Padres vs. Pirates Prediction, Betting Tips & Picks 4/29/2022

The San Diego Padres (13-7) will look to Manny Machado, red hot after a four-hit game, to lead them in a matchup with the Pittsburgh Pirates (8-10) on Friday at 6:35 PM ET. The Padres are -168 favorites for the contest, according to oddsmakers. San Diego’s Yu Darvish and Pittsburgh’s Zach Thompson have been named the starters for this contest.

Padres vs. Pirates Spread and Betting Line

Computer Predictions for Padres vs. Pirates

Our computer pick: Pittsburgh Pirates (+145) and Over (7.5)

Padres vs. Pirates Game Info

• San Diego Padres probable starting pitcher: Yu Darvish
• Pittsburgh Pirates probable starting pitcher: Zach Thompson
• Game Day: Friday, April 29, 2022
• Game Time: 6:35 PM ET
• Location: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
• Stadium: PNC Park

San Diego Padres vs Pittsburgh Pirates Pitching Matchup

Padres Starter Yu Darvish

• Darvish (1-1 with a 4.43 ERA and 20 strikeouts in 20 1/3 innings pitched) gets the start for the Padres, his fifth of the season.
• In his last appearance on Sunday, the right-hander went six scoreless innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers while surrendering one hit.
• The 35-year-old has put up a 4.43 ERA and 8.9 strikeouts per nine innings in four games this season, while giving up a batting average of .181 to opposing hitters.
• Darvish is trying to extend a second-game quality start streak in this outing.
• Darvish will aim to go five or more innings for his third straight appearance. He’s averaging 5.0 frames per outing.
• He meets a Pirates offense that ranks 22nd in the league with 67 runs while batting .237 as a unit. It has a collective .348 slugging percentage (18th in MLB action) and has hit a total of 11 home runs (25th in MLB).
• Among pitchers who qualify in MLB play this season, the 35-year-old ranks 51st in ERA (4.43), 29th in WHIP (1.082), and 22nd in K/9 (8.9).

Pirates Starter Zach Thompson

• The Pirates will hand the ball to Thompson (0-2) for his fourth start of the season.
• The right-hander last pitched on Saturday, when he gave up four earned runs and allowed nine hits in two innings against the Chicago Cubs.
• The 28-year-old has an ERA of 10.80, 8.1 strikeouts per nine innings and an opponent batting average of .392 in three games this season.
• The Padres have scored 91 runs this season, which ranks third in MLB. They have 151 hits, 10th in baseball, with 17 home runs (12th in the league).

Padres Betting Picks & Insights

• This season, the Padres have been favored 14 times and won 11, or 78.6%, of those games.
• San Diego has entered five games this season favored by -168 or more, and won each of those games.
• The implied probability of a win from the Padres, based on the moneyline, is 62.7%.
• Games involving San Diego have gone over the total set by sportsbooks in eight of 20 chances this season.
• The Padres are 13-7-0 against the spread in their 20 chances this season.

Pirates Betting Picks & Insights

• The Pirates have been underdogs in 15 games this season and have come away with the win six times (40%) in those contests.
• Pittsburgh has a mark of 2-6 in contests where sportsbooks favor them by +145 or worse on the moneyline.
• Sportsbooks have implied with the moneyline set for this matchup that the Pirates have a 40.8% chance of pulling out a win.
• Pittsburgh and its opponents have gone over the total this season in six of their 18 opportunities.
• In 18 games with a line this season, the Pirates have a mark of 10-8-0 against the spread.

Padres Leaders & Batting Stats

• Machado has seven doubles, three home runs and nine walks while hitting .395.
• Among all batters in the majors, Machado’s home run total ranks him 34th, and his RBI tally ranks him 21st.
• Machado has collected a hit in four straight games. During his last five outings he is batting .526 with two doubles, three walks and two RBI.
• Jurickson Profar has shown his power as he leads his team with five home runs and 15 runs batted in.
• Profar ranks sixth in home runs in the majors, and sixth in RBI.
• Eric Hosmer paces the Padres with a team-best batting average of .415.
• Hosmer has at least one base hit in four straight games. In his last five games he is batting .500 with two home runs, five walks and six RBI.
• Jake Cronenworth has a double, two triples, a home run and 12 walks while batting .197.

Pirates Leaders & Batting Stats

• Ke’Bryan Hayes paces the Pirates with a .339 batting average.
• Among all hitters in the big leagues, Hayes is 242nd in homers and 165th in RBI.
• Daniel Vogelbach has put his power on display as he leads his team with three home runs.
• Vogelbach ranks 34th among all hitters in the big leagues in home runs, and 137th in RBI.
• Ben Gamel is hitting .231 with two doubles, a home run and eight walks.
• Michael Chavis has a team-leading eight runs batted in.

Betting Tips for Padres vs. Pirates

Our best bet is the Pirates on the moneyline at +145 after digging through all of the key trends and stats for this matchup. Our computer projects the scoring will over the total of 7.5 runs.