MLB Baseball
2026-09-01 - San Diego Padres at Cincinnati Reds
A Sports Betting Pick by FirstDown
United States : Major League Baseball
Tuesday 1st September 2026 - Scheduled 6:40pm EST
11:40pm (British Time)
Preview
The win on Monday to open this series has moved the San Diego Padres (73-65) back inside the top three in the Wild Card placings in the National League, but the next month is going to be all about consistency. The regular season is completed through that period and the Padres are only just ahead of the Arizona Diamondbacks in what looks like a fight to the finish for the Playoff spots.
They continue this series at the home of the Cincinnati Reds (65-73) who are not officially eliminated from the post-season, but who are 8 games behind the Padres in the final Wild Card spot and with just twenty-four games left on the schedule.
With that in mind, it is only a matter of time until the Reds are eliminated and they will turn to ball to Nick Lodolo and will be looking for the pitcher to try and round out the season in style. Last season, Nick Lodolo showed what he can do in the Major League and pitched in the Playoff, but he has made just sixteen starts in 2026 and has a 3-3 record and 5.24 ERA in those.
Injuries have meant Nick Lodolo has been in and out of the starting rotation all season and he returned in August after spending a month on the sideline. His four starts since returning have been pretty difficult and Nick Lodolo has compiled a 0-1 record and 7.71 ERA across those.
Nick Lodolo has not pitched against the San Diego Padres this season, but did keep them scoreless in 5 Innings thrown last September against this opponent.
The Padres will go with Randy Vasquez in the second of this three game set and the pitcher has a 10-6 record and 4.02 ERA in twenty-six appearances this season. Twenty-one have been made in starts and that has been a more comfortable role for Vasquez in the five appearances made in August.
He came out of the bullpen for one of those and allowed four runs in 5 Innings thrown in relief, but Randy Vasquez has give up just four runs in 23 Innings thrown across four starts in August. Randy Vasquez has picked up the decision win in all of those starts, which has really helped the San Diego Padres in their bid to reach the post-season, although Vasquez did allow four runs and was withdrawn in the 5th Inning when facing the Cincinnati Reds in June 2025.
Prediction
After taking the opener, the San Diego Padres may have the edge on the starting mound to put themselves in a position to secure the series win before the last game on Wednesday.
The Pick :
Cincinnati Reds 2-5 San Diego Padres
