Unexpected Padres-Dodgers storylines to keep an eye on for first Petco Park matchup in 2025

In 11 days, the most intense baseball rivalry reignites at Petco Park. Each year, the matchups between the Padres and Dodgers are appointment television because of the unknown of what the next chapter in this relationship will be. In 2022, the Padres famously "slayed the dragon", beating the Dodgers in the NLDS 3-1 before ultimately losing to the Phillies in the NLCS. Last year, the Padres were up 2-1 and looking to make beating LA in the playoffs routine. Unfortunately, that lead faltered, and the Dodgers came back to win that series 3-2 while ultimately winning their first World Series since 2020.

So that leads us to the first matchup of the 2025 season and an assessment of where these teams are currently at. Currently, the Dodgers are in first place in the NL West with a record of 34-22, and the Padres sit directly behind them by two games with a record of 31-23. To the naked eye, the Dodgers' record may raise some eyebrows with all of the offseason additions they made, but
they have been plagued by injury to start the year. With all the injuries to the pitching department, it makes sense that their current record isn't overly dominant, but the fact remains that they still sit in first place.

In May, the Padres have been a turbulent bunch, to say the least. Headlined by a six-game losing streak and struggling mightily at the plate, the electric 7-0 start we saw to start the season has encountered some shaky moments. Being 4-8 in their last 12 isn't an ideal stretch to go on, but the offensive woes have begun to subside, winning four of the last six. However, yesterday's track meet with the Marlins ending in a 10-8 loss illuminated that there are still holes that need to be cleaned up going forward.

What improvements need to be made before the Padres-Dodgers series?

The clear changes that need to be addressed are hitting with RISP and relief pitching. Speaking to the hitting portion, at the beginning of the season it was a roundtable effect of who's going to step up in any given moment. During the recent struggles, it was an anomaly for anybody to come through. When you break it down, it could very well be the ebbs and flows that come and go in a baseball season. But what we don't want to have happen is this becomes commonplace, and suddenly the Padres are a team that struggles offensively. As we sit today, the Padres are in the middle of the MLB in most hitting categories but are still 9th overall in batting average. Which overall is good, but in order to be a top 5 team, those numbers will need to inflate.

Pitching-wise, the Padres are still top 10 in the ERA department (No. 10), but high-leverage situations have ended up costing them games, including an extra innings record of 0-3. The good news is the squad has a week and some change to continue building off of recent momentum before the familiar foe of the Los Angeles Dodgers comes to town. While matchups in June likely won't reflect how the rest of the season turns out, these matchups always carry a playoff-like atmosphere. There is nothing more that the Friar Faithful would love to see than a 3-game sweep against the very team that stripped us of the World Series aspirations that we were so close to we could feel it. Get ready for fireworks in the first chapter of the 2025 series coming June 9th.