Article courtesy OddsShark (@OddsShark)
The Los Angeles Dodgers (55-27) are coming off their first series loss since June 11 when they were swept in two games by the Los Angeles Angels.
But despite dropping two of three games on the road to the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Dodgers should feel very confident about visiting the Colorado Rockies (42-38) for a four-game set starting on Thursday because they have won the past 11 meetings, according to the OddsShark MLB Database. Plus, Los Angeles will have its top four starting pitchers available.
Opening the series for the Dodgers will be second-year star Walker Buehler (8-1, 2.96 ERA), who struck out a career-high 16 batters the last time he faced the Rockies on Friday, allowing just three hits – including two solo home runs – in earning the first complete-game victory of his career.
Dodgers at Rockies | OddsShark Matchup Report
While Buehler improved to a perfect 3-0 at home and lowered his ERA there to 3.05, he has actually been better on the road with a 5-1 mark and 2.87 ERA in eight outings. He is also 2-0 versus Colorado this year with a 1.93 ERA, holding the opposition to a .128 batting average. Sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com have Los Angeles listed as a -209 road favorite for the opener on the MLB odds.
Opposing Buehler as a +179 home underdog for the Rockies will be Peter Lambert (2-0, 5.85 ERA), and he has struggled in his last two starts after winning his first two. Lambert has surrendered 11 runs and 16 hits in just eight innings combined over his past two outings, walking away with a no-decision each time.
That includes a 5-4 loss to the Dodgers last time out on Saturday with him giving up three runs in five innings of work.
If Colorado is going to end an 11-game series skid here at home, the team will likely need to find a way to get to Buehler, Hyun-Jin Ryu (9-1, 1.27 ERA), Clayton Kershaw (7-1, 3.07 ERA) or Kenta Maeda (7-4, 3.76 ERA) on Thursday, Friday, Saturday or Sunday, respectively.
The best bet for the Rockies may be on Saturday when they send Jon Gray (8-5, 3.92 ERA) to the mound opposite Kershaw. Gray has gone 3-1 in seven games at Coors this season with a 3.47 ERA, and the OVER is also 3-1 in the previous four games between the teams there overall. Colorado rebounded from a three-game sweep at Los Angeles last weekend by taking two of three from the San Francisco Giants.
Check out OddsShark on Twitter and Instagram or head to YouTube for analysis on this week’s top games. As well, the OddsShark Computer serves up daily MLB picks for bettors.
