Baseball Betting: Nationals vs Padres Series Preview
Soto, Bell Looking to Put it on Old Team, Padres Gripping for Wins
Nationals vs Padres Series Preview: The San Diego Padres’ odds to win the World Series went down since the trade that saw Juan Soto and Josh Bell make their way into a Padres uniform. San Diego is listed at 16-1, the fourth choice in the MLB National League, but so far the moves have yet to equate to winning despite Soto hitting .320 in 14 games. Since August 3rd, the Padres are just 5-7 and have scored less than three runs eight times, and have lost 5.5 games in the N.L. West standings.
Washington Nationals (39-80) at San Diego Padres (66-54)
- Location: Petco park, San Diego, California
- Day/Time:
- Television: MASN, BSSD
Sanchez Hopes to Continue Success Against Padres
It’s hard to find bright spots for a Nationals team who own the worst record in baseball, but let’s try to find a few reasons why our Nationals vs Padres series preview may sway you into thinking about betting them tonight. Starting for the Nationals is Anibal Sanchez who has thrown just 30 innings in six starts in 2022.
Since returning from the minor leagues, Sanchez has found little success with a 0-5 record and a 7.20 era. However, the former 14-game winner has helped the Nationals beat the Padres this MLB season, even though he didn’t factor in the decision.
Last Saturday, Sanchez pitched five innings against the Friars, allowing just three runs on six hits in the Nationals’ 4-3 win. The former ERA champion has faced San Diego seven times in his career with just a 1-2 record, but his ERA of 2.16 in those starts is more than enough to keep the Nationals in this one if duplicated.
Padres Lineup to Find Consistency Against Nats
You would be hard pressed to find anyone that would have predicted the Padres lineup would struggle with the addition of MLB players Soto and Bell, but chemistry isn’t something you can acquire as we look closer at the Padres in our Nationals vs Padres series preview.
Sportsbooks scrambled to lower the Friar’s World Series odds at the deadline, but after a 3-3 road trip against Miami and Washington, it’s hard to imagine that the Padres will find themselves in the Fall Classic. San Diego is more focused on holding on to a wild card spot that once looked like a sure bet.
The Padres play 18 of their next 27 at home but those MLB games will be against the Dodgers, Cleveland, and St. Louis. That makes this series against Washington one San Diego can’t overlook. Yu Darvish toes the rubber for San Diego in what is a revenge spot for the five-time all-star after taking the loss against Washington, Saturday. San Diego is 12-10 in Darvish’s 22 starts in 2022.
Padres In Opener, Not at Inflated Price
To conclude our Nationals vs Padres series preview, it’s obvious that San Diego is the better team and the right side, but we’re not going to lay -400. Let’s cut that down some by betting the Padres on the run-line at -177.
That’s still too high on most nights but this isn’t going to be a series that San Diego will overlook despite owning a 25.5-game lead over the Washington Nationals standings.
You can’t overlook the Nationals’ 32-66 road mark over their last 98 on the road or their 19-57 mark against teams with a winning record. The Padres have won seven straight games against right-handed starters and 13 of 18 against teams playing .400 ball or less. Expect the Padres to justify their 6-1 World Series odds in this series.
