San Diego Padres vs. Arizona Diamondbacks: Picks, Predictions, Odds and Player Props

The San Diego Padres are in the midst of a crucial stretch of four series in the span of five that are against National League West rivals.

It continues with a three-game set against the host Arizona Diamondbacks, which gets underway on Friday night.

The Padres (38-29) had a chance to tie or overtake the Los Angeles Dodgers in the division earlier this week, but they dropped two of three to the defending World Series champions.

Arizona (34-34) had kicked off its six-game home-stand with a sweep of the Seattle Mariners.

With Friday’s contest set for 9:40 pm ET on Apple TV+, it’s time to break down the matchup and discuss the best bets to make.

San Diego Padres vs. Arizona Diamondbacks betting picks and predictions

Padres Moneyline (+100)

The Padres' series against L.A. was a disappointment, but it’s not like they are playing bad baseball.

They outscored the Dodgers 20-14 in the three games and it should also be noted that the series loss was their first since May 20-22 against Toronto.

San Diego should have a good chance to return to its winning ways in Arizona, starting on Friday.

Stephen Kolek is taking the mound for the visitors, with his June campaign off to an encouraging start.

The right-hander fired 5.2 innings of scoreless baseball on three hits against San Francisco and then recorded the exact same stat line against Milwaukee this past Saturday. He is now 3-1 with a 3.00 ERA this season.

The Diamondbacks are countering with Ryne Nelson, whose most recent outing last weekend saw him get torched by Cincinnati to the tune of seven runs on four hits and four walks in 3.0 innings en route to a 13-1 loss.

Xander Bogaerts (.444), Fernando Tatis Jr. (.364), Elias Diaz (.500) and Jackson Merrill (.429) have all enjoyed plenty of success at Nelson's expense.

San Diego has good value as a slight underdog on Friday.

Under 9.5 (-115)

Having pitched 11.1 innings without allowing a single run in June, Kolek has to be toeing the rubber with a ton of confidence.

In just his second MLB season and first as a starter, the Diamondbacks have little to no familiarity with the 28-year-old. The entire Arizona roster has a combined three hits lifetime off Kolek, all of them singles.

Meanwhile, the Padres have scored two runs or fewer in four of their last seven contests. The erupted for 11 during Tuesday’s victory over the Dodgers, but for the most part their bats have been relatively quiet this month.

As for Nelson, it cannot be overlooked what he did in May even though his most recent start was a disaster. The 27-year-old righty compiled a 1.80 ERA last month, surrendering just five runs in 25.0 innings across six appearances.

All things considered, the under looks like the play to make - mainly because 9.5 is quite a high total for this particular matchup.

Xander Bogaerts over 1.5 hits + runs + RBIs (-115)

Bogaerts picked up some much-needed momentum to close out the series against Los Angeles. San Diego's veteran shortstop compiled four hits in the last two games with two RBIs and two runs scored.

He now has a very favorable matchup with Nelson on the mound for Arizona. Bogaerts is 4-for-9 lifetime against Nelson with two home runs and a double.

Batting not too far behind Merrill and Manny Machado in the order, the 32-year-old should be in prime position to drive in runs on Friday.

He also bats right in front of Jake Cronenworth, who has hit safely in three of the last four games and has homered off Nelson in the past.

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San Diego Padres vs. Arizona Diamondbacks odds

San Diego Padres	+100 ML
Arizona Diamondbacks	-120 ML
Run Line	ARI -1.5
Total	O/U 9.5

San Diego Padres vs. Arizona Diamondbacks player props

Player Home Run Odds

Manny Machado (SD Padres)	+450
Jackson Merrill (SD Padres)	+475
Fernando Tatis Jr. (SD Padres)	+500
Corbin Carroll (ARI Diamondbacks)	+425
Eugenio Suarez (ARI Diamondbacks)	+525
Ketel Marte (ARI Diamondbacks)	+625

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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.