The Pittsburgh Pirates compete against the San Diego Padres for Game 3 of their series on Wednesday, August 14, at 4:10 PM ET at Petco Park in San Diego, California. The Padres are slight favorites to find success with a moneyline at -135.
The Pirates are behind roughly 10 games and last place in the National League Central division compared to the leading Milwaukee Brewers. They still have time to do some damage and climb back into a playoff race.
Mitch Keller (10-6) will be on the mound to start this game. He is averaging a 3.56 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP in 136.1 innings pitched. Their team ERA is nearly 3.94, so their relief should be solid.
The offense has been shaky at times, but their defense is arguably why they continue losing games. Bryan Reynolds leads them with home runs, roughly a .284 batting average, and RBIs. Their offense will need to keep its foot on the gas if it wants to succeed.
The Pirates are getting about .235 at the plate and are giving up close to .249 to their opponents. This cannot continue to happen if they want to make a run at the playoffs.
The Padres are in a challenging situation here, where they need to win games badly to stay in the playoff race. They are currently third in the NL West by roughly four games. Each battle will be vital to them.
They will start Martin Perez (2-5) on the mound. His stats are disappointing since he has an ERA of 4.78 and a 1.51 WHIP. The relief pitching staff will be key here, especially since they average nearly 4.00 for their ERA.
The offense has blossomed well against the Pirates, as they have scored over six runs in several games. Jurickson Profar might be the glue to hold it together, as he leads them with home runs and RBIs and puts up roughly a .297 batting average.
The Padres are getting close to .265 at the plate but allow their opponents to get nearly .240. While there is a slight separation between the two averages, the gap is not wide enough to rule them completely for victory.
MyBookie gives you appealing MLB betting odds for the Pittsburgh Pirates vs. San Diego Padres showdown. Currently, the Padres are favored to win, with market insights suggesting they have a 54.2 percent chance of success.
The Pirates must win or be consistently able to land wins for the rest of the season to make the playoffs. As for the Padres, they are strong on both sides of the plate and should be able to find success here.
