After sweeping the San Diego Padres at Dodger Stadium, the Los Angeles Dodgers look to continue their hot streak as the Minnesota Twins come to town for a three-game series, with Pablo Lopez and Noah Syndergaard taking the bump in the Interleague series opener.
The sweep of the Padres put the Dodgers at a National League-best record of 26-15. They have won eight of their last 10, nine straight at Dodger Stadium and five consecutive series overall. Monday’s game is the Dodgers’ first Interleague action of the season.
Last season the Dodgers went 15-5 against the American League, which was tied with the Milwaukee Brewers for the best mark in baseball. Since the start of Interleague play in 1997, the Dodgers are 239-215 record (.526 winning percentage), which is the best mark amongst National League teams.
The Dodgers are 13-6 all-time against the Twins in Interleague play and swept both two-game series last season.
The Twins enter the series with the best record in a subpar American League Central division at 23-18. They rank 12th in the Majors in runs scored but are near the bottom in on-base percentage and strikeouts. Minnesota scores most of their runs via the home run.
Joey Gallo leads the team in homers (nine) and he has their highest on-base plus slugging at .910. Gallo is back at Dodger Stadium for the first time since signing with the Twins after finishing the 2022 season with the Dodgers.
The Twins get most of their wins from top-flight starting pitching. They are the top team in baseball with 404 strikeouts and their 3.29 ERA is tied for second.
Their starting pitching is led by a resurgent Sonny Gray, who is 4-0 with a minuscule 1.39 ERA and 1.08 WHIP. Third-year pitcher Joe Ryan has also emerged as a top starter. He is 6-1 with a 2.16 ERA and a 0.84 WHIP.
But the Dodgers first get a look at Pablo López, who they reportedly had interest in at the trade deadline last season. López is 2-2 with a 3.47 ERA and 1.07 WHIP in eight starts this season.
The Dodgers counter with Noah Syndergaard who is making his scheduled start despite a blister that limited him to only one inning in his previous game.
Syndergaard has had a tough time in his first season with the Dodgers, posting a 1-3 record and 6.12 ERA. His 4.75 FIP suggests some tough luck is a factor and it’s plausible Syndergaard has pitched slightly better than the results have yielded.
Syndergaard is expected to have Dermabond on his right index finger in order to prevent the cut/blister from opening.
Dodgers lineup
RF: Mookie Betts
1B: Freddie Freeman
C: Will Smith
3B: Max Muncy
DH: J.D. Martinez
CF: Jason Heyward
2B: Miguel Vargas
LF: David Peralta
SS: Miguel Rojas
Twins lineup
LF: Joey Gallo
1B: Alex Kirilloff
SS: Carlos Correa
DH: Byron Buxton
2B: Jorge Polanco
RF: Trevor Larnach
3B: Kyle Farmer
CF: Nick Gordon
C: Christian Vázquez
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