in this series. But based on performances from earlier this year. They should be able to win this series. It will be interesting to see how Shields can do on Sunday night. Shields is coming off an indescribable loss in which he pitched less than three innings and allowed 10 runs to cross the plate. Hopefully Shields can turn it around in order to start generating interest from other teams.
Don’t let the numbers tell the story on Jon Gray, he is actually quite a decent pitcher. In his last start at Petco Park, Gray would throw six innings, only give up two runs, walking one batter and strike out 11. If Gray can pull off something like that again, the Padres will be in trouble. Overall though I feel like the Padres should be able to win this series. They should have motivation after being completely embarrassed by the Mariners.
Players to Watch
Nolan Arenado will always be the player to watch in any series he is a part of. Arenado is one of the best players in the game of baseball. He has had an amazing season and is an early candidate to take home the N.L. MVP award. Arenado is hitting .287 with 17 home runs and 44 RBI. To add to it Arenado has the best glove in the game of baseball. Arenado at the age of 25 is already being compared to Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson. That comparison is totally valid. He will certainly take home another Gold Glove this year to add to his collection. We will also certainly be seeing Arenado in the mid summer classic as well. We could also very well be seeing Arenado take home the N.L. MVP award if he can keep it up.
Story has been one of the top stories of the 2016 season. This youngster came seemingly out of nowhere and has practically become the new Troy Tulowitzki. Story has had a magnificent season so far as he has hit .261 with 15 home runs and 38 RBI. Because of that, Story is currently one of the top vote receivers for the all-star game. To add to it Story has done very well against the Padres. In 23 at bats against the Padres this season, Story has pulled off eight hits including three home runs. Story will definitely be someone to watch out for in this series.
Jon Jay has been on fire in his last two games. Jay has gone 9-12 with two RBI in his last two games. Both games have been played at Petco Park. It’ll be interesting to see how Jay can do in these next few games against the Rockies. Overall Jay has managed to pull off some immense home numbers this season. “The Federalist” has put up a monstrous BA of .349 at home as opposed to his .252 BA on the road. Jay is definitely a player to keep your eyes on whenever he is at Petco Park.
Myers actually had a really nice series against the Mariners. Myers went 8-18 with five RBI and home run against Seattle. Myers has really been up and down this year. This is something you can clearly see by his home and away splits. Just like Jay, Myers has manged to pull off some immense home stats. Myers has hit .313 at Petco Park while he has only been able to hit .229 anywhere else. Like Jay, Myers is definitely someone to watch whenever he plays at Petco Park.
Matchups
Carlos Gonzalez vs James Shields
Cargo has owned James Shields. In 28 at bats Gonzalez has manged to get an OBP of .400 off of Shields. Carlos has also manged to get three home runs off of James Shields. One of those home runs actually came earlier this year at Coors Field. With Shields coming off his worst start of the year, it’ll be interesting to see how this matchup plays out.
Padres offense vs Rockies Pitchers
This seems like a very broad matchup. But it really is something to look closely at. In the last two games the Padres have scored 27 runs. Yeah that is a huge number. Sometimes even NFL teams struggle to post up that many points in two games. We all know how inconsistent the Padres have been this year so, do you think the offense can keep it up in this series? All roads point to yes. The Rockies pitching is one of the worst in the MLB. The pitchers who are starting for the Rockies in this series have horrifying ERA’s.
Chris Rusin is the best of the lot with an ERA of 4.75. Chad Bettis and Jon Gray then have ERA’s well over five. so there is no reason why the Padres should not be able to go off on these pitchers. But again the Friars have been hit with the plague of inconsistency this season. You can see it in home/away splits, in the bullpens’ performance, in all the shutouts we’ve had this year, and also in several other factors. It is something that has haunted the Padres this season. I do believe that the Padres are fully capable of doing some damage to these Rockies pitchers and taking this series.
Francisco, 26, Chula Vista/Tijuana. I have been a Padres fan all my life, did most of the series previews and recaps in the Padres’ 2016 season for EVT. Now I focus more on the local soccer scene. Tijuana Xolos, San Diego Loyal, San Diego Wave.