I ended up going 1-1 yesterday in the two WNBA plays that I put out for the night. Not the end of the world, but I’m glad we have a full slate of baseball games again today for us to choose from. I’m back at it with some really intriguing games tonight. We have Tarik Skubal returning to Detroit for the first time since he was traded, and honestly, I’d probably fade him as it might be pretty emotional. But, I have my eyes set on a different former Tigers hurler as the Padres take on the Rays.
The San Diego Padres have been one of the hotter teams in baseball. They are currently sitting at 72-62 and owner of the final Wild Card spot. This team has more than enough talent, but it seems like they haven’t been able to put it together for a full season. I still maintain that if they can get it together in the postseason, they have a roster dangerous enough to win the World Series. Sure, you can probably say that about a lot of teams, but I think it is more true of the Padres than the majority of teams simply due to the talent on the roster.
New Padres owner Kwanza Jones puts on a performance for the ages at introductory presser
As usual, they went out to add more talent at the trade deadline. One of those additions takes the hill tonight, as Casey Mize comes to the mound. He is 5-7 for the season with a 3.44 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP. Mize has struggled on the road a bit more than in his home stadium this season, but the majority of those numbers came when he was with the Tigers. Since coming to San Diego, he has had two strong starts and two awful ones. Rays hitters have rocked Mize in the past, with 12 hits in 29 at-bats, so this could be another ugly one from him.
The Tampa Bay Rays are one of the best teams in baseball, and currently own the No. 1 spot in the American League. They probably will be the owner of the spot when the playoffs are finalized. If it isn’t them, then it is probably going to be some other American League East team. The Rays would need a complete collapse for them to lose a postseason spot. Based on batting average, this team is the best offensive team in baseball. However, even that success hasn’t always translated to runs. The team is at just 17th in the league.
The pitching staff has been equally strong for the Rays. They have a 3.78 ERA collectively and a 1.15 WHIP. Throwing today for the Rays is one of their aces, Shane McClanahan. For the season, he is just 9-6, but he owns a 3.10 ERA and a 1.12 WHIP. He has been outstanding at home with a 2.32 ERA and holds opponents to just a .189 batting average. He hasn’t allowed more than three earned runs in a start since the middle of July, and in 16 of 22 starts, he has held opponents to two or fewer earned runs. Padres hitters are batting just .197 against him.
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I bet on McClanahan last time he pitched when he took on the Orioles. He went five strong innings and didn’t allow a run. We are going to back him again here, but I’m going just the first five innings. The bullpen let me down last time, and the Orioles won in 10 innings. I’m taking the Rays to win this one, but just through five innings. I think Mize might struggle, and I think we have a good chance to win both on the run line and money line.
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