The Los Angeles Angels and San Diego Padres will continue their interleague series on May 13, 2025, at Petco Park in a game that carries very different implications for two teams moving in opposite directions early this season, as the Angels look to build on a rare burst of momentum and the Padres aim to bounce back after a surprising home loss. The Padres enter the matchup with a strong 25–15 record and have been dominant at Petco Park, holding an undefeated 7–0 mark at home and a flawless 5–0 record in one-run games, thanks in large part to a combination of timely hitting, lockdown bullpen work, and veteran leadership from players like Manny Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr. However, the Padres’ pitching depth has been tested recently, with both Yu Darvish and Joe Musgrove on the injured list, forcing Dylan Cease into a more prominent role in the rotation; Cease will start this game with a 1–2 record and a 4.91 ERA, a line that reflects some inconsistency but also the ability to miss bats and get big outs when needed. On the other side, the Angels come in at 17–23 and are fresh off a rare offensive outburst in their 9–5 win in the series opener, a performance that broke a 1–5 stretch against the spread and offered a glimpse of the potential lurking in a lineup that’s been searching for identity in the absence of Mike Trout.

José Soriano will get the nod for Los Angeles, bringing a 2–4 record and 4.00 ERA into the game, and he’s been one of the few steady arms for manager Ron Washington, mixing velocity and a sharp-breaking slider to generate ground balls and limit damage even when pitching under duress. Both teams are navigating injuries, but the Padres have had more depth to withstand their setbacks, while the Angels are still learning how to piece together wins without their most dangerous bat in the lineup and with a young, often untested roster. The key to this game will be whether the Padres’ offense can strike early against Soriano and give Cease a cushion to work with, or if the Angels can carry over their offensive momentum from Game 1 and keep pressure on a San Diego staff that has been lights-out at home but showed cracks in the series opener. Despite the Angels’ recent struggles, they proved in the opener that they can score in bunches, and if players like Taylor Ward and Logan O’Hoppe continue to produce, they could make this a closer game than the records suggest. Still, the combination of Petco Park dominance, a rested bullpen, and a lineup built for power and contact gives the Padres the edge—especially if Cease finds his rhythm and keeps the Angels off the basepaths. This is a matchup that will test the Angels’ ability to sustain momentum and the Padres’ resilience after a rare home setback, with the potential for a tightly contested game decided by execution in the middle innings and bullpen efficiency late.