MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (Interstat) — The Miami Marlins (52-51) host the San Diego Padres (50-53) at 7:10 p.m. Friday at loanDepot Park in the opener of a three-game series. The forecast calls for 85 degrees with clouds. San Diego arrives after a 5-6 loss Thursday at Atlanta, while Miami fell 5-2 Wednesday at Houston. The Padres have lost four straight, all against the Braves. The Marlins have dropped four of five. Padres left-hander Yuki Matsui, a player to watch, has yielded two earned runs over his past three appearances spanning 3 2/3 innings, striking out five. In Thursday’s loss, he pitched 1 1/3 hitless innings with one strikeout. Across his last 10 outings, Matsui has a 3.86 ERA, allowing six earned runs in 14 innings with 11 strikeouts. Marlins right-hander Calvin Faucher is also a key figure. He threw a scoreless inning with two strikeouts Wednesday. However, he has been inconsistent, surrendering four earned runs in 2/3 of an inning July 18 at Milwaukee and four earned runs in 1/3 of an inning July 2 at Colorado. In his other seven July appearances, he has allowed two earned runs in 7 2/3 innings with seven strikeouts. Interstat’s game simulator projects a 4-1 Padres victory. Miami is a -1.5 favorite, with the over/under set at 9. The series continues Saturday and Sunday before Miami hosts Philadelphia for three games starting Monday. San Diego returns home for a six-game homestand against Colorado and San Francisco beginning Tuesday.