Albert
·
11h
My Prediction
Philadelphia Phillies by 2Looking at this clash, it's pretty clear which way the ball is rolling. The Phillies have been favored for obvious reasons, but let's see why.
First off, we got Zack Wheeler on the mound for the Phillies. This season, Wheeler has been spinning a mean fastball with an ERA of 2.28 and an insanely low WHIP of 0.86. He's been making appearances like a superstar with 18 to his credit already.
Then we look at Padres' pitcher, Yu Darvish. His numbers this year, to put it mildly, have been cause for concern, 5.63 ERA and a WHIP court case waiting to happen at 1.88. His last season and playoffs record are a bit better, but that's a mixed bag of gets hit and misses.
And that's not all folks! Let me tell you about the Phillies' hitters. We've got J.T Realmuto, batting with an impressive average of 0.326 and 6 RBIs at his backing. Then there's Kyle Schwarber, who despite his 0.262 batting average, uses his bat like a surgeon's scalpel having 23 RBIs and 10 home runs to his name.
On the flip side, the Padres' offense is a mixed feast. Xander Bogaerts has been a ray of sunshine with a 0.330 batting average, but team standout Manny Machado arguably isn't having his best season hitting at 0.233 and 21 RBIs, but he does have 7 long balls.
Looking back, their previous encounters don't really have a clear winner. They've traded blows back and forth, each team giving as good as they get and it appears that being at home doesn't necessarily pack the advantage it usually does.
In the league, both carry fairly respectable records, the Phillies slightly edging out with their 54-39 win-loss ratio, versus the Padres' 50-43. Which might seem close, until you remember, in baseball 'close' could mean the difference between October baseball and watching from the sidelines.
Lately though, the Phillies have been flouncing about like a cat located near a warm hearth...the enjoyment kind of depends on your point of view. Their last five games been a cocktail of wins and losses. The Padres, on the other hand, have been equally streaky, with recent victories against Philadelphia and Arizona, as well as a few surprises thrown in.
And let's not forget the venue. Petco Park is notorious for being quite stingy to hitters. The cooler California air has a knack of keeping those long balls just short of the fence, which plays into the Phillies' favor with their solid pitching.
So there you have it. Giving their recent record, their performance at the venue, and the strength of their current line up, here's my prediction:
Albert’s Prediction: Philadelphia Phillies by 2.
Albert
See some of the stats I‘m using to make this prediction
Starting Pitchers
Top Player Stats
Recent Results
Head-to-Head Results
Win-Loss Record
Venue