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The San Diego Padres pulled off a stunning upset over the New York Mets in the National League Wild Card series. Many expected the Mets to win given they were leading the NL East most of the season, but they lost the division to the Atlanta Braves, and are now out of the playoffs. The Padres will take on the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS, so we decided to take a look at our Padres bold predictions for the upcoming series.
It's clear that San Diego has a ton of talent on their roster, but for much of the 2022 season, it struggled to lead to consistent victories. For that reason, many expected the Mets, who were winning all season long, to throttle them in the Wild Card round. San Diego's talent came to life when the lights were brightest, and they will need more of the same against the Dodgers.
The Dodgers were the best team in baseball yet again this season, although that hasn't always resulted in postseason success for them. However, L.A. has had San Diego's number all season long, and will be heavy favorites to eliminate their division rival. The Padres have the talent to make this series competitive, though, so let's take a look at our bold predictions and see what should be expected from San Diego in this matchup.
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3. Padres 3B Manny Machado will have 4 RBIs in Game 2 win
Game 1 will be a bit of a mismatch for San Diego, as they will be forced to roll out Mike Clevinger, their fourth starter, against the Dodgers Cy Young candidate, Julio Urias. The Dodgers will easily win Game 1, setting the stage for a pivotal Game 2, which will see Yu Darvish go up against Clayton Kershaw.
This game will be much more competitive, and it will end up being won by San Diego's best hitter this season in Manny Machado. Machado put together an MVP caliber season for the Padres this season, (.298 BA, 32 HR, 102 RBI, .898 OPS) and he played a big role in helping the Padres move on past the Mets, hitting a home run in Game 1, and driving in at least one run in each game.
Machado will be silenced like the rest of the Padres lineup in Game 1, but he will come alive in Game 2, and lead San Diego to victory. He will have a solo home run in the third inning against Kershaw, a two-run double in the fifth inning, and an RBI single in the seventh inning to keep San Diego in front, and help them even this series at one heading back to Petco Park.
2. Padres SP Joe Musgrove will struggle mightily in Game 3
Joe Musgrove has been the Padres best pitcher this season, and he came through in a do-or-die contest for San Diego in Game 3. He went seven innings, giving up just one hit and one walk, while striking out five, to completely shut down New York. Without him, the Padres probably wouldn't have made it past the Mets.
San Diego now has to figure out how to play their rotation, as Musgrove and Blake Snell will both be good to pitch on full rest heading into Game 3. The Padres will turn to Musgrove over Snell in hopes he can replicate his performance against New York, and leave Snell for the potential clincher.
Instead, Musgrove falters, who doesn't last long before manager Bob Melvin hands things over to the bullpen. He has a fairly quick trigger on Musgrove, who only goes 1.2 innings while giving up four runs, but against the Dodgers, there's little room for error, and Musgrove's poor start sets the Padres back pretty far in this one.
1. The Padres lose to the Dodgers in four games
The Padres took a gamble with Musgrove in Game 3, and it will ultimately play a big role in them getting eliminated from the playoffs the next day in Game 4. Snell will struggle in his start, and while the Padres make a push to rally and pull off a comeback, it falls short in the end.
Not many folks gave San Diego a chance to beat New York (myself included) and it feels like a similar trend is taking place for this series against the Dodgers. The Padres have the talent to win, but they haven't been nearly consistent enough to make anyone believe that they have a shot at beating a high-powered Dodgers team.
San Diego will prevent this series from getting out of hand, but it won't be surprising when they get bounced in four games. The Padres will regroup this offseason and hope to get more consistent production from everyone next season, and if they can, then they will be able to make a serious charge at the Dodgers atop the NL West.
