8:40 pm
April 3

Diamondbacks @ Padres

Who will WIN this matchup?

Arizona Diamondbacks (0-1)

@ San Diego Padres (1-0)

 

Starting Pitchers:

Smith (ARI): 0-0; 0.00 ERA

Musgrove (SD) 0-0; 0.00 ERA

 

Current odds:

Arizona Diamondbacks: (+190)

San Diego Padres: (-210)

 

As the Pirates were rebuilding last winter and the Padres were looking for starting pitching, Joe Musgrove entertained thoughts of being traded from Pittsburgh to San Diego. Then the Padres traded for Yu Darvish and Blake Snell on back-to-back days in late December.

However, as spring training opened, Musgrove, a native of San Diego County who grew up a Padres fan, had his wish granted. The Pirates traded the 6-foot-5, 28-year-old right-hander to the Padres as part of a three-team deal also involving the New York Mets.

On Saturday night, Musgrove makes his first start as a Padre at Petco Park, where he rooted for the team as a kid. Musgrove will face the Arizona Diamondbacks and be paired against left-hander Caleb Smith as the Padres look for a third straight win to start the season in a four-game series. Not only is Musgrove excited to be with the Padres, but he’s excited about the team the Padres are fielding.

Musgrove was 1-5 in eight starts with the Pirates last season despite a 3.86 ERA. He has a lifetime 29-38 record with a 4.33 ERA in 108 games (83 starts). This will be Musgrove’s third career outing at Petco Park. The first came in the 2016 Futures Game as part of the All-Star Game festivities in San Diego. As a Pirate, Musgrove was 2-0 against the Padres with a 2.03 ERA in two starts.

The 6-foot, 29-year-old Smith has also had good luck pitching against the Padres and at Petco Park. He has a career 2-1 record against the Padres with a 2.01 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP in four starts against the Padres and is 1-1 with a 2.25 ERA in 13 innings over two starts at Petco Park.

Smith was 0-0 with a 2.45 ERA and a 1.00 WHIP for the Diamondbacks last season after they acquired him from Miami in a trade for Starling Marte. He has a 15-18 career record with a 4.55 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP. He has 289 strikeouts in 263 1/3 innings in 58 career appearances (50 starts).

The bats of first baseman Eric Hosmer and second baseman Jake Cronenworth have paced the Padres in the first two games. Hosmer is 6-for-7 to start the season with a double, two homers, six RBIs and three runs. All six of his RBIs have come on two-out hits. Cronenworth is 3-for-5 with a double, a triple, three walks and three runs. He became the first Padre since Kurt Bevacqua in 1985 to reach base in his first six plate appearances to open the season.

•  For Arizona, center fielder Ketel Marte is 6-for-10 in the two games with two doubles, two homers, three RBIs and three runs.

6/10
Confidence
StreakSmarter Pick
San Diego Padres