Padres Series Preview: Padres Start Three-Game Series Against Mets
The San Diego Padres just finished up a tough series against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Their next series won’t get any easier as they will take on the New York Mets. The series will be a three game set that will be played at Citi Field.
The Padres are currently in pretty bad form they have lost their last two series. It has definitely been a rough season for the Padres, but it could definitely be worse. I mean we could be the Mets. The Padres bad season was foreseen but the Mets have heavily disappointed their fans.
They were in the World Series last year so there were obviously big expectations for the ball club. Well the Mets now find themselves at 57-57 and they don’t seem to be close to a playoff spot. The Mets are currently in horrendous form. They have not won a single series in their last five. Their last series win would come on July 22-24 against the Miami Marlins.
The Mets are definitely in serious series trouble coming into this one. In fact they were just swept in a three game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. If the Dbacks can do that there is no reason why the Padres cannot take this series. The Mets certainly still have bags of talent so it won’t be easy. But at the moment it seems that any MLB team can give them a run for their money. If everything does work out, we could be seeing a solid series from the Friars.
Pitching Matchups
Paul Clemens vs Logan Verrett 4:10 p.m.
Jarred Cosart vs Jacob deGrom 4:10 p.m.
Clayton Richard vs Steven Matz 10:10 a.m.
These pitching matchups definitely seem to favor the Mets on paper. But really if you start to analyze the state of the Mets, you can see that they’re closer than you might think. The first game of the series is definitely one that the Padres can win. The Padres will have Paul Clemens on the mound. Clemens has looked fairly decent in his last few starts but he hasn’t thrown many innings and is yet to win a game. He has also only struck out seven batters in his last three starts. Clemens definitely doesn’t seem quite comfortable being a starter. But we will have to see what he can do if he is given a full chance. The Mets will have quite a shaky starter going for them in Logan Verrett. Verrett has not had a good season with an ERA of 4.66. He has looked atrocious in last couple of starts with an ERA over nine. The Padres should be able to capitalize on the Mets and Verrett’s bad form in game one of the series.
The second game of the series is one that definitely favors the Mets. The Padres will give Jarred Cosart the nod against the Mets. Cosart has actually already faced the Mets this season as a member of the Miami Marlins. He would not look great as he would only go four and two-thirds and allow three runs to score. Cosart definitely looks to have some potential but we will have to see if he can develop it. Cosart and the Padres will have a very tough task in Jacob deGrom. deGrom has quietly been one of the better pitchers in baseball. His ERA on the season is very nice at 2.35. Even more impressive is his ERA in his last three starts which is at 0.44. deGrom should be able to deGrominate in-game two of the series and give the Mets the W.
The last game of the series will bring forth another game which the Padres can definitely win. The Padres will bring back some nostalgia as they will have Clayton Richard on the mound. Richard of course spent several seasons with the Padres and fared quite well with them. The Lefty’s best season had to be in 2010 where he would go 14-9 with an ERA of 3.75. After journeying through the minors and bullpens Richard now finds himself as a starter with the Padres once again. I predict that he will find success this Sunday Morning against the Mets. Richard could potentially get a tough task in Steven Matz. After starting off great Matz has now struggled a bit and has been quite unlucky. In fact Matz has only won one game in the last 11 weeks. A lot of the times Matz has pitched well but his bullpen has let him down. In his last start Matz would do great against the Dbacks. He would even pitch a career-high 120 pitches. Unfortunately his bullpen would let him down and he would get a no decision. Let’s hope that Matz’s bad luck can continue for the Padres sake. I feel like Clayton Richard and the Padres will find a way to win this game. Hopefully everything can work out and the Padres will win this game.
Players To Watch
Well with the Mets best player out because of injury, Yoenis Cespedes, we turn to their second best player, Neil Walker. Walker has quietly been having an amazing 2016 season. He has turned out to be quite a decent replacement for Daniel Murphy. Walker doesn’t quite have the numbers Murphy has but he definitely having a great year. The former Pirate has a very nice BA of .275 on the season with 20 bombs and 51 RBI. Walker had always been a decent player in the MLB but he hadn’t quite made it to the next level. Well with the type of season he is having he is close to that “next level”. Walker is definitely one to watch out for in this series and in years to come.
It would be an insult not to include Freddy in the players to watch for this series after what he did last series. Freddy “The Flash” would steal home for the second time this month. Jankowski really has been an amazing player for the Padres this season. Jankowski is showing signs of becoming a prolific base stealer in the MLB. As well as becoming an elite lead off hitter as well. Jankowski wasn’t even a regular starter until all the trades. Well he already has 25 stolen bases this season. Just imagine if he had been a starter since the beginning of the year. Travis Jankowski is that prolific base stealer that the MLB has not seen in quite some time. It is just a treat to be able to see what he is doing on a daily bases on the bases.
Solarte really has been one of the more under the radar guys for the Padres this season. Solarte really is having an outstanding season thus far. He is batting .292 with 11 home runs and 48 RBI. His OPS is also quite solid at .847. With some of the hype and questions some of the newer players bring we sometimes forget about our trusted Yangervis Solarte. Just this past week he has had two performances which were really nice. Yangy would go 2-3 with a walk and a run in the first game in the Pirates series. Then in the second game of the Phillies series he would go 3-4 with three RBI. Solarte has definitely been one of the most consistent performers for the Padres this season. Let’s hope that he and the Friars can perform in this series. 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.