Four teams will have the chance to sweep on Day 2 of the MLB playoffs.
The pregame narrative: The San Diego Padres can advance today and I think they have a great opportunity to do so. In the meantime, I’m fading offence in Game 2 of a pivotal American League showdown.
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Best bet: Padres moneyline (-120)
San Diego went into the all-star break with a 50-49 record. If you’re just tuning in, that may be hard to believe seeing the team’s final record of 93-69 but the Padres made a serious run.
And it continued into the playoffs. Yesterday, they shut out the Atlanta Braves, 4-0, behind strong pitching and timely hitting.
Starter Michael King was able to go seven innings, leaving a rested bullpen for Game 2 if needed.
Today, the Padres turn to Joe Musgrave who’s been remarkable since returning from injury in August. In nine starts, he has a 2.15 ERA and is holding opponents to a .195 batting average.
Additionally, Musgrove owns the Braves offence historically. In a hefty 107 plate appearances, Atlanta’s lineup has 22 hits with 25 strikeouts and 10 walks.
Max Fried takes the mound for the Braves but he hasn’t been as good against his opposition in the past.
San Diego’s current offence is hitting .284 off Fried in 88 at-bats. In one earlier start this season, the lefty gave up nine hits, three walks and three earned runs in 4.1 innings pitched.
Key stat: The Padres are 9-4 over their last 13 home games.
Quick pick
Royals/Orioles under 7.5 runs (-120): A couple of strong pitchers get the start here and I expect both to be efficient.
Let’s start with Seth Lugo. He was very good for the Royals last month, posting a 2.28 ERA across five starts. He completed seven innings in three of those outings and finished with a season-long ERA of 3.08.
Yesterday’s game finished 1-0 with Baltimore’s bats having no success against Cole Ragans. Lugo will look to follow suit and should be beaming with confidence coming in.
Zach Eflin gets the call for the Orioles and he’s been consistently good for a long portion of the season. He hasn’t allowed more than three runs in a game since July 19.
In the 11 starts since Eflin has recorded a 2.56 ERA with 51 Ks and just 11 walks. Expect these two starters to be in top form.
Picks made at 11:11 a.m. ET on 10/02/2024.
Spencer is a true sports junkie. A graduate of the Sports Journalism program at Centennial College, he first joined NorthStar Gaming as an intern in 2023. He is now a contributing writer. He loves finding the edge to bet on in all sports but has a deep passion for the NBA and UFC. Previous stops include Sportsnet.