The Padres will finally be back at home this weekend for a 3-game set with the San Francisco Giants. It has been four consecutive series losses for the Padres. This streak started at home against the Giants as well. Maybe the most positive way to look at it is that the Padres have a chance to fix the leak, and beat the team that started this mess.
The complicated aspect of this feat is that the Giants are the hottest team in baseball right now. Prior to their loss to the Cubs on Wednesday, they had won 17 out of their last 20 games. Clearly, something is working on a consistent basis for them. It seems like that series with San Diego just “freaky Friday’d” the momentum between the two teams. While the Giants were on the precipice of hitting the rebuild button for next year last time these teams played, the Padres were feeling very comfortable after just taking a series against the Dodgers before the All Star break. The Giants have been absolutely on fire lately. The Padres, on the other hand, have been ice cold.
So maybe it’s a curse! Maybe there is some bad mojo going on here. Either way, the Padres have a chance to beat the team that started their cold streak. San Diego has gone 27 calendar days without winning a home game. They have not won a single game at home in the month of July yet. Nonetheless, they come back home Friday with the hopes of taking the series against their Giant foe.
Friday, July 26th, 7:10 PMRHP Jeff Samardzjia (7-8, 4.08) vs LHP Joey Lucchesi (7-5, 4.27)
Jeff Samardzjia has combined for a 0.0 WAR over the last 2 seasons. Last year’s slide of a -0.7 WAR was made worse by him being hurt, but this is really hurting the Giants, as they had paid him 19 million dollars a year to be not good at baseball. His season this year has been an okay turn around, but he hasn’t been worth his contract. The Giants need Samardzija to step his game up and ideally get that ERA back under 4 as soon as possible. His last start against San Diego was exactly what they need out of him more consistently. He went 8 innings giving up only 2 earned runs. It is clear that a start like that again would almost certainly lead to a win for the Giants.
Joey Lucchesi has been a part of many Padres pitchers who have performed below average for their position. His 4.27 ERA is salvageable, though since he is so young, his numbers can be excused to an extent. Most of the San Diego pitching staff are of the younger variety, so the fact that they’re performing below average doesn’t really surprise. Lucchesi hasn’t been doing poorly in 2019. He has a 0.7 WAR, with a winning pitching record in 19 starts. The 26 year old is definitely hoping to get a solid start going for the Padres in their Friday night matchup.
Saturday, July 27th, 5:40 PMRHP Shaun Anderson (3-2, 4.91) vs RHP Cal Quantrill (3-2, 3.76)
Shaun Anderson is scheduled to get the nod for Saturday’s pivotal game for this series. Since it is an earlier start, Petco Park will likely be rocking, so keeping the Padres off the board will be important for the young 24 year old from Plantation, Florida. Anderson has had an interesting, and mildly unsuccessful start to his young career. In 13 starts for the season he has only managed 5 decisions. 3 of which were wins, giving him a winning record. However, Anderson has been yet another disappointment for the Giants front office as his ERA has ballooned now up close to 5.00. He will certainly take every start with care, as he is trying to make a name for himself up here in the bigs.
Cal Quantrill has been one of the more surprising pitchers for the Padres in 2019. In 13 appearances, his 0.9 WAR sticks out as an average pitcher, and for the Padres, that is a nice line considering his age. The 24 year old’s ERA of 3.76 is a nice mark considering how young he is. He has a chance to take the mound on Saturday to try to get a win against Anderson in a very important start.
Sunday, July 28, 1:10 PMLHP Madison Bumgarner (5-7, 3.66) vs RHP Chris Paddack (6-5, 2.84)
Madison Bumgarner has been one of the most consistent young pitchers in the Major Leagues in some time. He doesn’t have mind blowing stats over the last few years, but he has been consistently above average at his position. In fact, he has been an above average pitcher every season for six consecutive years, which is very hard to do. He hasn’t played at All Star level since 2016, and nobody probably thought that after his fourth consecutive all star appearance, he wouldn’t have been back again since without any kind of injury. He is certainly due up for an All Star like season in 2020, but until then, he will have another above average season under his belt in 2019. He will also have an exciting chance to face off against Paddack in a day game.
Chris Paddack has performed in an amazing fashion in 2019 considering his age. The young 23 year old has already rolled up a 2.1 WAR, which means that if he were to just sit out until next year, he would still have been above average as a starting pitcher in the Major Leagues. The Padres have around 60 games left on their schedule, and if Paddack can manage 8-9 more starts at the level he has been playing, he has a chance to actually catch up to the amazing Hawaiian born rookie Mike Soroka in Atlanta for best season as a starter for his rookie year in 2019. His Sunday start will be the highlight of the series for Padres fans, getting to see Paddack pitch at home for the first time since June. Paddack, along with Friar faithful everywhere, will be hoping to start a Sunday game with a chance for a sweep against the Giants on Sunday.
Players to WatchThe two Giants players to watch are Joe Panik, and Will Smith. Joe Panik has been hitting .235 over his last 7 games and has not been too stellar as of late. He has obviously not been very hot, and possibly has been concerning to Giants fans (if there are concerns for Giants fans over the last 21 games). However, it is not time to hit the Panik button yet, as he has time to get his offensive flow back on track. Will Smith is a very interesting player to watch because there have been very serious trade talks as the deadline approaches. The lefty closer has been very solid this year out of the bullpen, and has caught the eye of contending teams who really need bullpen help. Seeing if he can keep up his success with all of these trade rumors floating around will be worth checking out.
The two Padres players to watch for this weekend series are Manuel Margot, and 2019 All Star Kirby Yates. Manuel Margot has been playing some positive baseball here over the last week. He has been hitting .321 in his last 7 games with 3 stolen bases. The outfield phenom has been moving up the charts on players to watch for Padres fans because of his impactful play on the field. Since the Padres have a chance to actually win a series, Kirby Yates will be a player to watch for as he would be used if there is any kind of lead left in the 9th inning. The Padres really need to win games, and Yates is dying to do whatever he can to help in that department.
