San Francisco Giants vs Arizona Diamondbacks Analysis<\/h2>\n
The San Francisco Giants host the Arizona Diamondbacks in the first of a three-game weekend series. San Fran swept three straight from the Rockies at home, and Arizona split two games with Houston in Minute Maid Park.<\/p>\n
Merrill Kelly and Alex Cobb are the starters, first pitch is scheduled for 10:15 PM EDT \/ 7:15 PDT in Oracle Park.<\/p>\n
Both teams are out of playoff contention, but this should be a decent and competitive series. The Giants have had a disappointing year after a 107-win campaign in 2021, and the visitors have shown a lot of improvement over their disastrous 51 wins last year.<\/p>\n
Kelly Has Contained Giants This Season<\/h3>\n
Arizona is one of the most promising teams in the National League. The D-Backs’ young talent has finally developed and made their way to the show.<\/p>\n
They have a solid blend of mashers in Daulton Varsho and Christian Walker, plus good hitters for average that include Corbin Carroll.<\/p>\n
The Snakes also have a solid starting rotation anchored by Kelly and Zac Gallen – with Ryne Nelson emerging as the possible 3rd starter for next season. They still need to shore up the bullpen, but if Arizona gets it fixed they will be a dangerous team in 2023.<\/p>\n
Merrill Kelly has pitched well against almost all teams in MLB, and especially the Giants. In five starts versus San Fran this year, he’s put up a sterling 1.53 ERA. For the year, the right-hander has a 3.13 ERA with a 1.11 WHIP and a 13-7 record. Kelly has a 2.95 strikeout-to-walk ratio plus a .221 batting average allowed.<\/p>\n
Giants Gear Towards Next Season<\/h3>\n
Alex Cobb has been the second best starter in the Giants rotation behind Carlos Rodon. The right-hander has posted a 3.67 ERA with a 1.27 WHIP and a 6-7 record on the year.<\/p>\n
He’s more of a power pitcher as he averages 9.0 strikeouts per nine innings, and he has a 3.31 strikeout-to-walk ratio. However, he hasn’t done that well against the D-Backs in 2022, with a 1-2 record and 4.70 ERA in four starts.<\/p>\n
The Giants have struggled this year due to injuries to key players, such as Lamonte Wade Jr. and Mike Yastrzemski – plus a struggling bullpen that started the season well, but didn’t maintain that high-performance level throughout the season.<\/p>\n
Although they’ve had a talented lineup that used to hit fairly well, it’s an aging lineup. And the Giants will have to replace some of these veterans next year to be more competitive in the NL West.<\/p>\n
San Francisco Giants vs Arizona Diamondbacks Prediction<\/h2>\n
In handicapping this matchup, I’ll give a slight edge to Alex Cobb over Merrill Kelly as he’s pitched much better at Oracle Park.<\/p>\n
The Giants bullpen and lineup have been in better current form than Arizona’s, and both lineups saw each of these starters in last Saturday’s game in Arizona. That’s why I’ll take San Fran on the moneyline.<\/p>\n
Prediction: San Francisco Giants Moneyline<\/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 30<\/h3>\n
![\"MLB](\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/mA_QLKuDf7U\/maxresdefault.jpg\")