The Philadelphia Phillies take on the San Diego Padres. Check out our MLB odds series for our Phillies Padres prediction and pick.FanDuel 1000
Zach Eflin gets the start for the Phillies, while Blake Snell takes the hill for the Padres.

Zach Eflin has a 4.43 ERA. His 2022 season is a portrait of inconsistency: one bad start, one good start, repeated ad infinitum. Eflin has made 12 starts so far this year, four in each month: April, May and June. In each of those three months, Eflin has posted two solid starts and two bad ones. It's uncanny how this pattern keeps replicating itself. Eflin is a Jekyll-and-Hyde pitcher with six outings the Phillies loved, and six outings the Phils hated.

In the six good starts, Eflin has pitched 35 innings and allowed five runs.

In the six bad starts, Eflin has pitched 28 innings and allowed 29 runs.

That's crazy. Eflin is basically a roulette wheel this year. Good luck predicting which numbers are going to emerge.

Blake Snell has a 5.46 ERA. He is nowhere close to the pitcher who helped the Tampa Bay Rays come very close to winning the 2020 World Series. Snell was injured for several weeks to start the season. He didn't throw his first pitch of the year until May 18. He has allowed at least two runs in all six starts, and he has allowed five runs in two of his last three starts, causing his June ERA to rise above six runs. He has had two really good starts this season — six innings pitched and two runs allowed on separate occasions — but he has not been able to maintain that level of form. The Padres clearly need the elite Blake Snell to emerge this season if they want to overtake the Dodgers in the National League West.

Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Phillies-Padres MLB odds.

MLB Odds: Phillies-Padres Odds

Philadelphia Phillies: +1.5 (-196)

San Diego Padres: -1.5 (+162)

Over: 7.5 (-115)

Under: 7.5 (-105)

*Watch MLB Games LIVE with fuboTV (click for free trial)

Why The Phillies Could Cover the Spread

The Phillies have scored a total of three runs in 35 of their last 36 innings. The 36th inning was their five-run sixth against the Padres on Thursday. A lineup this loaded will not continue to slump for a prolonged period of time. There are too many high-level hitters for Philadelphia to continue to struggle at the plate.  Since Blake Snell has conspicuously struggled for the Padres, this sets up well as a breakout game for the Phillies' bats. They don't even need Zach Eflin to be great if they score seven runs.

Why The Padres Could Cover the Spread

After smothering Philadelphia's hitters on Friday, the Padres know they will need to bring the lumber on Saturday. Given how erratic and undependable Zach Eflin has been for the Phillies this year, the Padres can score five runs. If Blake Snell can provide six innings and give up just three runs, that will still be enough to win and cover the spread.

Final Phillies-Padres Prediction & Pick

Betting on any Zach Eflin game is unwise, given how unpredictable he is. If you insist on making a pick in this game, go over the total, since Blake Snell usually gives up several runs when he makes a start in 2022.

Final Phillies-Padres Prediction & Pick: Over 7.5