Free MLB Picks Today: San Francisco Giants vs Philadelphia Phillies 5/17/23

The Philadelphia Phillies (20-22) are on the road to face the San Francisco Giants (19-23) at Oracle Park on Wednesday with the home team in position to sweep the three-game series.

The Giants lead the series 2-0 after winning 4-3 on Tuesday, their fifth straight head-to-head victory. Reliever Taylor Rogers threw one scoreless inning to get the win, and Camilo Doval earned his 10th save.

Michael Conforto went 3 for 4 with one RBI in the win. LaMonte Wade Jr. added one run and one RBI on two hits. Kody Clemens was 2 for 3 with one run for the Phillies.

ON THE MOUND

Taijuan Walker (3-2, 5.75 ERA) is in line for the start for Philadelphia. The right-hander allowed three runs over six innings in his last start, a 6-3 road win over the Rockies on Friday. He gave up seven hits while striking out three in the no-decision.

Righty Ross Stripling (0-2, 7.14 ERA) will take the mound for San Francisco. It’s his first appearance of the season against the Phillies.

Stripling made two appearances against the Phillies in 2022, both as the starter, striking out nine and walking none over 11 innings (1-0, 4.09).

In his last appearance on Friday, Stripling came on in relief on the road against the Diamondbacks. He threw 3.1 innings and gave up four runs on five hits, striking out two and walking two in the 7-5 defeat.

AT THE PLATE

Over the last five games, Philadelphia has averaged 3.8 runs a game, a small drop compared to their season average of 4.3. Against righties like Stripling this season, the Phils have a .769 OPS.

Brandon Marsh is the team’s most productive hitter against right-handers with a .938 OPS in 82 at-bats. San Francisco is averaging only 3.6 runs per game in the last five, down slightly from 4.4 for the season.

The Giants have a .771 OPS against right-handers in 2023. With a .437 OBP over 87 at-bats, Wade Jr. has their highest on-base percentage against right-handers.

HOME AND AWAY

Philadelphia is on a three-game losing streak on the road, bringing their record to 9-15 in 2023. The Phils have scored 4.0 runs per game away from home, while allowing 5.8 runs.

San Francisco has gone 12-10 at home this season, averaging 3.9 runs per game while surrendering 4.6. In the last 10 meetings at Oracle Park, San Francisco is 9-1 with an average scoreline of 6.7-3.9.

STANDINGS UPDATE

The Phillies are third in the NL East, six games behind the division-leading Braves. The Giants are fourth in the NL West, seven games behind the Dodgers.