San Diego Padres: Series Preview: Braves vs. Padres

The San Diego Padres have an opportunity to keep it rolling at Petco Park this week as they welcome in the 36-39 Atlanta Braves.

The San Diego Padres have enjoyed three off days over the last two weeks, but must prepare to lock in for a long stretch of games beginning Tuesday night. Welcoming in the Atlanta Braves, the club would like nothing more than to finish the first half of the season strong.

San Diego has also enjoyed their most consistent stretch of baseball over the last two weeks. Coming off of a series victory over the Tigers, the Friars have won three of their last four, giving them a little bit of confidence as well as momentum.

Even though the Braves currently sit in second place in the National League East division, they have also earned a losing record of 36-39. San Diego is capable of winning this series, and will if they pitch soundly and keep their focus.

Tuesday, 7:10 PM: Newcomb vs. Chacin

The series opener Tuesday night features Sean Newcomb, a young starter for Atlanta, and one of San Diego’s most reliable pitchers, Jhoulys Chacin. For the club to have success in this contest they will need to ride Chacin as long as they can, but know that they should have a full bullpen avaliable following an off day.

As for the hitters, the approach against Newcomb should be kept simple. As a young pitcher, there may be a lot to pick up on in not a lot of time. It is in these circumstances that the simplistic idea of “see the ball, hit the ball” should be implemented. Hopefully, the Padres can do this and come away with an early advantage in the series.

Wednesday, 7:10 PM: TBD vs. Perdomo

While the Braves have not yet announced their probable for Wednesday, the Padres will send Luis Perdomo to the mound. It will be the 24-year-old’s responsibility to hold an already struggling Atlanta lineup in check.

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Sometimes, the inconsistency of Atlanta can bring an element of the unknown to the Padres which can work against them. One of the keys in this series in which the Friars are not familiar with their competition other than being swept by them in a four game series earlier is to resist the urge to over-complicate it. The Padres need to play focused and disciplined baseball, and if they do, considering the capabilities of the first two starting pitchers they are sending to the mound, they have a real chance to claim this series before the finale even begins.

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Thursday, 6:10 PM: TBD

While the starters set to take the mound on Thursday have yet to be determined, the Braves and Padres will be playing a series finale in quite possibly a very competitive three game set.

This game will begin an hour earlier than normal, 6:10 PM on the west coast. It will also be college night at Petco Park, a  promotion which will undoubtedly get some younger fans in the gates.

Next: Week #12 power rankings update

It seems like has been an awfully long time since the Padres have played a game. Due to this, as well as the redemption factor in this series for the four game sweep in Atlanta in April, this set won’t be hard for both players and fans to get motivated for. Go Padres!