San Diego Padres vs. Tampa Bay Rays Prediction: Can Joe Musgrove, Padres Dominate?
The San Diego Padres and the Tampa Bay Rays play the third game in their series. Can Joe Musgrove and the Padres dominate tonight? Baseball betting expert Krabs breaks down the game.
Krabs - June 18, 2023, 11:10 AM EDT
5 minSan Diego Padres vs. Tampa Bay Rays Prediction: Can Joe Musgrove, Padres Dominate?
Don’t look now, but the San Diego Padres are looking to win a series against the best team in baseball this afternoon. After beating the Tampa Bay Rays 2-0 yesterday, thanks to a Blake Snell legacy start. The lefty had TWELVE strikeouts against Tampa yesterday, an anomaly for the Rays' offense, especially against left-handed pitching. Tonight they get a chance to redeem themselves after getting shut out by the surging Padres, who are finally winning baseball games. Will San Diego keep building on their momentum and dominate, or will the Rays bounce back from getting shut out against Snell?
Padres vs. Rays Start Time and Where to Watch
- Date: Sunday, June 18, 2023
- Start Time: 4:10 pm ET
- Where to Watch: MLB.TV
San Diego Padres vs. Tampa Bay Rays Prediction
After ending April with a 10.80 ERA, Joe Musgrove has finally settled into the 2023 season. With a 2.12 ERA through three starts in June, the Padres “ace” finally has his strikeout stuff. The Rays don’t usually strike out much, especially against lefties; they are one of MLB's best left-handed pitching-facing teams. It’s a bad sign for the Rays' offense that they weren’t able to do anything last night against Snell, a former teammate.
This tells me the Rays are currently a “fade-able” team. Yes, they have the best record in baseball and are the only team with more than 50 wins so far this season. Last night Snell proved to his old team that they are beatable right now, and with Joe Musgrove getting better in every start he makes, I wouldn’t want to be a Rays bettor today.
Don’t overthink this game; even with the Padres having a clear starting pitching advantage, it’s still a sub-.500 team nearly (-150) against the best team in baseball. I don’t care who is starting on the bump for the Rays today; the odds on the moneyline are telling me enough. There’s a reason the Padres were a favorite to win this series, and although it might have looked odd pre-series, it’s starting to make sense now.
The Rays are extremely well-rounded and are one of the best teams in baseball, but their 51-23 record is unsustainable. The Padres, on the other hand, are in the exact opposite boat: with the roster they have, they should be the team already at 50 wins. Luckily for the latter, these teams are both regressing back to where they should be.
The Rays aren’t slumping by any means; they just aren’t winning five of six games every week like they were at the beginning of the season. The Padres’ bats are finally alive and starting to put some tallies in the win column. I wouldn’t want to fade this team with Musgrove on the mound, either. Back the Padres on the moneyline as they continue to play better baseball as the season progresses. Joe Musgrove isn’t losing to this Rays lineup that looked lost at the plate last night.
San Diego Padres vs. Tampa Bay Rays Pick
San Diego Padres ML -145 is currently the best odds. Click here to see which sportsbook has the best odds for this pick
MLB Odds
- Check out Rays vs. Padres odds
- Who's going to win the World Series this season? The odds are shocking
- Will the Rays win the American League West this season? Check out the latest AL West odds
