Padres Weekend Series Preview vs. Los Angeles Dodgers

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The Padres (62-70) host the Los Angeles Dodgers (76-58) for a 3-game weekend series in San Diego. These two teams met last week at Dodger Stadium and the Dodgers took the series two games to one. The Padres are 4-9 against the Dodgers this year, and they last met in San Diego in June. The Dodgers are still without starting pitchers Josh Beckett, Chad Billingsley, Paul Maholm and Hyun-Jin Ryu.

Juan Uribe is also on the shelf, but he may see time sometime this weekend. When these two teams met last week, the Dodgers won the series based on clutch hitting and a man named Clayton Kershaw. The Padres look to have avoided facing Kershaw this weekend. The Padres are coming off of a series win against the first-place Brewers and now they face their second straight first-place team.

The Dodgers have won 5 of their last 6 including a two-game series sweep in Arizona. The Dodgers have a 4.5 game lead in the National League West on the Giants. They are battling with the Nationals for the best record in the National League, currently the Dodgers are mere percentage points behind.

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Friday’s opener seems to be a good pitching match-up. Padres returned ace Andrew Cashner (2-6, 2.43 ERA) makes his second start since his long stint on the disabled list against the 12-year veteran Dan Haren (11-10, 4.44 ERA). In Cashner’s last start against Arizona, he threw 5 innings and allowed two runs on 7 hits. He has 4 career starts against the Dodgers and is yet to get a win, going 0-2 with a 1.35 ERA. He has only allowed 6 runs in 40 total innings against them in his career. He faced them once this year on opening night, pitching a strong 6 innings, only allowing one run and striking out 5.

Haren won his last start against the Mets by throwing 7 strong innings and only allowing one run. The Padres tagged him for the loss when he pitched 4 innings and allowed 4 runs on June 11th. He has struggled on the road with a 4.84 ERA in 14 starts. With 18 career starts against the Padres, he is 6-5 with a 3.87 ERA. The Dodgers are his second team he has played for in the division (Diamondbacks).

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Ian Kennedy (10-11, 3.75 ERA) looks to even up his record against 2014 All-Star Zack Greinke (13-8, 2.79). Kennedy got the win in his last start, striking out 6 and allowing 3 runs. He got knocked around for a loss in his last start against the Dodgers, allowing 5 runs.Kennedy has 15 starts against the Dodgers in his career, with a 5-6 record and a 4.27 ERA. Greinke, in 6 career starts against the Padres, is 4-0 with a 2.00 ERA. He allowed 9 hits and 3 runs in his last start against the Mets but got the win.

Adrian Gonzalez is always one to watch out for. He is leading the Dodgers with 18 HRs, 35 doubles and 90 RBI. After a rocky start, he has gotten his average up to .275. He has hit well against the Padres since switching sides, hitting .308 in 40 games with 6 HRs. He has 6 hits and 7 RBI in his last 4 games.

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Eric Stults (6-14, 4.63) is looking to bounce back from a rough start when he gets the nod on Sunday. The Dodgers have not listed a starter as of now, as 3 of their regular starters are injured. Stults gave up 4 runs in 5 innings against the Brewers, he also walked 3. He has 7 career starts against the Dodgers, going 2-4 with a 3.70 ERA. Stults has had a strong August, and in this start he will look to finish off the month the way he started it.

Matt Kemp is also another Dodger to watch. He has 16 HRs and 63 RBI with a .342 on-base percentage. Historically, he has hit well at Petco Park. In 50 games, he has a .320 average with 7 HRs and 33 RBI. Another hitter the Padres need to contain, as always, is Yasiel Puig. He is hitting .301 with 13 HRs, 32 doubles and 59 RBI. He also boasts a .388 on-base percentage. Puig has actually struggled hitting at spacious Petco. In 12 games, he is hitting .178 with 3 HRs and 14 strikeouts. The Padres need him to continue that trend to win this series.

Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

Keys To Victory

The Padres are in the middle of a key homestand. They can play spoiler for their rivals as they try to shore up the division. The goal for the Padres now should be finishing with a better record than the last two seasons, when they were 76-86. They are on pace for that as they are only 8 games below .500. The key to a series win is pitching. The Dodgers are throwing two good starters in the first two games, but so are the Padres. Whomever out-pitches whom in those first two games should determine the winner of the series. Hopefully the Padres can rely on Seth Smith, who has been a Dodger-masher this year, hitting .364 with 4 home runs.

Padres Host Rival Dodgers For Weekend

Schedule