The set-up: The punchless Padres fell 3-2 in San Francisco last night and I think they're going to struggle in the opener of this inter-league series as well. Texas took two of three from the Twins over the weekend, but it enters off a 2-0 road loss in the final yesterday afternoon. For a number of different reasons, I believe this one favors the Rangers. San Diego sends Joey Lucchesi to the hill, while Texas goes with Cole Hamels.

The pitchers: Lucchesi is so far 3-3 with a 3.86 ERA. Lucchesi returned from the DL on Wednesday to face the A's and he'd be rocked for four runs off three hits over 1.2 frames of work. It's hard to say where the rookie is at right now, but there's no question that he enters another tough matchup on the road tonight.

Hamels is so far 4-6 with a 3.41 ERA. Hamels enters off a gem against the Royals on Tuesday, allowing one earned run off four hits while striking out seven over seven innings. Hamels comes in sporting 92 strikeouts over 92.1 frames of work this year and note that he's 4-2 with a 2.36 ERA in all "night" games.

The pick: Neither team has done very well in interleague action this season, however note that the Padres are just 8-14 (-2.6 units) this year as a road underdog in the +125 to +175 range, while Texas is 3-1 (+1.4 units) this year as a home favorite in the -125 to -175 range. I think Hamels is well worth the price of admission in this matchup. Play on Texas.