Colorado Rockies vs San Diego Padres Analysis<\/h2>\n
The Colorado Rockies host the San Diego Padres in the first of three game series. The Padres are clinging to the second wild card spot, a half game ahead of the Phillies, and three games up on Milwaukee with 12 to play.<\/p>\n
Sean Manaea and Ryan Feltner take the bump, and first pitch is set for 8:40 PM EDT \/ 5:40 PDT in Coors Field.<\/p>\n
Padres Pushing For Playoffs<\/h3>\n
The Padres are in contention for the playoffs this year, but maybe not quite how they thought they would. San Diego traded for Sean Manaea to bolster the starting rotation, but it hasn’t worked out quite as well as they hoped.<\/p>\n
The former Oakland Athletic has posted a 7-9 record with a 5.18 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP for the year. He’s not in good current form, with a 6.82 ERA in his last seven games and six starts, plus a 1.35 WHIP. Not the kind of numbers you want to see coming into a start in Coors Field.<\/p>\n
Back in April, they thought they would get star shortstop Fernando Tatis to return to the lineup around the All-Star break.<\/p>\n
His recovery took longer than normal into early August, then he got suspended for the rest of the regular and postseason for taking a PED.<\/p>\n
The biggest and most pleasant surprise has been the comeback of southpaw starter Blake Snell. After a rough first half of the season, he regained the form when he won the Cy Young award back in 2018.<\/p>\n
Snell, Musgrove and Darvish are a very formidable starting trio going into the playoffs, and one of the best in MLB.<\/p>\n
San Diego is 5-2 in their last seven, taking three of four from the D-Backs and two of three from the Cardinals.<\/p>\n
They’re getting it done mainly with pitching – like they have most of the year – and they’ve played well on the road with a 43-35 record. However, the Friars haven’t played well at Coors Field, losing six of their last seven games.<\/p>\n
Rocky End To Season<\/h3>\n
The Rockies are where they end up almost every year – at or near the bottom of the NL West and out of playoff contention. However, a couple of players have stood out down the stretch of the regular season, outfielder Yonathan Daza and closer Daniel Bard.<\/p>\n
Daza has the speed to cover the biggest outfield in baseball, and he’s hitting .306 on the year in 333 at-bats. With his skillset, he could be a key part of the outfield over the next several years.<\/p>\n
Bard has emerged as a shining star in an otherwise dumpster fire of the Rockies bullpen. He’s appeared in 54 games with 32 saves, a 1.95 ERA plus a 1.01 WHIP.<\/p>\n
That’s really impressive playing half your games in the hitters paradise known as Coors Field. If Tyler Kinley can recover from elbow surgery, the Rockies could have a better than expected bullpen in 2023.<\/p>\n
Ryan Feltner has split time between AAA Alburquerque and the Rockies in 2022. He’s pitched well wtih the Isotopes, posting a 3.83 ERA and 1.30 WHIP – but hasn’t cracked the code at the major league level, with a 3-8 record and 6.05 ERA in 16 starts and 80.1 innings.<\/p>\n
He’s faced the Padres twice on the road with one good start back on June 11th, and one terrible outing on August 2nd.<\/p>\n
He’s not in good current form with an ERA over 6.00 in his last seven games, and facing an inconsistent – but dangerous – Padres lineup. San Diego should have success off Feltner, even though they haven’t hit right-handers that well this season.<\/p>\n
Colorado Rockies vs San Diego Padres Prediction<\/h2>\n
Both starting pitchers are in bad current form, and first pitch temperature will be in the low 70s – so the ball should carry well tonight.<\/p>\n
It looks like a traditional Coors Field game with a lot of hits and runs, and we should see fireworks on the field before the post-game show. That’s why I like the full game over for tonight’s matchup.<\/p>\n
Prediction: Over 11 Total Runs Scored<\/strong><\/p>\n \n \n Join Drew Martin and a rotating panel of guests for First Pitch as we break down the daily baseball slate from a betting perspective. Join WagerTalk’s team of MLB betting experts every weekday at 1:45pm ET \/ 10:45am PT for First Pitch as we discuss the baseball betting slate.<\/p>\nFirst Pitch | MLB Predictions for Friday, September 23<\/h3>\n
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