Padres vs Marlins MLB Betting + Handicapping Picks
Two teams that are well out of the hunt, but are seemingly going in two separate directions take the field in this one.
SAN: Kip Wells (1-3, 4.00 ERA )v MIA: Carlos Zambrano (5-8, 4.42 ERA)
Date/Time: Friday, July 27, 2012, 7:10 PM ET
Venue: Marlins Park, Miami, FL
Broadcast: FOX Sports (New York), FOX Sports Arizona (Arizona)
Spread: Miami -133
Over/Under: 8.5
The Padres are the team with the worst record in this one, but instead of selling all of their best players to the highest bidder, they are trying to lock them all up instead.
The team recently inked a contract with star outfielder Carlos Quentin for the next three years, and are trying to do the same with Huston Street. Pretty a-typical for a team that’s 16 games below .500.
Meanwhile, the Marlins have just been flat out awful as of late, and have started selling their team off in chunks. First to go was Anibal Sanchez and Omar Infante for some minor leaguers(albeit some solid talent). Next up was Hanley Ramirez and Randy Choate. You have to give this franchise some credit. They absolutely know how to hold a fire sale as they have done it many times in the past.
San Diego will try to build on their recent win by going with Kip Wells in this one. Thejourneyman starter is enjoying his first taste of Major League action since the 2009 season. Through five starts he is actually pitching better than any season since 2003 amazingly. His WHIP is a little higher than you would like, but the runs aren’t scoring at that high of a clip. This probably isn’t sustainable, but in the mean time it makes for a nice story. [dfads params=’groups=10&limit=1&return_javascript=0′]
The Fish will try to salvage what’s left, and counter with Carlos Zambrano who has gotten back to his inconsistent ways after his hot start. Heading into his final two starts of May his ERA sat under 2.00. Since that time it has ballooned, but there are some signs of hope. While it isn’t the shutdown performances he was putting up in the first two months. He is at least gaining some consistency. Allowing three or four runs in each of his last seven outings. At least you know what you’re going to get.
Players to watch for:
Padres – Carlos Quentin .273/9/22/.389
It will be interesting to see what his new contract does to his motivation for the short term. The Padres aren’t playing for anything right now, and now that he is no longer a free agent at year’s end neither is he. He has been better than expected since returning from his injury though.
Marlins – Jose Reyes .273/6/26/.340
He is a healthy 5-9 off of the Padres’ starter. He is seemingly one of the only able bodies left down there on south beach. This cannot be what he had in mind when he locked himself in long term this past off-season.
Matt’s Free Prediction: San Diego- The Marlins just suck that bad.
