The second and final regular season series between the Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Dodgers starts Monday with the first of four games in the City of Angels. The Cubs took the series when these teams met in Chicago and the Dodgers will look to return the favor at home. Jon Lester beat the Dodgers in the series finale at Wrigley Field and figures to get the nod in Monday’s matchup opposite Kenta Maeda for Los Angeles.
First pitch for the game between the Cubs and Dodgers is scheduled for Monday, June 25, 2018, at 10:10 p.m. ET at Dodger Stadium. The matchup will be shown on ESPN.
You can bet on MLB odds at BookMaker.eu every day of the season.
Odds Analysis
The Cubs’ series win over the Dodgers last week improved the team’s record to 13-6 over their last 19 games and while that series was at home, Chicago has been just as good on the road as at home.
In home games, the Cubs are 21-14, they’re 21-15 on the road. That’s a good thing, too, as the Dodgers series is the fourth road series in Chicago’s last five series.
For the Dodgers, this series is a return home after a brief, two series road trip. Los Angeles, much like the Cubs, doesn’t have much of a home/road split. The Dodgers’ split is based more on the calendar. As fo May 16, they were 16-26. Since that time, the Dodgers have gone 22-9.
The improved play of the Dodgers has been all around. The hitting has improved, the defense has improved and, despite an injury riddled rotation, the pitching has improved, including the bullpen.
Los Angeles’ pen features Kenley Jansen in the ninth who is back to form after a rough April. He’s notched 18 saves and has a 0.921 WHIP and climbing strikeout rate. Setting him up has been a problem from time to time, but Erik Goeddel has been great since joining the club with one run in 15.1 innings.
For the Cubs, the bullpen has been one of the best in baseball all season. Brandon Morrow is sorely missed in Los Angeles, but has embraced the closer’s role in the Windy City. Unfortunately for the Cubs, he’s now on the DL due to an off-the-field injury.
Still, this pen is so deep, they can overcome the injury. Steve Cishek is a former closer with a 2.01 ERA. Pedro Strop has been hard to hit and Justin Wilson has closer experience, too, but offers a southpaw alternative to Chishek.
Probable Pitchers
The Dodgers are happy Maeda is off the disabled list and able to contribute again. He’s made two starts since a brief stint on the shelf, but he’s had mixed results in those two outings.
The righty went on the DL after just 1.2 innings in a start on May 29 against the Phillies and since coming off, L.A. is 2-0 in his starts, but he’s combined to throw just 8.2 innings, allowing five runs, walking eight and striking out only three batters.
Maeda’s last start came against this Cubs’ team and he went only 3.2 innings, allowing five hits and five walks. He limited the damage to three runs, but struggled mightily through 74 pitches, throwing only 40 for strikes.
Command has yet to come back for Maeda and while he’s got good stuff, he needs to locate to be successful.
On the season, Maeda is 4-4 with a 3.84 ERA and 3.20 FIP. His 1.393 WHIP is higher than his career norm, but his home run rate has been rather low.
Maeda will need to be on his game on Monday as he’s going against the ace of the Cubs, Jon Lester.
The veteran southpaw has experienced a renaissance after a down year last year. In 15 starts, he’s 9-2 with a 2.10 ERA. His WHIP is back down to 1.089 and while his walk rate is still elevated from what he produced in 2015 and 2016, his inducing weaker contact and doing a much better job working out of trouble.
Lester topped the Dodgers in his last start for his fifth win in as many starts, going seven scoreless innings and allowing just five hits. He did, however, walk three in the outing and only struck out one Dodger hitter. The low strikeouts shows that L.A. was at least able to make contact. A bit more luck for the hitters and things could have gone a bit differently.
Nevertheless, Lester is throwing the ball exceptionally well right now. He’s thrown 27 innings in four June starts with just two earned runs. He’s had three scoreless outings of seven innings and has allowed just 13 hits on the month.
Over a longer stretch, he’s thrown at least six innings in seven straight games and has six quality starts in that time. He’s a dependable innings eater who will allow Maddon to skip the middle inning relievers and go straight to the big boys at the end.
Live Betting
Dodgers bats are on fire in June as they desperately make up ground in a suddenly winnable NL West. This month, they have scored 99 runs in 17 games, ranking them fourth in MLB and third in the NL. By comparison, the Cubs have scored 30 fewer runs this month and sit at No.22 in runs scored on the month behind sellers like the Blue Jays, Tigers and Marlins.
Despite the downturn this month, the Cubs are still a potent offense. Jason Heyward has been a bit of an offensive albatross since signing his massive contract. While he’s a great defender, the Cubs have been able to get around his weak bat in previous seasons. He’s having a resurgence of sorts this year with a .335 OBP. He’s starting to hit, giving the Cubs a solid answer at every position. Joe Maddon also has some added depth with Ben Zobris and Ian Happ able to play a few different positions and spell the starts when needed without much of a downgrade on offense or defense.
Having essentially ten players for eight spots, Maddon is able to play matchups. He’s one of the best managers at getting the most out of his players and putting them in the best position to win. It’s no wonder he’s getting such production from everyone.
On the other side, the Dodgers have a similar situation. While early in the year it seemed that every move Dave Roberts made was the wrong one, things have really turned around recently.
Even with Corey Seager out for the year, the offense is surging. Chris Taylor is looking like he did in 2017 since moving to shortstop to cover for Seager. Matt Kemp has been a huge surprise and is batting .322 with 12 homers and a team leading 43 RBIs. Other surprising performers include Joc Pederson, Max Muncy, and, to a lesser extent, Yasiel Puig who was lost at the dish early in the year, but has bounced back to the tune of a 109 OPS+. In fact, Puig is one of eight players with at least 180 plate appearances and an OPS+ of at least 105.
MLB Pick
Yes, the Dodgers are rolling and they get to face the Cubs at home fresh off a road trip. A return to the west coast will be a welcome sight for L.A., but Chicago may hold the advantage on Monday given the pitching matchup.
It was Lester that was on the mound for the last meeting of these teams and the Cubs took that game. They’ll get another strong outing from their ace on Monday, holding the red-hot Dodgers’ bats at bay.
Meanwhile, look for the Cubs to score a few runs against Maeda. The righty struggled in his return from the DL and while he’ll likely be better on Monday, look for Lester to out duel him.
From there, the Cubs’ bullpen, even without Morrow, is strong enough to close the door and hand the Cubs Game 1 in this four-game series.
MLB Odds: Cubs 5, Dodgers 3
Load your betting bankroll from your smartphone with BookMaker’s new cashier feature! Depositing and withdrawing funds from your account has never been easier. BookMaker's live betting platform means you always have access to odds and lines to every sporting event. Click here and start wagering today!
