First pitch is 3:05 PM CT at Nationals Park, with King (4-3, 2.76) drawing Foster Griffin (6-2, 3.63) in a matchup that, on paper, the Padres should run away with. The market agrees — San Diego is laying -123 on the moneyline despite hitting the road. That hasn't really meant much for them lately.
King has been one of the quieter All-Star cases in the National League, but his most recent start was easily his worst of the year: 3.2 innings, 4 earned, 4 walks against the A's on the 24th. He admitted to MLB.com he hasn't actually been good this year, which is a wild thing to say with a 2.76 ERA but tells you what his standards are. He also hasn't recorded an out past the sixth in any start, and he knows it.
The Padres came into this series having dropped 4 straight at home — swept by the Phillies, beaten by the A's — and then finally exhaled with a 7-5 win in the series opener Friday. The Nationals, meanwhile, were sitting on a 3-game heater before Cleveland and San Diego cooled them off. They're 29-29, still hovering around .500, and reportedly went 3-for-12 with runners in scoring position Friday while leaving 10 on base. That'll do it.
Griffin is the reason this game is closer than the records suggest. The righty just spun 6 shutout innings against Atlanta in his last start — 6 K, 1 walk, 3 hits, 90 pitches — and he's quietly 6-2 with a 3.63 ERA. He doesn't have King's pedigree, but he's been the more reliable arm over the last month, and the Nationals will take that all day at +112.
- Day-To-DayBlake Hunt C — Hunt is dealing with an oblique injury and has been shut down from activity, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
- 7-day ilJake Cronenworth 2B — The Padres placed Cronenworth on the 7-day concussion injured list Tuesday, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILLuis Campusano C — Campusano (toe) has progressed to swinging in the batting cage and catching off a pitching machine, per MLB.com.
- 15-Day-ILMatt Waldron SP — Waldron (forearm) could take on a bullpen role when he returns from the 15-day injured list, MLB.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILGerman Marquez SP — Marquez (forearm) has progressed to throwing off a mound, per MLB.com.
- 15-Day-ILNick Pivetta SP — Padres manager Craig Stammen told reporters Wednesday that Pivetta was diagnosed with a right flexor strain, Jeff Sanders of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
- 60-Day-ILJhony Brito RP — Brito (forearm) had his minor-league rehab statement moved from the Arizona Complex League to Double-A San Antonio on Sunday, per MLB.com.
- 60-Day-ILJoe Musgrove SP — The Padres transferred Musgrove (elbow) to the 60-day injured list on Thursday.
- Day-To-DayTyler Stuart SP — no
- Day-To-DayTyler Baum DH — Baum has not pitched this year due an undisclosed injury.
- Day-To-DayTravis Sykora SP — Sykora will undergo a UCL reconstruction on his right elbow in two weeks, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.
- Day-To-DayJarlin Susana RP — Susana underwent surgery last week to repair a right lat tear, Spencer Nusbaum of The Washington Post reports.
- 15-Day-ILJake Irvin SP — The Nationals placed Irvin on the 15-day injured list Sunday due to a right shoulder strain.
- 60-Day-ILMax Kranick RP — The Nationals transferred Kranick (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Monday.
- 60-Day-ILDJ Herz SP — Herz (elbow) will throw to live hitters Friday at the Nationals' spring training facility in Florida, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.
- 60-Day-ILTrevor Williams SP — Williams (elbow) began pitching off a mound at the Nationals' spring training complex this weekend, Jessica Camerato of MLB.com reports.
Both pitching staffs are duct-taped together. The Padres are without Darvish, Musgrove, Pivetta, Marquez, and Waldron — basically half a rotation on the shelf — which is part of why every King start carries extra weight. Washington isn't faring much better, with Jake Irvin landing on the 15-day with a shoulder strain last weekend and Herz, Williams, and Gray all still on the 60-day. Whoever's left standing in late June is going to matter.
The total is the weird one here. Pinnacle has it at 7.5, DraftKings is up at 9.5 — a 2-run gap that usually doesn't exist on a King start. Take that for whatever it's worth. The Padres need King to be King, and if they get that, this series flips quickly. If they don't, the Nationals are absolutely capable of running it back from Friday.