Ian Kennedy and Justin Verlander take the mound in the second game of the series at Petco Park.
Our Padres opened up the series last night with a fantastic showing against Rick Porcello and the Tigers. Tonight they'll try to keep the ball rolling against Justin Verlander and clinch their first series win of the season.
Ian Kennedy will get the ball for San Diego and try to build on a fantastic performance his last time out. He kept the Marlins to just one run on three hits in six innings of work on the road, striking out five batters along the way; the Padres went on to win 4-2. Kennedy hsn't had the best luck in interleague play, going 3-8 with a 5.84 ERA all-time against AL opponents. But his last interleague start saw him snap a five-game losing streak to AL teams when he led the Padres to a win against the Yankees last August. In two career starts against Detroit, Kennedy has posted a 5.56 ERA in 11 1/3 innings. Miguel Cabrera, Torii Hunter, Ian Kinsler, and Victor Martinez have combined for 9 hits in 16 at-bats against the right-hander, but the remaining current Tigers have gone 1-for-9 against him.
Meanwhile, Verlander just hopes to get more run support from the Tigers lineup. In each of his two prior starts this season, the righty has kept opponents to two earned runs, but thanks to a lack of offensive support he has yet to record his first win of the year. Verlander's lone career start against San Diego dates back to 2008. He gave up two runs while racking up ten strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings. Xavier Nady, Rene Rivera, Seth Smith, and Chase Headley are the only current Padres to have faced Verlander in the past, combining for just three hits in 13 at-bats.
Make sure to tune in to see if our Padres can clinch the series win tonight. First pitch is at 5:40.