Article courtesy OddsShark (@OddsShark)
After three consecutive series wins, the Los Angeles Dodgers (41-27) are starting to look like the defending World Series champions again, and that bodes well for their six-game road trip that begins on Friday night with three against the last-place Arizona Diamondbacks (20-50).
The only real concern for the Dodgers heading into this first series is not overlooking a bad Diamondbacks team that is riding a 14-game losing streak and opened as +196 home underdogs for the series opener on the baseball betting lines at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com with a three-game set at the San Diego Padres on deck.
Dodgers vs. Diamondbacks | OddsShark Matchup Report
There is very little good news for Arizona right now after setting an MLB record with the team’s 23rd straight road loss on Thursday, falling 10-3 to the San Francisco Giants as +190 underdogs (how the moneyline works). The Diamondbacks were swept in the four games at Oracle Park by a combined score of 37-20, with the last three easily going OVER the total. If anything, they should be happy to be back home, where they have gone 11-19 this season compared to 9-31 on the road.
Los Angeles dropped 2.5 games behind San Francisco for the lead in the National League West despite taking two of three from the Philadelphia Phillies, losing the series finale 2-0 as a -144 home favorite at sports betting sites on Wednesday. All three games versus Philadelphia finished UNDER the total.
The Dodgers have dominated this series recently, winning the past four meetings along with 11 of the last 12. Los Angeles and Arizona have been involved in a lot of low-scoring affairs lately too, with the UNDER going 4-1 in the previous five.
That could change in Friday’s opener though considering the starting pitchers have struggled so far this month. Trevor Bauer (6-5, 2.64 ERA) has gone 0-2 with a 5.11 ERA in June for the Dodgers, and Caleb Smith (2-2, 3.61 ERA) has a 4.40 ERA in his last three starts for the Diamondbacks.
On Saturday, it will be unbeaten Walker Buehler (6-0, 2.38 ERA) for Los Angeles against Arizona’s Matt Peacock (2-4, 5.26 ERA). Then on Sunday, Tony Gonsolin (0-0, 3.38 ERA) is expected to make his third start of the season for the Dodgers opposite an undecided starter for the Diamondbacks.
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