Dodgers vs Padres Pick: 2 Top Teams in NL West Meet in San Diego (Jun 9)

• Our Dodgers vs Padres pick looks at 1st place LA visiting 2nd place San Diego for a 3-game showdown
• LA starts righty Dustin May; San Diego sends veteran Nick Pivetta to the hill
• The Dodgers have been staggering lately, winning one and losing one; they also have a seemingly endless stream of pitching injuries
• The Padres won 2 of 3 over the Brewers before the start of the Dodgers series

Dodgers Cling to 1st Place Amid Litany of Pitching Injuries

The Dodgers are the defending World Series champions. However, despite being widely acknowledged as the best and deepest team in MLB, LA is barely holding onto first place in the NL West as it navigates injuries to key starting pitchers Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, Roki Sasaki, and, recently, Tony Gonsolin.

Regardless, LA has either been in 1st place or tied for first place every day since April 28.

Dustin May starts the opener in San Diego.

May returned this season after missing the entire 2024 season with injuries. Overall, he has a 4.09 ERA in 61.2 innings. He’s surrendered 55 hits and 28 earned runs. The righty has generally been reliable except for one terrible start in Chicago against the Cubs in which he gave up 7 earned runs and 10 hits in 5 innings.

Against May, the Padres’ Manny Machado is 7 for 30 with a double and 2 home runs. Fernando Tatis Jr. is 5 for 21 with a double and a home run. Jake Cronenworth is 5 for 17 with a home run. Xander Bogaerts is 2 for 6 with a double.

For LA, Shohei Ohtani is still tearing the ball all over the park while simultaneously preparing for a return to the mound, something that was once a luxury and is now a necessity. He has a 1.021 OPS, 23 homers, and 11 stolen bases in 15 attempts.

Andy Pages is blossoming into a star in his own right with an .821 OPS and 12 homers. He’s also sterling defensively in center field. Freddie Freeman continues to be a megastar with a .345 batting average and a 1.000 OPS. Max Muncy has emerged from his season-long slump.

Padres Send Pivetta to Try and Close the Gap

The Padres have been below .500 since their 14-3 start, but they are still right behind the Dodgers in the NL West. They send Nick Pivetta to the hill for the opener of this key series.

Pivetta was arguably the best pitcher in baseball for the first month of the season. Since then, his performance has evened out closer to his career numbers, but he’s still been quite good. Overall, his ERA is 3.16 in 68.1 innings. He’s allowed 51 hits and 24 earned runs, striking out 76 and walking 19.

Pivetta has extensive experience against several Dodgers. Freeman is 12 for 36 with 3 doubles, a triple, and a home run. Teoscar Hernandez is 4 for 26 with a double and a triple. Michael Conforto is 2 for 11, but both hits were home runs. Ohtani is 4 for 12 with a double and 2 homers.

Machado’s power numbers have been on the rise lately. His OPS is up to .897, and he has 10 homers. Tatis got off to a blazing start, but his OPS is down to .793. He has 13 homers and 12 stolen bases in 14 attempts. Luis Arraez’s usual .300+ batting average is down to .276, and he’s not hitting for power. Bogaerts is hitting .236 with 3 homers.

Dodgers vs Padres Pick: San Diego Takes the 1st Game to Tie LA in the Standings

While it will not be a flat-footed tie because the Dodgers have played one more game than the Padres, it will be an “all intents and purposes” tie in the standings.

May has been serviceable, but tends to give up a few runs. The Dodgers are so short-handed on the mound that they need May to gobble up innings. Pivetta has been very good all season, but for a few hiccups. The Padres will take the first game of the series and join LA at the top of the NL West.