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Padres: Three things to watch in Dodgers series

By Ryan Sikes |
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - JULY 24: Chris Paddack #59 of the San Diego Padres pitches during the first inning of the Opening Day game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at PETCO Park on July 24, 2020 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - JULY 24: Chris Paddack #59 of the San Diego Padres pitches during the first inning of the Opening Day game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at PETCO Park on July 24, 2020 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
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(Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images)
(Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images) /

The Padres open up a three-game series against the Dodgers at home. Here are three things to watch.

Owners of a 6-4 record and losers of their last two, the Padres welcome in their rivals, the Los Angeles Dodgers, for the biggest series on the young season. The Friars won their first series at home, taking three-of-four against the Diamondbacks.

Arizona is a competitive team, but they are far from being one of the top tier teams like the Dodgers are. Los Angeles has made the playoffs in seven consecutive years, but they’ve failed to capture a World Series title. In an effort to change that, they headlined the offseason, acquiring Mookie Betts from the Boston Red Sox, and extending him to a 12-year deal nearly two weeks ago.

So when the two squads meet on Monday night, here are three things to watch throughout the series.

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Will Mookie Betts wreak havoc on the Padres?

Mookie Betts is another player that Padres pitchers will have to navigate around in that Dodger lineup. He left Sunday’s game with a sore finger and is reportedly day-to-day. It’ll be interesting to see if a.) Betts actually plays b.) how well he performs.

Betts only has a six-game sample size against the Padres in his career, posting a .280/.321/.360 line with two doubles and two RBI. He faced the Friars three times in 2019, going 4-for-12 with two RBI in the Red Sox series win at Petco.

The 27-year-old is batting .289 for the Dodgers, going 2-for-3 on Sunday before exiting. He has two home runs and six RBI, giving the Dodgers a legitimate threat at the top of the order.

Should he play, it will be critical for the Padres to limit Mookie’s production.

(Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty Images)
(Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty Images) /

What impact will Jerad Eickhoff have on the Padres bullpen?

Signed to a minor league deal in December, Jerad Eickhoff has primarily been a starter in his career, with his last full season coming in 2016. He’s been derailed by injuries since then, and he was recently promoted, expected to contribute to the Padres bullpen.

Eickhoff, 30, has made just four appearances from the bullpen, and while the results are obviously limited, he has a 9.00 ERA. So why should we expect him to do anything positive? Eickhoff, again limited, has a 12.9 K/9 as a reliever compared to an 8.0 K/9 in the rotation.

You see this all over the league—starters who overcome injuries and move to the bullpen, finding success in the process. Eickhoff features four pitches, although he rarely uses his sinker.

Opponents hit .333 off his fastball last year but just .184 off his curveball, including 29 strikeouts. His slider produced a 40.1 whiff rate, despite opponents hitting .270 off it in 2019. Let’s see what he can do in one-inning sample sizes.

(Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
(Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /

How will Padres big three in the starting rotation fare against Dodgers hitting?

Fortunately for the Padres, they’ll have their top three pitchers going for them in the Dodgers series. Chris Paddack, Dinelson Lamet, and Garrett Richards are off to promising starts and have lived up to the hype thus far.

But despite a promising rookie season, the Dodgers were Paddack’s kryptonite, with a 5.65 ERA coming in three starts. He fanned 15 batters in 14.1 innings but allowed nine earned runs and four home runs during that span.

Lamet hasn’t had much success against the Dodgers either, having made four starts with a 5.14 ERA. Last year, the big righty made two starts against Los Angeles, fanning 17 batters in ten innings while spinning a 6.30 ERA.

Richards hasn’t faced the Dodgers since 2015, but he’s generally had success against LA in his career, making six appearances – including four starts – striking out 30 batters in 30.1 innings with a 1.78 ERA.

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That was obviously pre-injury, and Richards has looked strong in two starts this season. For the Padres to have a chance at winning this series, they need their top three starters to give the offense a chance.

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