Bryan Armetta offers up a preview, prediction and pick for Friday\u2019s MLB game between the San Diego Padres and Texas Rangers.<\/p>\n
Two disappointing clubs are set to meet tonight for an interleague showdown. The Padres (38-35) remain in the hunt for a postseason spot in spite of their dismal offense. It\u2019s a similar story for the Rangers (35-39), who are only three games out in the wide-open AL West. This weekend\u2019s series presents an opportunity for one of these squads to get back on track. Who has the edge tonight in Arlington?<\/p>\n
The Rangers are favorites (-163)<\/a> over the Padres, with the over\/under set at seven runs<\/a>. Below, I\u2019ve laid out my preview, prediction, and best bet for Friday\u2019s contest between San Diego and Texas on DraftKings Sportsbook<\/a>.<\/p>\n Padres vs. Rangers pick, best bet<\/p>\n Padres vs. Rangers under 7.5 runs (-134)<\/a>: Vasquez is good enough to hold his own against an unimpressive Rangers lineup. As for deGrom, he should have little trouble mowing down a feeble Padres offense. On paper, neither of these two teams should score much tonight.<\/p>\n Padres vs. Rangers prediction, preview<\/p>\n San Diego will hand the ball to Randy Vasquez tonight, already one of the team\u2019s best starters. It\u2019s been a breakout campaign for the righty, who has made major strides when it comes to velocity. After tapping out around 90 MPH in 2025, he\u2019s brought his fastball up to just under 95 MPH this season. Through 14 outings, he\u2019s produced a 3.63 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and 58 strikeouts (7.0 K\/9). Surprisingly, the Dominican is much worse at home (4.99 ERA) than he is on the road (2.08 ERA).\u00a0<\/p>\n If there\u2019s a major downside for Vasquez, his advanced metrics are terrible. A 6.23 xERA, .292 xBA and 13.0% barrel rate are all major signs of negative regression. Regardless, it\u2019s not as if the Dominican will be taking on an elite lineup tonight. The Rangers are averaging 3.50 runs per game at home, third-worst in baseball. To make matters worse, star shortstop Corey Seager (concussion) is on the injured list. Texas batters have recorded a .697 OPS against right-handed pitching, eighth-lowest in the majors. It helps that Globe Life Field is the friendliest venue for pitchers, per Savant<\/a>.<\/p>\n As for the home team, it\u2019ll be Jacob deGrom toeing the slab this evening. It\u2019s been another terrific season from the two-time Cy Young winner. Over 76.2 innings of work (14 starts), he\u2019s recorded a 3.17 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 89 strikeouts (10.4 K\/9). deGrom has allowed just two earned runs during his last 17.0 innings (1.06 ERA). He sits within the 90th percentile in whiff rate (33.2%), strikeout rate (29.2%) and walk rate (4.9%). In addition, the righty has been absolutely lights out at home (1.26 ERA). <\/p>\n deGrom\u2019s most used off-speed pitch is the slider, which he\u2019s thrown 35% of the time this season. Against that offering, Padres hitters are slashing .198\/.267\/.357. That shouldn\u2019t come as much of a shock; the Friars have been awful at the plate this year. They\u2019re averaging an MLB-worst 3.84 runs per game. To boot, San Diego also has the league\u2019s lowest OPS against right-handed pitching (.656). Among Padres players with 200+ plate appearances, only Gavin Sheets (114 wRC+) and Fernando Tatis Jr. (102 wRC+) have a wRC+ above 100.<\/p>\n