New York Yankees vs. San Diego Padres: Series Preview

After wrapping up a series against the Orioles yesterday, the Yankees are set to finish up a homestand this weekend with some interleague action. Starting tonight, the Padres will be in town for a three-game series in the Bronx.

After knocking off the 100+ win Mets and Dodgers in last year’s postseason and signing Xander Bogaerts, the Padres were a trendy NL West and World Series pick going into this season. They haven’t quite looked like that so far, as they come into this series below .500 and down an injured Manny Machado. However, they still feature an immensely talented roster that could very easily figure things out and get on a roll.

Before things get going with in the series opener tonight, let’s check in on the expected pitching matchups for this weekend.

Friday: Randy Vásquez vs. Joe Musgrove (7:05 pm ET)

Yesterday afternoon, we got the news that the Yankees would be promoting pitcher Randy Vásquez for his major league debut in the opener, as they still try to fill in around Domingo Germán’s suspension. The No. 12 prospect in the Yankees’ organization according to MLB.com Pipeline, Vásquez has a 4.85 ERA in Triple-A so far this season. While that’s not the most impressive opening to the year, he has allowed only five earned runs across 21 innings over his last four starts. Scouting reports say good things about his curveball, and his fastball is capable of reaching the high 90s.

Musgrove has been very impressive since a trade sent him to San Diego ahead of the 2021 season, but he’s really struggled so far this year. His ERA is sitting at 6.75 and his FIP at 5.82. In his last start, he got chased after five innings and four runs against the Red Sox. Apart from one solid outing against the Dodgers, Musgrove has allowed at least three runs in every game he’s started.

Saturday: Luis Severino vs. Michael Wacha (1:05 pm ET)

Last weekend, Severino finally made his 2023 MLB debut when he took the mound against the Reds. It was very nice to see him back in action, and he was pretty good, allowing one run on four hits in 4.2 innings, striking out five. The Padres’ lineup should be a jump in quality from what he faced in Cincinnati.

Wacha is on his fifth team in as many seasons, having signed with the Padres over the offseason. He’s been arguably the brightest light in their rotation so far this year, leading their starters in both ERA and FIP. He’s been especially impressive of late, allowing just one run in 25 innings over his last four starts. Last year, the Yankees were division mates with Wacha when he was on the Red Sox, and he was pretty good against them in two starts.

Sunday: Gerrit Cole vs. Yu Darvish (1:35 pm ET)

After a red hot start to the season, Cole has been down a little bit in his last couple outings, and that included earlier this week against the Orioles. Cole allowed five runs in five innings to Baltimore, which included two home runs. His ERA for May is now at 4.67 after it was 1.11 in April. The major difference has been the home runs, as he’s given up six in his last four starts after surrendering none in April.

Darvish’s overall numbers grade out as above average, but he’s had some ups and downs. He has a 5.56 ERA over his last two starts, having given up two homers to the Nationals in his most recent appearance. The five-time All-Star has a 1.64 ERA against the Yankees for his career, although his last meeting against them was all the way back in 2017.