A year ago, many baseball pundits predicted the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres would be involved in a season-long slugfest atop the NL West standings. It never materialized, as San Diego fell apart over the final two months while Los Angeles battled it out with the Giants to the bitter end.
Well, if the first two weeks of the 2022 campaign are any indication, the tense showdown for divisional supremacy many expected last year may have finally arrived. Padres vs Dodgers odds are on the board for the first time Friday in the first of 19 season meetings.
Will red-hot Los Angeles resume its decade-plus mastery of San Diego with a victory Friday night at Petco Park? Or will the equally red-hot Padres send an early-season message that they’re not afraid of the NL West’s big, bad bully?
Props.com breaks down Dodgers vs Padres odds and ends in what is Friday’s top National League matchup.
Odds via WynnBet and updated as of 11:35 a.m. ET on April 22.
Los Angeles Dodgers (9-3) Vs San Diego Padres (9-5)
First Pitch/TV: 9:40 p.m. ET/MLB.TV
Moneyline: Dodgers -152/Padres +142
Run Line: Dodgers -1.5 (+100)/Padres +1.5 (-120)
Total: 8 (Over -115/Under -105)
Pitching matchup: LHP Julio Urias (0-1, 3.86 ERA, 1.43 WHIP) Vs Nick Martinez (0-1, 4.50 ERA, 1.70)
Season series: First meeting. Los Angeles is 12-7 against the Padres in 2021, winning the final nine games in a row by a combined margin of 51-22.
Did you know: San Diego hasn’t won a season series from the Dodgers since taking 10 of 18 meetings in 2010. In the 11 seasons since, Los Angeles has won 133 of 201 head-to-head battles (66.2%).
About the Dodgers
Hits & Misses: Los Angeles heads south to San Diego on an 8-1 roll, the lone blemish being Tuesday’s 3-1 home loss to the Braves. Even including that setback, the Dodgers outscored their opponents (Milwaukee, Cincinnati and Atlanta) 53-14 during the nine-game stretch. The pitching staff yielded two runs or fewer in six of those contests. All nine of L.A.’s victories have been by multiple runs, and the team’s pitching staff ranks first in MLB in team ERA (2.38), hits allowed (75), runs and earned runs allowed (32 and 28), walks allowed (27) and WHIP (0.96). The Dodgers also rate in the top five in the following categories: runs scored (65, T-5th); triples (4, T-3rd); walks (50, T-4th); and opponents’ batting average (.194, 2nd).
On the Mound: Urias, who was baseball’s only 20-game winner in 2021, got shelled in his first start in Colorado on April 10, allowing six runs (three earned) in two innings of a 9-4 loss. He rebounded with a brilliant outing against the Reds at home Saturday, scattering one hit and one walk over five scoreless innings while notching five strikeouts. The Dodgers won 5-2, though the Mexican southpaw didn’t factor in the decision. Urias is 3-1 with a 2.63 ERA in 11 career games (six starts) against the Padres, including 1-1 with a 3.95 ERA in five appearances (three starts) at Petco Park.
Key injuries: INF/OF Gavin Lux (back) has missed the last two games and is questionable for Friday. RP Blake Treinen (arm) also was sidelined the last two contests and is questionable.
About the Padres
Hits & Misses: San Diego is 5-2 on its current 10-game homestand, winning the last four games in a row over the Braves and Reds by a combined tally of 18-4. The Padres are essentially tied with Colorado for second place in the NL West, one game behind Los Angeles. San Diego’s early-season success can mostly be attributed to a pitching staff that has surrendered two runs or fewer in nine of the last 13 games. Friars hurlers rank second in MLB in strikeouts (132), fourth in WHIP (1.07), tied for sixth in runs allowed (43) and ninth in team ERA (3.15). 3B Manny Machado is off to a hot start at the plate, batting .358 with three homers, 10 RBI and a 1.056 OPS.
On the Mound: Martinez signed with the Padres in the offseason after spending four seasons pitching in Japan. In his Padres debut April 11 in San Francisco, the 31-year-old right-hander held the Giants to one run on five hits and one walk with six strikeouts in five innings. He got a no-decision in San Diego’s 4-2 victory. Then on Saturday at home against the Braves, Martinez allowed four runs on seven hits (three homers) and four walks in five innings, losing 5-2. Martinez spent his first four big-league seasons with Texas (2014-2017), going 17-30 with a 4.77 ERA in 88 games (68 starts).
Injuries: Star SS Fernando Tatis Jr. (broken wrist) is out until at least mid-June. Several Padres pitchers also are on the shelf, including SPs Mike Clevinger (knee) and Blake Snell (groin), and RPs Drew Pomeranz (forearm) and Austin Adams (forearm).
Notable Trends
- LA is 91-43 in its last 134 games vs. NL West foes
- SD is in slumps of 15-38 as an underdog, 3-10 as a home underdog, 0-6 after a day off and 11-25 vs. NL West rivals
- Over is 4-1 in LA’s last five overall
- Under is 4-1-1 in LA’s last six road games
- Under is 5-1 in SD’s last six overall
- LA is 4-1 in Urias’ last five starts vs. SD
- LA is 15-6 in its last 21 games at Petco Park
Los Angeles Dodgers Vs San Diego Padres Odds and Action
UPDATE 8:20 P.M. ET FRIDAY: The Dodgers opened -170 at WynnBet, with the Padres +155 on the take-back. The moneyline has trended San Diego’s direction all day and now sits at Dodgers -152/Padres +142 less than 90 minutes before first pitch. Contrary to that line move, 79% of tickets and 67% of the cash is on Los Angeles. The total opened at 8 and now sits at 8/Over -115, with 66% of all wagers and 56% of the money on the Over.
UPDATE 11:30 A.M. ET FRIDAY: Urias and the Dodgers were installed as a beefy -185 road chalk Thursday night at BetMGM. However, the moneyline plummeted to Dodgers -160/Padres +135 at 8 a.m. ET. Less than an hour later, it plunged again to Dodgers -155/Padres +125. The total opened at 8.5/Under -115 Thursday evening, but this morning BetMGM adjusted it to 8/Under -115.