Padres Slowly Figuring Things Out Heading to L.A.

Padres vs Angels Runline: San Diego Could Light Up Angels

Yes, they just ended their series against the Kansas City Royals with a brutal bullpen collapse that cost them a series sweep. But the San Diego Padres are playing much better baseball of late and can continue their push back into Wild Card contention against the lowly Los Angeles Angels this week.

San Diego has won five of seven while the Angels are losers of five straight and just got swept by Seattle.

  • The Padres are -148 moneyline favorites for Monday’s opener and the Padres vs Angels runline is +114 at -1.5 runs in favor of San Diego. The total is 8 runs.

San Diego’s offense has steadily picked up since the acquisition of Luis Arraez, who is batting .391 since coming over from the Marlins via trade in early May.

He has played a big role in the Padres having baseball’s best MLB team batting average, fifth-best on-base percentage and top-ten OPS and run total.

Uncover Exclusive Picks & Predictions From Our Experts.

However, an issue for San Diego’s MLB live scores is that starters Joe Musgrove and Yu Darvish just went on the MLB injured list, meaning that the Padres’ rotation is a bit in flux at the moment.

Starting pitching was supposed to be a strength yet it has just been so-so thus far.

Not much has gone right for the Angels, who are still without Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon and have one of baseball’s worst pitching staffs.

Their current skid has been an all-around failure with the offense struggling to produce runs and the pitching staff struggling to prevent runs.

Things have been so bad that even former top prospect Reid Detmers was demoted to Triple-A after another rough start in Saturday’s loss. Nothing is going right for Ron Washington’s team.

Padres logo Padres vs Angels Angels logo

Records: San Diego Padres (32-30), Los Angeles Angels (21-38)
Day/Time:

Location: Angel Stadium; Anaheim, CA
Stream: Bally Sports West

Padres Can Beat Up on Los Angeles’ Bullpen

While the Angels’ rotation as a whole has been an issue, their starters for this series — Tyler Anderson, Patrick Sandoval, and Jose Soriano — have mainly been pretty good.

Walks have been an issue for each of them, however, and the Padres’ ability to get on base bodes well if you want to bet on the Padres vs Angels runline in favor of San Diego.

The main problem pitching-wise for the Angels has been the back of the rotation, which the Padres will avoid, and the bullpen. Even 2023 All-Star closer Carlos Estévez has been shaky, blowing a bunch of save opportunities.

The only reliable high-leverage arm Los Angeles has had is Hunter Strickland but guys like Adam Cimber, Matt Moore, and Luis García have all been up-and-down. You don’t get to 17 MLB games under .500 by early June with a bullpen that locks down leads.

As one of MLB’s stats leaders across the board offensively, the Padres will be able to take advantage of the Angels’ shakiness late in games even if Los Angeles’ starters can keep the Angels hanging around.

It’s tough to slow down a lineup led off by Arraez with Fernando Tatís Jr., Manny Machado, Jake Cronenworth, and the red-hot Jurickson Profar to follow.

Key for Angels Is The Long Ball

It hasn’t helped them much in the Los Angeles Angels standings as they sit in last place in the AL West but if there’s anything the Angels do well, it’s hit home runs.

That might be pretty surprising considering who is on the shelf for them. Yet it’s one of the only reasons Los Angeles has been able to be competitive from time to time during another lost season.

Jo Adell (11 homers), Taylor Ward (11), and the injured Trout (10) are all in double-digits on the home run leaderboard while Logan O’Hoppe (seven) and Zach Neto (six) have shown some pop too.

It’s tough for the Angels to produce runs without homers because they don’t get on base very often. The Padres’ staff has generally been susceptible to the long ball, though, so that’s a potential avenue to success for them in this series.

Take San Diego To Win Big

Like any knuckle-baller, Matt Waldron — San Diego’s starter on Monday night — has had his ups and downs in his second MLB season. But, as of late, he has been dominant, allowing two runs or fewer in each of his last four starts.

The key? Lots of swings and misses and only one home run in those 23 innings. That should bode very well for him against the Angels’ home-run-happy offense.

Consider going with the Padres on the Padres vs Angels runline at +115. Waldron matches up nicely against Los Angeles and the Padres are playing good team baseball right now.

The under 8 runs at -102 is also a smart bet with how good Waldron has been, how homer-dependent the Angels are, and how solid the top guys in the Padres’ bullpen have been. You’ll note that their blown lead from Sunday occurred when their more trusted arms were unavailable.

For MLB betting news, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.


Can’t get enough? Here’s more!

Back to top button

pointspreads

WHO WILL WIN?

Submit your vote and view the results
Hey Again

vote all you can

pointspreads

PS-email

PS-email

Robot_subscription sombras
Subscribe to get
get_expert_img
Thank you for subscribing subscribed_icon