Dominant Pitching Headlines Padres And Diamondbacks

Padres vs. Diamondbacks, 9:40 ET

Being a sports bettor is very interesting. I have a built-in aggression toward the Mets. I've admitted I don't like their team, and I don't think they are as good as many think. I was certainly wrong last year. The thing is, sports betting made me consider how to critically think and evaluate things while recognizing my own bias against things. Yesterday, I grabbed my second straight win on the Mets though. Today, I'm looking at two teams I like this year and now need to evaluate them.

The Padres are under .500, but guess what? They just got their boy Fernando Tatis Jr. back in yesterday's game. It was not a pretty game from him though as he went 0-for-5 with two strikeouts. I'm not sure what I expected out of him, but once his timing gets back, the Padres should turn it all around. Outside of Xander Bogaerts, the team is underperforming - at least hitters. Still, imagine having to start a game against Tatis, Juan Soto, and Manny Machado. And, if you don't get through those three without damage, Bogaets lies waiting for you. That's got to be brutal, even if three of the four are not in the best form right now. One other reason for encouragement is Seth Lugo, the journeyman reliever/starter. Lugo is pitching very well this season but has allowed 17 hits over 16.2 innings and another 5 walks. Part of me wonders how much of this is luck versus how well he actually is pitching.

If you read my articles last year, you know how much I liked Zac Gallen and we were able to capitalize on him during his long scoreless inning streak. One great stretch does not make a great year, but Gallen was very good overall last season. He's been pretty solid to this point as well. He has a 2-1 record and a 3.33 ERA over his four starts. His first start, against the Dodgers was forgettable. Since then he has allowed four earned runs over 19.2 innings. All four of those runs were allowed to the Padres. He is in the midst of another 13.2 innings of scoreless baseball. Can he continue it against San Diego here or will he get hit once again? He didn't run into issues in the first game until the fifth and sixth inning.

Both pitchers in this one are very pitching very well. I am waiting for Lugo's wheels to fall off. I don't think he just randomly figured out how to be a dominant pitcher, however, I think he can keep it going for another start. If I needed to pick a side, I'd take the Diamondbacks. I think the total is too high though. I'm taking under 9.5 in this one at -120.

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