The San Diego Padres are gearing up for a massive four-game series against the rival Los Angeles Dodgers following a few frustrating games.San Diego was swept by the Chicago Cubs, with the final game finishing in a 23-3 blowout. This team has now lost five straight games, including two of three against the Dodgers last weekend at Petco Park.This will be the third time the two sides have played each other, with the Dodgers taking both series so far. But now the scene shifts over to Dodger Stadium, and the Padres will look to play spoiler over the holiday weekend.The Padres come into this matchup with a record of 43-42, while the Dodgers sit at 56-31, holding a 12-game lead in the National League West.Padres vs Dodgers Pitching ProbablesThursday, July 2: RHP Randy Vásquez vs RHP Roki Sasaki Vásquez will take the ball to open the series, and he will be looking for a better effort than his last outing. The right-hander faced off against Los Angeles last week, getting rocked for seven runs (five earned) on eight hits over 3.1 innings.For the Padres to set the tone of this series, Vásquez is going to need to pitch more like he did early in the year. At one point, he was the most consistent arm for the Padres, but the good start has quickly fallen off, with him now registering an ERA of 4.44 over 81 innings.As for Sasaki, he also didn't perform well in his last outing. Sasaki allowed three runs over four innings against the Padres, so San Diego may be able to take advantage of his issues again.Overall, he has a 4.88 ERA across 72 innings this season.Friday, July 3: RHP Michael King vs RHP Shohei OhtaniThe Padres will turn to King in the second game, and his struggles have really set this team back lately. Overall, King has an ERA of 3.55 over 96.1 innings, but he's given up at least three runs in six of his previous seven starts.Against the Dodgers last week, King went 4.1 innings, allowing four runs on four hits.Friday is arguably the toughest matchup for the Padres in this series, as they'll face Ohtani on the mound. Ohtani has been fantastic for the Dodgers this season, posting an ERA of 1.58 over 13 starts.He was originally scheduled to pitch on Wednesday, but the Dodgers pushed him back to Friday.Saturday, July 4: RHP Griffin Canning vs RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto Canning takes the mound on the Fourth of July, hoping to help spark some fireworks for the Padres. The right-hander has heavily underperformed of late, seeing his ERA balloon to 7.09 for the season.His last start provided some hope, however, as Canning threw 4.1 innings, allowing two runs against the Cubs. If he can put together this type of performance, the Padres may have a chance in the game.The Dodgers will be sending Yamamoto out on the mound, and he's holding an ERA of 2.67 for the year. The World Series MVP is having another strong season for Los Angeles, allowing two runs over six innings last week against the Padres.Sunday, July 5: LHP JP Sears vs RHP Emmet SheehanSears will get the ball in the finale, and he'll be trying to bounce back from a poor outing against the Cubs. The left-hander allowed seven runs (six earned) over 4.2 innings in his second start for the team this season.His initial game for the Padres against the Atlanta Braves provided some hope for the rotation, but that quickly faded. The veteran now holds an ERA of 6.97 over two starts.The Dodgers will counter with Sheehan, who pitched well against the Padres this past weekend despite his own struggles in the last few weeks. The right-hander went five innings, allowing just one run while striking out five.Overall, he has a 5.08 ERA across 72.2 innings this season.How to Watch Padres vs Dodgers July 2-July 5First pitch for Thursday's series opener is 7:10 p.m. PT/10:10 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on Padres.TV, SportsNet LA and in the MLB app.First pitch for Friday's game is 7:10 p.m. PT/10:10 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on Padres.TV, SportsNet LA and in the MLB app.First pitch for Saturday's game is 7:10 p.m. PT/10:10 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on Padres.TV, SportsNet LA and in the MLB app.First pitch for Sunday's series finale is 4:20 p.m. PT/7:20 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on NBC/Peacock.Sign up for our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X/Twitter for the latest newsAdd us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow