Phillies vs. Padres NLCS Game 1 Prediction and Odds for NLCS Game 1 (Take Philly as Short Road Dogs)

The two National League Wild Card teams stunned their divisional rivals in the NLDS to advance to the Championship Series, setting up a surprising and intriguing matchup between the Philadelphia Phillies and San Diego Padres.

Philadelphia and San Diego each won in four games against the dominant Atlanta Braves and L.A. Dodgers, respectively, and are prepared to break through and make a surprise into the World Series.

The series gets started in San Diego with each team sending out their high end rotation pieces in Zack Wheeler for the Phillies and Yu Darvish for the Padres. Who has the edge?

Here are the odds for what should be an epic Championship Series clash:

Phillies vs. Padres Odds, Run Line and Total

Padres vs. Phillies Prediction and Pick

Darvish struggled in Game 2 against the Dodgers, allowing three home runs on seven hits in five innings of work, but the Padres were still able to get the win. However, Darvish has now allowed four big flies in two postseason starts, and that can be problematic against a Philadelphia team that can send balls over the fence.

The Phillies were sixth in slugging percentage this season (far better than the Padres 22nd ranking for that matter), and can put pressure on Darvish's vulnerability.

On the other side, Wheeler enters in fine form after missing a month this summer. While he allowed three earned runs in six innings of work in the Phillies only loss in the NLDS, it was on four hits and zero home runs. The Padres may be hitting well right now, but I question if they can handle Wheeler, who tossed seven innings of shutout baseball against San Diego earlier this season.

There is a very small difference between the two teams and I'm interested in backing either team at dog money, which in this case is the Phillies in Game 1. I give the edge to Wheeler on the mound and think they jump out to a 1-0 start.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.