Article courtesy OddsShark (@OddsShark)
A year ago around this time, the Los Angeles Dodgers (71-39) went all-in to win the National League pennant and the World Series when they acquired Manny Machado from the Baltimore Orioles in an effort to push them over the top.
This season’s MLB trade deadline came and went on Wednesday with the Dodgers doing very little to improve an already imposing team, as many experts have labeled them losers for not doing enough heading into a four-game series against the San Diego Padres (50-57).
Regardless, Los Angeles remains a strong favorite to win its third consecutive NL pennant and even bigger chalk on the MLB odds for Thursday’s series opener versus San Diego.
Padres at Dodgers | OddsShark Matchup Report
Ironically, Machado left the Dodgers in the offseason and signed a huge free-agent deal with the Padres, who have not been close to contending for a playoff spot all season. Los Angeles is listed as a -200 home favorite (bet $200 to win $100) at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com for Thursday with three-time Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw (9-2, 2.85 ERA) on the mound, and starting pitching is what the team is counting on now.
On Friday, Los Angeles is expected to give the ball to its top prospect Dustin May (3-0, 2.30 ERA in five starts at Triple-A Oklahoma City). The 21-year-old former third-round pick of the Dodgers could have easily been dealt to another team for bullpen help or another veteran starter, but they chose to stand pat instead and hold onto him.
May joins a rotation already featuring Kershaw, probable Saturday starter Walker Buehler (9-2, 3.38 ERA), Sunday starter Kenta Maeda (7-8, 4.07 ERA) and Cy Young candidate Hyun-Jin Ryu (11-2, 1.66 ERA).
Like most other teams, the Padres simply cannot compete with that, which is one of the reasons they reside near the bottom of the NL West standings. San Diego is just 5-12 since the MLB All-Star break but has surprisingly won the past three meetings in this series with Los Angeles after going a dismal 2-12 in the previous 14, according to the OddsShark MLB Database.
The UNDER is also on a 5-0 run in the last five games between the teams after the OVER went 8-1-1 at online betting sites in the prior 10 meetings.
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