LA DODGERS @ SAN DIEGO (SD -150, 7.5)
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DODGERS @ PADRES 10/8/24
Not much has stopped the San Diego Padres from returning to the comforts of home, regardless of what has been thrown at them from the mound or the stands. On Sunday, the Padres tied their National League Division Series with the Dodgers at one game each. They also put momentum firmly on their side by walking into a must-win situation, hitting six home runs, and growing closer as a team in the face of an antagonistic fan base.
After winning 10-2 at Los Angeles on Sunday, the Padres will play Game 3 of the best-of-five series at home on Tuesday. After Dodgers fans threw baseballs and drink cans at Padres outfielders Jurickson Profar and Fernando Tatis Jr. in the seventh inning on Sunday, San Diego took control of the Dodgers' offense and stepped up at the plate.
Before the eighth inning, Padres third baseman Manny Machado was the calm voice, reminding his teammates to focus their energy and rage on the game. From there, San Diego dominated, scoring six runs, including four home runs, in the last two innings.
Padres starting pitcher Yu Darvish gave up just one run in seven innings. Tatis hit two home runs for the winners. With the next two games of the series in their own ballpark, Padres fans will now have an opportunity to up the ante. In 2022, San Diego lost Game 1 of the NLDS to the Dodgers but won the next three games, allowing them to go to the NL Championship Series without having to leave their home field.
After striking out 12 in seven scoreless innings in the Padres' 4-0 victory over the Atlanta Braves in Game 1 of the wild-card round last Tuesday, right-hander Michael King (1-0, 0.00 ERA) will take the mound for Game 3. King has a 2.82 ERA in five career appearances (22.1 innings) against Los Angeles and was 2-0 with a 3.10 ERA in four appearances (three starts) against the Dodgers this season.
The Dodgers will start right-hander Walker Buehler (0-0, 0.00), who has playoff pitching experience but has had a difficult season after missing most of two seasons due to Tommy John surgery for the second time in his career.
In 16 starts this season, Buehler was 1-6 with a 5.38 ERA, but he pitched well on September 26 when he allowed just one run to the Padres in five innings. Buehler wasn’t involved in the decision, but Los Angeles won 7-2 and secured its 11th NL West title in 12 seasons.
The Dodgers knew they would need to rely on their offense because their pitching situation was precarious at best, but in Game 2, the renowned top three spots in the order went 0-for-12. In the first inning, Profar robbed Mookie Betts of a home run in left, and Shohei Ohtani went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts. Freddie Freeman, the third baseman, went 0-for-2 before leaving the game after the fifth inning due to ongoing pain in his right ankle from a late-season injury. In Freeman's place, Enrique Hernandez went 0-for-2.
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Coach Rick Bowe Free Pick
FREE PICK: MICHAEL KING UNDER 2.5 EARNED RUNS
King has allowed 2 earned runs or fewer in each of his last 9 starts. He hasn’t allowed an earned run in his last 15 innings pitched and he gave up 2 or fewer earned runs in 25 of his 33 starts this season. Against LA this season, King allowed a .195 batting average and had a solid 3.10 ERA. Most recently, King pitched 5 scoreless innings against the Dodgers on Sept. 24. In the month of September, King had a 1.57 ERA in four starts and he pitched 7 scoreless innings against the Braves in the Wild Card Series.