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Padres Lineup vs Tigers: Gavin Sheets Out, Ty France Starting

The Padres are looking to bounce back after a blowout loss on Opening Day.
Noah Camras|
Sep 21, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; San Diego Padres designated hitter Gavin Sheets (30) celebrates with teammates in the dugout after scoring against the Chicago White Sox during the second inning at Rate Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images
Sep 21, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; San Diego Padres designated hitter Gavin Sheets (30) celebrates with teammates in the dugout after scoring against the Chicago White Sox during the second inning at Rate Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images | Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images

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San Diego PadresDetroit Tigers

The San Diego Padres are looking to quickly turn the page after a blowout 8-2 loss on Opening Day against the Detroit Tigers.

Fortunately, they won't have to face reigning back-to-back Cy Young award winner Tarik Skubal, but things don't get much easier as two-time All-Star Framber Valdez is taking the mound for what will be his Tigers debut.

Padres vs Tigers Pitching Matchup on Friday

Valdez, 32, signed a three-year, $115 million deal with the Tigers this offseason after sporting a 3.36 ERA across 1,080.2 innings over eight seasons with the Houston Astros.

The Padres reportedly showed interest in Valdez, but didn't have the financial resources to make a deal happen.

Valdez had a 3.66 ERA across 31 starts last year for Houston. He was an All-Star in 2022 and 2023.

The Padres have Michael King taking the mound as he looks to put his injury-riddled 2025 season behind him. King spent nearly four months on the injured list last season with a shoulder nerve issue and a knee injury, making just 15 starts.

King had a rough spring training, allowing 20 earned runs across 17.2 innings for a 10.19 ERA. The Padres will hope he got all that out of his system ahead of his season debut.

Padres Starting Lineup

  1. Fernando Tatis Jr., RF
  2. Xander Bogaerts, SS
  3. Many Machado, 3B
  4. Jackson Merrill, CF
  5. Miguel Andujar, DH
  6. Ramón Laureano, LF
  7. Ty France, 1B
  8. Jake Cronenworth, 2B
  9. Freddy Fermin, C

Manager Craig Stammen said he won't have the same lineup every day. Two days into the season, he's now had two different lineups.

Ty France is getting the start at first base over Gavin Sheets with the lefty on the mound. Additionally, Jake Cronenworth has moved up to the No. 8 spot, with Freddy Fermain batting ninth.

Fernando Tatis Jr. is still leading off with Xander Bogaerts right behind him.

How to Watch Padres vs Tigers on Friday

First pitch for Padres vs. Tigers on Friday, March 27 is 6:40 p.m. PT/9:40 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on Padres.TV and in the MLB App.

The Padres announced before the season 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
NOAH CAMRAS

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.

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