Article courtesy OddsShark (@OddsShark)
The Arizona Diamondbacks (67-66) have slim hopes of sneaking into the playoffs as a National League Wild Card team, but extending their three-game winning streak can only help their cause as they prepare to host the Los Angeles Dodgers (88-47) in an important four-game series starting on Thursday at Chase Field.
The Diamondbacks are consensus +175 home underdogs on the MLB odds at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com for the series opener, as they try to beat National League Cy Young Award contender Hyun-Jin Ryu.
Dodgers at Diamondbacks | OddsShark Matchup Report
Ryu (12-4, 2.00 ERA) and the Dodgers are -195 road favorites at sports betting sites even though he has slipped a bit in his past two starts, surrendering a combined 11 runs and 15 hits in just 10 innings of work. Ryu’s ERA has risen from 1.45, which it was after he pitched seven shutout innings against Arizona on Aug. 11.
The Diamondbacks counter with Merrill Kelly (9-13, 4.86 ERA), who has earned wins in two of his last three outings despite giving up six runs twice during that stretch. Kelly had previously gone nine starts without a win.
On Friday, Arizona’s Zac Gallen (2-4, 2.56) will oppose Los Angeles’ Tony Gonsolin (2-1, 2.74 ERA), as the NL West leaders continue to give their top starters a break to rest them for the postseason. Gonsolin has been outstanding though in his previous four games for the Dodgers, allowing a total of three runs and 12 hits in 19 innings of work.
Clayton Kershaw (13-3, 2.76 ERA) will then get the ball for Los Angeles on Saturday with rookie Dustin May (1-3, 4.07 ERA) in line to start on Sunday. The Dodgers should continue to be favored on the betting lines.
The Diamondbacks have lost four of the past five meetings in the series, according to the OddsShark MLB Database, along with nine of 13 going back to the end of March. That obviously does not bode well for their chances of making up ground in the NL Wild Card race, although they could find some success versus the Los Angeles bullpen.
The good news for Arizona is that Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen blew his seventh save on Wednesday, tying a career high. Los Angeles still ended up topping the San Diego Padres 6-4 in extra innings, but that should give the Diamondbacks at least a little confidence. Even with that victory, the Dodgers are just 3-3 in their last six games.
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