Are the Dodgers this good or are the San Diego Padres just bad? Based on the first series of the season, we can hand Los Angeles the NL West title. It doesn’t work that way, however, and the Giants will be much stiffer competition in their home-opening series. The heated rivals and favorites to claim the division meet for the first time.
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ODDS ANALYSIS
The Dodgers have to be bummed about leaving San Diego after a total annihilation during a season-opening three-game series. Clayton Kershaw got things started by throwing seven innings of one-hit ball at the Padres and the staff combined for three consecutive shutouts while surrendering just 12 hits. Not that Los Angeles needed the shutout pitching because the offense was scorching hot with 25 runs scored, 15 extra-base hits and 34 total hits. That production will not continue and the Dodgers have a history of struggling offensively at ATT Park.
Kershaw will be matched with Madison Bumgarner – again – when the teams play the third of a four-game set Saturday afternoon. The two faced each other on four occasions last season with the Giants winning three of those games. Bumgarner tossed 6.1 shutout innings and hit a home run off Kershaw in a 4-0 Giants win on May 21. Kershaw was masterful on Sep. 29 at ATT Park tossing a one-hit shutout with 13 strikeouts while Bumgarner took the loss in an 8-0 LA victory.
PROBABLE PITCHERS
Clayton Kershaw yielded just one single and one walk over seven shutout frames in Monday’s season-opening blowout over the Padres. Kershaw struck out nine and experienced little resistance from the overmatched San Diego lineup. He tossed 96 effortless pitches and could have gone longer, but the Dodgers elected to conserve his innings.
Kershaw went the distance in each of his last two starts against the Giants last season giving up just one run with 28 strikeouts and seven hits in 18 innings. His last visit to the Bay Area resulted in a one-hit shutout with 13 strikeouts.
Madison Bumgarner was getting over the flu and didn’t look like the MadBum we’re used to seeing on Opening Day on the Miller Park mound. Bumgarner surrendered three earned runs on five walks and five hits, but the Giants offense went off for 12 runs to get him the season-opening victory.
Bumgarner’s 13 career victories over the Dodgers are the most against any team. He started 21 of 22 career games against them with a 2.45 ERA in 139.2 innings while striking out 136. He went 2-2 with a 2.16 ERA and 35 strikeouts in 33.1 innings in five starts against LA last season.
LIVE BETTING
It’s easy to say that runs will be at a premium with this pitching matchup. Two of the top hurlers in the game face each other once again and both have had good amounts of success. Kershaw tossed a gem in ATT Park last September, giving up just one hit with 13 strikeouts in a complete game shutout, and he owns a microscopic 1.16 ERA and 0.79 WHIP over 109.0 career innings there. Bumgarner is pretty good when pitching at home and he’s had some time to recover from his flu-like symptoms that affected his opening day start. MadBum has pitched over 560 career innings at ATT Park and sports a 2.87 ERA.
QUICK PICK
The Dodgers struggled against the Giants last MLB season in San Francisco, dropping eight of 10 games. And who can forget that memorable three-game series in May when the Giants tossed three consecutive shutouts at them. Of course that was last year and those results have no bearing on this season, but this is a historic and bitter rivalry and both teams will be amped just a bit more when playing each other. That being said, Kershaw looked unhittable in his first outing and has had all kinds of success pitching at ATT Park. Bumgarner will not benefit from an offensive outburst like he did on Opening Day and Kershaw get a leg up on the competition for the Cy Young award.
MLB Odds: Los Angeles 4, San Francisco 2
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