A couple wins over the weekend aside, the Los Angeles Dodgers are still amid a disappointing start to their season. A game away from a World Series Championship last year, the Dodgers came out of the gate cold and have been riddle with injuries from Day 1. To get back in the hunt, the Dodgers need to beat the teams ahead of them and that includes Tuesday’s opponent, the Colorado Rockies. The Dodgers will host the Rockies on Tuesday in the second game of a three game set with Chad Bettis and Kenta Maeda lined up for the matchup.
First pitch for the game between the Rockies and Dodgers is scheduled for Tuesday, May 22, 2018, at 10:10 p.m. ET at Dodger Stadium. The matchup will be shown on ESPN.
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Odds Analysis
After struggling through series against the lowly Reds and rebuilding Marlins, the Dodgers put together a good series against the Nationals over the week to bring some optimism back to La La Land.
Of course, Los Angeles still faces an uphill battle given their dismal start to the season, but at least the team has been playing better since getting Justin Turner back. Perhaps it’s just coincidence or, maybe, Turner is that important to the confidence and clubhouse of this team.
In any case, the Dodgers are playing better which should at least make this series—and Tuesday’s Game 2—a more interesting spectacle.
Going back to Turner, he’s a crucial part in the positive vibe over the weekend. With Turner back in the order, it gives the team a bit better of a lineup.
The Dodgers have scored at least five runs in four of their last five games and missed on the fifth by a single run, winning that one 4-1 over the Nationals.
Los Angeles still has several holes in the lineup, but Turner has come off the DL hot and now with Codey Bellinger, Yasmani Grandal and Matt Kemp, there’s at least the start of a good lineup. When you factor in better at bats from Chris Taylor lately, too, this lineup isn’t a complete back hole like it once was.
Interestingly, the Rockies are a better team on the road than at home as the offense hasn’t been as good as expected. Colorado is 18-10 on the road, but just 7-11 at home. Of course, in the game’s most prolific offensive ballpark, a struggling offense isn’t the best recipe for success.
The Rockies have still outscored the Dodgers here on the season—and in May—but Colorado’s offense isn’t exactly the powerhouse we’re used to seeing.
With D.J. LeMahieu out, the table is often bare for Charlie Blackmon and Nolan Arenado. Trevor Story has provided pretty good protection with 10 homers, but his OBP is just respectable. David Dahl, who was hitting well since joining the team has cooled lately, too.
Probable Pitchers
Probably the best of the starters for the Rockies so far, Chad Bettis gets the ball on Tuesday. He brings a 4-1 record with a 3.27 ERA into action. The veteran of the rotation, Bettis has thrown 55 innings an dhas allowed just six homers despite his home park.
When Bettis is on the mound, the Rockies tend to win. He’s started nine games with Colorado winning six of those starts.
Those numbers are all excellent, but the peripherals are a bit less flattering. Bettis is not a strikeout pitcher. Despite pitching in an environment with more strikeouts than ever before, the righty has struck out just 5.7 per nine innings and with a 3.1 walk rate, that leaves him with a paltry 1.84 strikeout to walk ratio.
Bettis has done well in the BABIP department, too, keeping his WHIP in check at 1.200, but if some of those balls start dropping in, it’s reasonable to expect a bit of a regression. After all, his FIP is 4.38, solid, but not as good as the ERA, sitting more than a run lower.
Overall, Bettis is a solid pitcher off to a strong starter, but he’s got flaws and if the Dodgers can just put the ball in play against them, they could find some success. That’s where having a professional hitter like Turner back in the order helps.
On the other side, Kenta Maeda is the likely starter for the Dodgers, coming off a start where he retired 17 straight last start. He ended up going eight scoreless innings, allowing two hits and no walks against the Marlins.
He doesn’t typically go that deep into games. Since throwing out of the pen in the postseason, he’s been bringing a reliever’s mindset to the mound for his starts. He’s pitched well doing that, but—save for his last start—has generally been a five or six inning starter.
Overall, Maeda is 3-3 with a 3.89 ERA. He’s a better strikeout arm than Bettis with 54 in 44 innings and has allowed just four homes. He keeps the walks and homers in check which has led to a 2.83 FIP.
In his career against the Rockies, Maeda is 4-2 with a 2.56 ERA and 0.884 WHIP in 31.2 innings of work. He’s done well against Colorado in the past and is 2-for-14 in his career against Arenado with five strikeouts.
Live Betting
Based on pure stats, the Dodgers have the better bullpen. Los Angeles’ pen has a 4.40 ERA compared to a 4.54 mark for the Rockies.
Of course, Colorado has a worse park to deal with and given the two numbers are so close, it’s reasonable to give the edge, head-to-head, to the Rockies.
Still, the Dodgers pen is getting on track. A terrible start to the year is behind Kenley Jansen who is getting his strikeout rate back up and has been much better of late. The Dodgers are still struggling to find guys to set him up with Erik Goeddel the latest experiment.
While the depth in the pen is still an issue, Maeda should the team six solid innings. With Jansen lined up for three—or more—outs, the Dodgers just need to find six outs from someone. Pedro Baez and Josh Fields are viable options.
For the Rockies, the bullpen was a focus of the offseason. Jake McGee and Bryan Shaw were two big free agent signings, both pitching okay overall. The pen is really about Wade Davis and Adam Ottavino late. If the Rockies get to the seventh or eighth with the lead, they have this one in the bag. It’s just a question of getting there.
MLB Pick
The Dodgers haven’t been a good home team this year, but they’ve looked better the last few games and have Maeda on the mound who has been a reliable arm for them this year.
Look for Maeda to give Los Angeles six solid innings, turning the ball over to the bullpen with the lead. Whether they pen can hold the lead is an issue, but given the Rockies rank in the bottom third of the league in runs scored this month, despite their ballpark, look for the Dodgers to close this one out, winning at least the middle game of this three-game series.
The Dodgers still aren’t a good team, but they’re looking better and better is good enough to back them at home, given this pitching matchup.
MLB Odds: Dodgers 6, Rockies 4
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