Padres Series Preview: Snakes Come To Town

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Apr 10, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Paul Goldschmidt (44) singles during the first inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

The San Diego Padres are coming off of a successful and roller coaster week. They finished 4-3 with a series win against the defending champion San Francisco Giants this past weekend. The Padres showed grit and flexed their offensive muscles. 20 hits and 10 runs on a night where you face the World Series MVP and Cy Young candidate, Madison Bumgarner? Are you kidding me? A go-ahead grand slam by a 37 year-old backup catcher? What a series!

Now it is on to the next task: the Arizona Diamondbacks. They are coming off of a series win against the very Los Angeles Dodgers the Padres struggled to put away. In fact, the D-backs have played all their games this season against the two teams the Padres have also faced with a 3-3 record.

They have shown that they can score runs in bunches. They entered the ninth inning of Sunday’s game against L.A. down 7-0. They ended up scoring four runs to make it 7-4, before finally being silenced. These Snakes are feisty.

However, they have also shown that their pitching is young and still developing.

The series will be at Petco Park as the Padres finish up a 7-game home stand. The Friars are 3-1 so far at home and look to continue to build on a record that is above .500. Last season after seven games, the Padres were 2-5.

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Apr 8, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; San Diego Padres starting pitcher Andrew Cashner (34) in the second inning of the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Game 1, Monday 7:10pm

Andrew Cashner (0-1, 9.00 ERA) vs. Rubby De La Rosa (1-0, 10.13 ERA)

This is a battle of starters who are looking to prove they are better than their abysmal first starts of the year. We all know the story of Cashner’s first start. It was historically bad. He served up a platter of carnitas with rice to Adrian Gonzalez thrice (a meal more relevant to the setting of Dodger Stadium). Gonzalez licked his chops and went 4 for 4 with three dingers off of Cashner.

Cashner was visibly upset with himself and the entire Padre team (and fan base) was discouraged that night. However, this is a new day. He faces a young Domincan right-hander who himself struggled his first time out. De La Rosa allowed six earned runs in five innings but miraculously still got the win.

De La Rosa has faced the Friars once before, going six innings while walking four and striking out eight in one start in 2011, when he was with the Dodgers.

Cashner has a much deeper history with Arizona. In eight starts, he is 3-2 with 31 strikeouts and a 3.50 ERA. He also has appeared four other games in relief against the D-backs. Cashner is certainly happy to be back home where holds a 2.07 career ERA.

A matchup to watch out for is Paul Goldschmidt against Cashner. Goldschmidt is a .444 hitter against him with a home run and three RBI.

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Apr 9, 2015; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Padres relief pitcher Odrisamer Despaigne (40) pitches during the third inning as San Francisco Giants right fielder Nori Aoki (23) breaks for second at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

Game 2, Tuesday 7:10pm

Odrisamer Despaigne (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. Jeremy Hellickson (0-1, 6.23 ERA)

Despaigne impressed in his emergency relief appearance when Ian Kennedy went down. He pitched a perfect 4 2/3 innings of relief. Despaigne made four starts against the D-backs last year, posting a 2.96 ERA with 12 strikeouts in 24 innings.

Hellickson came over from the Tampa Bay Rays this offseason. He got knocked around in his first start against the Giants to the tune of nine hits and three earned runs, eventually getting the loss. He has only faced the Padres once and was touched up for six runs in six innings. He has never pitched at Petco Park.

He and Wil Myers were teammates for two seasons in Tampa. The Padre with the most experience against Hellickson is Will Middlebrooks, from his days in Boston; he is 1 for 12 against him. It is also worth noting that Hellickson is considerably worse on the road than at home.

The Diamondback with the most experience against Despaigne is Ender Inciarte, who is 2 for 12 with a double.

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Mar 16, 2015; Peoria, AZ, USA; San Diego Padres starting pitcher Brandon Morrow (21) pitches against the Chicago Cubs at Peoria Sports Complex. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Game 3, Wednesday 6:10pm

Brandon Morrow (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. Chase Anderson (0-0, 5.40 ERA)

The final game of this series will feature the Padres’ new member of the rotation, Morrow. He was brilliant in his first outing as a Padre, pitching seven shutout innings, while striking out seven and only allowing four hits against the Giants. Morrow was acquired as a free agent after pitching five seasons in Toronto.

Morrow has only faced Arizona once and he got tagged for six runs in four innings. He has had much more success at Petco Park though; in 14 innings, he has a 1.26 ERA.

Anderson enters his second season as a regular in the Diamondbacks rotation. Last year he went 9-7 with a 4.01 ERA in 21 starts. He has faced the Padres three times with a 2-1 record and 4.20 ERA. He is yet to pitch at Petco Park.

A match up to look for is Matt Kemp against Anderson. Last season, Kemp had lots of success against the young Texan, going 4 for 7 with a home run and a double.

Perhaps this series is what Jedd Gyorko needs to raise his .143 average. He is 3 for 6 off Anderson and has three career home runs off of the D-backs.

This is the last series before the Padres go on a challenging road trip. A series win here would be huge. My prediction is that the Padres do win this series, two games to one.

How do you guys see this series with the D-Backs going? Predictions?

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