Padres Series Preview: Padres Set to Battle Rockies at Petco Park
After a series of interesting games against the Red Sox, the Padres will now move on to face the Colorado Rockies. The Friars will play a four-game series against the Rockies here at Petco Park to cap off this home stand.
Both of these teams are definitely struggling, the Rockies are just struggling a bit less however. In terms of head to head matchups between these two teams the Padres have actually had the edge so far. The Friars have gone 7-5 in the 12 games the two teams have played this season.
We have seen all kinds of games between these two division rivals this season. We have seen total slug fest ending in 16-3 and 13-6 and we have also seen solid pitching matchups ending in 2-1 and 2-0 scores. I think we will see a bit of both in this particular series at Petco Park. Even though both teams are thought to be pretty bad pitching-wise, both do still have some solid pitchers in their rotations. At the same time there are a few pitchers with ERA’s over six which we will see in this series. In terms of offense the Padres may have dwindled a bit, but the Rockies still have one of the better lineups in MLB. This should be a very interesting series which should give us some great games throughout it.
Pitching Matchups
Jeff Hoffman vs Clayton Richard 7:10 p.m.
Tyler Chatwood vs Luis Perdomo 7:40 p.m.
Jon Gray vs Christian Friedrich 5:40 p.m.
Chad Bettis vs Edwin Jackson 1:40 p.m.
We could see some absolute gems in this series, or we could also see some total slug fest take place. This series more than any other previously offers some very up and down pitchers. The pitching matchups are certainly very interesting with plenty of potential to offer. The series opener is a game that the Padres should be able to take with ease. Rookie, Jeff Hoffman will be the man on the mound for the Colorado Rockies. Hoffman has struggled severely since getting the call to the bigs posting an ERA of 6.60. The young pitcher has also struggled with the long ball giving up four home runs over his first three starts. Clayton Richard and the Padres should have no problem handling Hoffman in this game. Speaking of Clayton Richard well he has just been magnificent since joining the Friars. I mean his ERA over his last three starts is at 0.50. That is just extraordinarily amazing for any pitcher. That would even be amazing for the other lefty named Clayton. Hopefully our Clayton can get it done on Thursday night and start us off with a W in this series.
Friday night’s game will bring forth a matchup with plenty of potential for both teams. Tyler “The Road King” Chatwood will be the man who will start for the Rockies. Chatwood has been one of the best pitchers in the MLB…when he’s pitching away from Coors Field that is. Chatwood’s road numbers are just extraordinary with a road ERA of 1.82 and a record of 6-1. Really makes you wonder what his numbers would be as member of the Giants or even the Padres. I mean if this guy had a solid home ballpark his numbers would be off the charts. I can really see Chatwood and the Rockies giving Luis Perdomo a tough time in this game. Luis Perdomo really has been nothing short of amazing for the Padres this season. The Padres really did strike gold with this Rule-5 draft pick. Despite Perdomo having a high ERA on paper he really has been much better than what that ERA might indicate. Over his last three starts Perdomo has been great going 2-1 with an ERA of 2.45. Perdomo had success against the Rockies earlier this season. In his last outing against them Perdomo would go five and two-thirds and only allow three runs and a walk at Coors Field. I really think this will turn out to be a solid pitching matchup on Friday night.
Saturday night is the game that could potentially be a real slug fest. But I actually think Rockies rookie, Jon Gray will prevent that from happening. Gray hasn’t had the best season posting a 4.57 ERA. The thing is that he has done extremely well against the Padres this season. In three starts against the Friars this season, Gray has posted a 2.25 ERA with 30 strikeouts. Yes your eyes did not deceive you… 30 strikeouts. Gray has done very well in that department this season with 153 K’s to show for it. I expect another solid start from Gray on Saturday night. Former Rockie, Christian Friedrich will surely have a tough time against him and the Rockies stacked lineup. Friedrich has looked off in his last few starts mostly due to fatigue. Friedrich has pitched over his innings limit this season and it surprises me that he will still get the nod on Saturday night. Friedrich has been abysmal in his last three starts posting an ERA of 7.59. I really can’t see the Padres winning this game especially with Jon Gray on the hill for the Rockies. It’ll certainly be a tough task for Friedrich and the Padres lineup.
The finale of this series will bring another matchup with plenty of potential. Chad Bettis will be the man who will cap off this series for the Rockies. Bettis has actually been one of the better pitchers for the Rockies this season. Overall Bettis has gone 12-7 this season with an ERA of 4.88. He has done great in his last three starts going 2-1 with an ERA of 2.14. Bettis is coming off what was perhaps the best start of his career. Bettis would pitch a two-hit complete game shutout against the San Francisco Giants. To top it off the game would actually be at Coors Field, so the Padres should definitely be wary of Bettis in this game. The Padres will have quite an inconsistent factor on the mound in Edwin Jackson. Jackson has shown moments of greatness and total destruction this season. Well he would actually show greatness in his last start against the Boston Red Sox. Jackson would throw seven shutout innings in which he would only allow four hits, two walks and strike out 11 batters. If Jackson can be that type of the pitcher the Padres can easily win this game. This matchup will definitely be interesting with both pitchers coming from amazing starts. Ironically enough it also has the potential to just be a total slug fest between the two teams. We will have to wait and see how this and the other matchups go. I can see the Padres and Rockies splitting this series as the final result. Enjoy this series Padres fans we should be in for quite a good one.
Players To Watch
D.J. LeMahieu
LeMahieu has to be one of the most underrated players in all of baseball. D.J. has actually been quite underrated for several years now. . Maybe it is because he’s a Rockie and because of the Coors Field effect. The guy deserves some kind of credit for the hitter he is. The 2015 all-star is hitting a whopping .342 on the season. I’ll let that sink in for a moment….342! LeMahieu has also had 10 home runs, 56 RBI and a .909 OPS to go along with that monstrous average. LeMahieu has actually struggled this season at Petco Park going just 2-13. I do feel however, that D.J. will be able to turn it around in this series. Make sure to keep an eye on the infielder in this series.
Speaking of underrated players we go to another player that fits that category in Charlie Blackmon. Nolan Arenado and Carlos Gonzalez are of course the main guys who get the recognition in Denver. But Charlie Blackmon is a player who has fallen in their shadows over the past few seasons. Blackmon is a recognizable figure with his distinguishable beard. Well he’s also a pretty darn good baseball player as well. Blackmon has hit .317 this season with 23 home runs, 67 RBI and 16 stolen bases. Blackmon has also done quite decent at Petco Park this season with a .423 OBP and a home run in six games. Make sure to watch this bearded warrior in this series.
Whenever there’s a series at Petco Park, Wil Myers just has to be in the players to watch. Based on recent performances no Padre is really worthy of being in the players to watch for this series. But based on performances at Petco this season and specifically against the Rockies, Myers can definitely be an interesting player. We all know how dangerous Myers can be at Petco Park, .321 Ba, .980 OPS and 15 home runs. I mean that is the man’s fortress, but how about his performances against the Rockies? Myers has absolutely crushed the Rockies throughout this 2016 season. In 12 games this season Myers has hit .319 against them with a whopping OPS of .997 and four home runs as well. Expect for an exciting series from Wil and the Padres in this series. Enjoy Friar Faithful, Go Padres!
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.