by The division rivals Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres are set to meet in Game 1 of the best National League Division Series at Dodger Stadium in LA on Tuesday. The Dodgers, by virtue of winning the NL West and finishing as one of the division’s top two winners (along with the Braves) earned a first-round bye and come into this series with their rotation lined up as they choose through five days rest of. The Padres earned a wild card berth and advanced to the second round with a three-game victory over the New York Mets in the Wild Card Series. They come with only one day’s rest and having traveled from New York to Los Angeles
The winner of this series will advance to the NLCS to face the winner of the Braves-Phillies NLDS.
You can see the full postseason schedule by clicking here and here is the 2022 playoff team. Now, let’s get down to the important stuff for Game 1.
How to watch
Date: Tuesday, Oct. 11 | year: 9:37 p.m. ET
Location: Dodger Stadium (Los Angeles, California)
TV channel: FS1 | Live broadcast: fuboTV (try free)
Chance: SD +185; LA-225; O/U: 7 (via Caesars Sportsbook)
Starting pitchers: LHP Julio Urías (17-7, 2.16 ERA) vs. RHP Mike Clevinger (7-7, 4.33 ERA)
Selected game | Los Angeles Dodgers vs. San Diego Padres
Preview
The Dodgers dominated the regular season series pretty well, going 14-5 against the Padres and outscoring them 109-47.
As for Game 1 starting pitching, Urias made four starts against San Diego and in those starts he had a 1.50 ERA with 18 strikeouts and 10 walks in 24 innings of work. San Diego hitters this season have combined for a .558 OPS against Urías. Clevinger made three starts against the Dodgers during the regular season, and overall they didn’t go well. In those three starts, he had a 9.69 ERA with five home runs allowed in 14 innings. Dodger hitters this season posted a strong .947 OPS against Clevinger.
Prophecy
Simply put, the Dodgers were a far superior team during the regular season. They won an MLB-best 111 games and finished 22 games ahead of San Diego in the standings. Also, the Dodgers’ plus-334 run differential — one of the best run differentials in MLB history — eclipsed the Padres’ plus-45 mark. All of that aside, the Dodgers are much more rested, playing at home and have their rotation set up optimally. Given all that, we have to pick the Dodgers to take Game 1.
Choose: Dodgers 7, Padres 3
