Game: San Diego Padres @ New York Yankees
Time: 7:05 p.m.
Odds: Padres -117, Yankees +107
Total: 9
The San Diego Padres’ recent struggles are hardly resolved by one series victory, but for the first time in a little more than three weeks, they can feel optimistic. The Padres kick off the weekend tonight when they travel to New York to play the first game of a three-game series against the Yankees. This comes after a late rally gave them their first series victory in five tries.
Since winning two of three games against the Cincinnati Reds at home from May 1-3, the Padres have won five of their last 17 games and are headed to the Bronx. The Padres defeated the Washington Nationals 8-6 on Thursday to win the series. Three of those victories have come in their last four games. For the first time since winning three of four games from April 20–23 in Arizona, the Padres won a road series.
The Padres scored 22 runs in the series with the Reds. On Thursday, after Jake Cronenworth and Juan Soto singled to start the ninth inning, the Padres came back when Rougned Odor hit a three-run home run off Hunter Harvey with two outs.
After the Padres blew a four-run lead by allowing five runs in the seventh, Odor, who batted.202 in 102 games for the Yankees in 2021, homered. Soto reached base five times and added a two-run double, and finished with five RBIs.
After losing two of three to the Baltimore Orioles, the Yankees, who are 15-7 in their last 22 games, are attempting to avoid a three-game skid. The Yankees came back to win 6-5 on Tuesday thanks to a tie-breaking home run by Aaron Judge in the ninth inning and a sacrifice fly by Anthony Volpe in the tenth, but on Wednesday they gave up an eight-run seventh inning and were held to three hits in a 3-1 loss last night.
Since losing two of three games to Toronto on April 21–23, it was the Yankees’ first series loss at home. New York will attempt to get back on the winning track with Randy Vasquez making his major league debut. Domingo German is serving a 10-game ban for using a sticky substance, and the Yankees wanted to give Luis Severino an extra day off. That gives Vasquez the start.
Vasquez, a Dominican Republic native who was signed as an international free agent in 2018, started this season as Baseball America’s ninth-ranked Yankee prospect. The 24-year-old right-hander’s record in nine starts with Triple-A Scranton Wilkes-Barre is 1-5 with a 4.85 ERA.
The Padres send out Joe Musgrove, who has a record of 0-2 with a 4.60 ERA over his last three starts (1-2, 6.75 ERA). Musgrove suffered the loss on Saturday in his own backyard against the Boston Red Sox. In five innings, he gave up four runs on six hits. Since teaming on a one-hitter against the Mets in Game 3 of the National League Wild-Card Series, Musgrove is facing the Yankees and pitching in New York for the first time.
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