The San Diego Padres tap the veteran southpaw to exploit the Milwaukee Brewers' struggles against left-handed pitching.
The San Diego Padres have revealed that Robbie Ray is going to start Game 1 of the National League Division Series.
Padres' AJ Cassavell broke the news on Friday, Oct. 2, roughly 24 hours prior to first pitch in the first game of the series.
There was a bit of a discussion as to whether it would be Ray taking the mound in the series opener or Walker Buehler, but now, the Milwaukee Brewers have a day to prepare for their Game 1 opponent.
Ray began the 2026 season on the San Francisco Giants, but they were forced to be major sellers at the deadline due to a super disappointing season.
Ray's numbers have been far from disappointing, and he immediately gives the Brewers a left-handed pitcher to deal with fresh off their "bye week."
Brewers are 13th in wRC+ against lefties
There's a big difference in the Brewers wRC+ department between lefties and righties.
Against right-handed pitchers, they have 112 wRC+ which is first in the league. Against lefties? Not so much.
The Brewers are 13th with 97 wRC+, and while that's still a respectable number, it's important to note there are only eight teams left in the postseason.
Every pitcher they face deserves to be here, and Ray is no exception.
The 35-year-old has bounced around quite a bit in his lengthy career, but historically he hasn't always been the best in the postseason.
This'll be Ray's first playoff appearance since 2022 when he sported a 12.27 ERA in three appearances with the Seattle Mariners.
Officially, this marks his fourth year in the playoffs, all on different teams. He's started just two of the six appearances he's had in the postseason and carries a career 7.43 ERA to go along with a 1.43 WHIP.
Ray last pitched on Sept. 23
The Padres didn't need to use Ray once in the Wild Card series, so it's been quite some time since he's been on the mound.
Obviously, moving from a best-of-three to best-of-five series means the team is going to need to go deeper into their rotation, and that begins with Ray as they give Michael King the full time to recover.
King only went 3.1 innings in his last start, one that saw him allow seven hits which was the most he's allowed in a game since Aug. 7.
Ray will have had nine full days of rest in-between his starts, so there's room to believe he could be a bit rusty, though only time will tell.
