Padres vs. Giants prediction odds pick how to watch 6/21/2023

The San Diego Padres (35-38) visit the San Francisco Giants (41-32) for the third of their four-game series. First pitch commences Wednesday at 9:45 p.m. ET. San Francisco took the first two games of this series to even the season series at 2-2. Below we continue our MLB odds series with a Padres-Giants prediction, pick, and how to watch.

Here are the Padres-Giants MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel. 

MLB Odds: Padres-Giants Odds

San Diego Padres: -1.5 (+136)

San Francisco Giants: +1.5 (-164)

Over: 8 (-115)

Under: 8 (-105)

How To Watch Padres vs. Giants

TV: MLB Network, Bally Sports, NBCS Bay Area

Stream: MLB.tv

Time: 9:45 p.m. ET/ 6:45 p.m. PT

*Find out how to watch Padres-Giants LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*

Why The Padres Could Cover The Spread

The Padres looked to be turning a corner prior to this series as they had won 10 of their first 16 and averaged 4.8 runs per game along the way. They hadn’t lost a series since the end of May and were coming off a critical series win against the Rays. They had climbed to just a single game below .500 and carried tons of momentum into San Francisco.

Well, two games later, the Padres find themselves facing similar question marks as before their hot stretch. The Giants outscored the Padres 11-7 through the first two games as they stifled San Diego’s potent lineup. That said, San Diego trots out their go-to starter, Yu Darvish, onto the bump tonight. With Darvish on the bump and the team hungry to salvage the series, San Diego could be in line for a bounce-back effort tonight as they attempt to cover as 1.5-run favorites.

Veteran righty Yu Darvish (5-5) makes his 14th start of the season for the Padres tonight. The 36-year-old is in the midst of arguably the worst season of his career as his 4.74 ERA and 1.20 WHIP are the highest since 2014. Darvish’s strikeouts are up compared to last year although his walks are as well. He’s done a moderate job limiting hard contact – sitting in the 58th percentile in Hard Hit Rate. However, he also sits in the 24th percentile in Barrel rate. That said, Darvish is bound for some positive regression considering his expected ERA sits down at 3.73. He is coming off a pair of rough starts – allowing 10 combined runs in 10.1 innings against the Rays and Rockies. Having given up at least four runs in three of his last four outings, Darvish is difficult to trust tonight despite his stellar reputation.

If the Padres are going to cover as road favorites tonight, Fernando Tatis is going to play a huge part in it. Despite missing the first month of the year due to a suspension, Tatis has come surging back and now leads the tea in batting average, home runs, and stolen bases. He’s been a man possessed in June – batting .400 while collecting 57 total bases in 18 games.

Why The Giants Could Cover The Spread

The Giants just keep on winning. With their win last night, San Francisco has won nine straight games and 13 of 17 in June. After starting the season slowly, the Giants have gone 30-16 since May 1st. They bounced back from dropping both earlier games with their division rivals to even the series at two games a piece. With their lineup clicking and their pitching staff rolling, the Giants stand a strong chance of covering as 1.5-run, home underdogs against a team they just beat twice. Still, San Diego trots out arguably their top starter and lineup tonight – putting a ton of pressure on their rookie opener a bullpen to perform.

Opener Ryan Walker (2-0) makes his second start and 13th appearance of the season for the Giants tonight. Walker had looked dominant prior to Monday’s start against the Padres. Although they eventually won, Walker allowed three hits, a walk, and a run in just 1.2 innings of work. Still, his 1.65 ERA and 1.16 WHIP suggest he should do his job much better tonight. Either Sean Manaea or Sean Hjelle will likely serve as the bulk reliever behind him. Neither are ideal options considering Manaea owns a 5.84 ERA while Hjelle allowed 15 runs in just 13.1 innings of work. It’s worth keeping in mind that the Padres perform significantly worse against righties (.690 OPS) compared to lefties (.768 OPS). That gives both Walker and Hjelle an advantage given their handiness.

Final Padres-Giants Prediction & Pick

Despite winning each of the first two games of the series, the Giants still can’t garner any respect from the sports books. While the Padres roll their ace onto the bump, the red-hot Giants should at least keep things within a run at home tonight.

Final Padres-Giants Prediction & Pick: San Francisco Giants +1.5 (-164)

The post Padres vs. Giants prediction, odds, pick, how to watch – 6/21/2023 appeared first on ClutchPoints.