Padres Lineup vs Giants: Major Shakeup, Surprise Outfielder Starting

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The San Diego Padres are looking to salvage their second series of the season against the San Francisco Giants after dropping the first two games. The Giants took the series opener, 3-2, and then dominated the Padres on Tuesday by a score of 9-3.
The Padres are looking to avoid the sweep before going on the road.
Padres vs Giants Pitching Matchup on Wednesday
Right-handed pitcher Nick Pivetta is getting his second start of the year after a nightmare Opening Day outing against the Detroit Tigers.
Pivetta allowed four runs in the first inning and lasted just three innings, giving up six runs on seven hits with three walks and four strikeouts.
Pivetta is coming off a 2025 season in which he had a 2.87 ERA across 181.2 innings. The Padres will need him to look much closer to the 2025 version of himself on Wednesday if they want to salvage a win in the series.
Opposite Pivetta will be right-handed pitcher Adrian Houser making his Giants debut. The nine-year veteran joined the Giants on a two-year, $22 million deal this offseason. He's coming off a 2025 season in which he had a 3.31 ERA across 21 starts with the Chicago White Sox and Tampa Bay Rays.
He has three appearances (two starts) at Petco Park in his career, sporting a 1.93 ERA across 14 innings pitched.
Padres Starting Lineup
- Fernando Tatis Jr., RF
- Xander Bogaerts, SS
- Jackson Merrill, CF
- Manny Machado, 3B
- Ramón Laureano, DH
- Jake Cronenworth, 2B
- Gavin Sheets, 1B
- Freddy Fermin, C
- Bryce Johnson, LF
Another game, another different lineup for the Padres.
Fernando Tatis Jr. is back in the leadoff spot despite a right-handed pitcher being on the mound. Ramòn Laureano is back in the lineup as the designated hitter, while Bryce Johnson is getting his first start of the season in left field.
How to Watch Padres vs Giants on Wednesday
First pitch for Padres vs. Giants on Wednesday, April 1, is 1:10 p.m. PT/4:10 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on Padres.TV and in the MLB App.
The Padres announced that games will also be available via cable on the following channels:
- Cox (Channel 83)
- DirecTV (Channel 694-3)
- AT&T Uverse (Channel 781 or 1781)
- Spectrum (Channel 305 or 443)
Games will be broadcast on the radio on 97.3 The Fan (in English) and XEMO 860 (in Spanish).
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Noah Camras graduated from the University of Southern California in 2022 with a B.A. in Journalism and a minor in sports media studies. He was born and raised in Los Angeles and has extensively covered Southern California sports in his career. Noah is the publisher of Padres on SI after contributing as a writer and editor over the last three years.