Los Angeles Dodgers (48-28) vs San Diego Padres (46-33)
Saturday, July 02, 2022 at 7:15 pm
I like the Dodgers to clinch a series win here as I do not like this matchup for Darvish vs. the Padres. In Darvish's last few starts he has fared well over in terms of earned runs allowed, but he has allowed a ton of baserunners and has had to wiggle out of too many jams for my liking. Darvish owns a whopping 4.04 xFIP because his strike-out numbers are way down in 2022. Add to the fact that he is facing a very tough Dodgers lineup that has crushed RHP this season and Darvish is in the bottom half of the league in hard-hit % and xBA, and this could be a rough spot for Darvish. The Padres have struggled against LHP as of late and even if Machado plays, I think Tyler Anderson puts together a decent start. Anderson had to face the Rockies in Coors and the Reds in Great American in his last two starts, but at home, Anderson has had more success and he has been excellent against teams that do not hit lefties well. San Diego is in the bottom 10th in the league in team OPS, isolated power, and wRC+ vs. LHP in the last 30 days. Give me the Dodgers on the moneyline here.