The Diamondbacks are on a mission to complete a three-game sweep against the Dodgers on Wednesday, October 11, at Chase Field. This National League Divisional Series matchup is shaping up to be the biggest surprise of the 2023 MLB playoff after Arizona won the first two games and is at the threshold to secure a National League finals.
Most apps for sports betting are not giving up on the Dodgers, allocating them a 1.5-point favorite status. The divisional rivalry will heat up for Game 3, and the Dodgers 8-5 regular season record is no longer a valid indicator of what we can expect from this postseason series.
The Diamondbacks Have the Momentum
Arizona shocked the Dodgers in the two opening games of the NLDS, defeating them 11:2 in Game 1 and 4:2 in Game 2. Now the action is shifting to Los Angeles, but the Diamondbacks don’t look like they’ll lose their competitive edge, and the pressure is on the Dodgers not to end the series so early. The Diamondbacks’ manager is not riding the success wave but believes his team must stay focused and patiently play out the series.
“We will take nothing for granted. We will continue to stay humble and work very hard,” said manager Torey Lovullo.
The starting pitcher for Game 3 is still undecided. However, the batters are dependable, with Corbin Carroll having the team’s best batting average of .285, and in the last 5 games, Carrol has 2 homers and 6 walks. Other reliable sources of runs are Christian Walker, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., and Ketel Marte, just some of the players responsible for the Diamondbacks positive 11-run differential in this series.
The Dodgers Are Fighting an Uphill Battle
Playing at home will give the Dodgers a slight advantage, but they still have to outrun the Diamondbacks. The starting pitcher will be Lance Lynn, who played 24 games this season with a 13-11 record and an ERA of 5.73. The veteran pitcher was the biggest acquisition before the trade deadline. However, it's not an encouraging sign that Lynn has given up 44 home runs this season, the most by any pitcher in the MLB this season.
“It’s not what we envisioned, to be two down. But that’s where we’re at. We’ve got to take it one game at a time and go get them on Wednesday,” said first baseman Freddie Freeman.
Mookie Betts is the player who should keep the Dodgers in the game, and so far has recorded 39 home runs, ranking 7th in the MLB. It’s going to be a hard fought battle to climb out of the hole the Dodgers dig for themselves.
Betting Prediction and Odds
Sportsbooks with best free bets offers are providing -148 odds on a moneyline bet for the Dodgers and +124 odds for the Diamondbacks. The run line is as follows: +110 odds on the Dodgers to cover the -1.5 runs, while Arizona gets -130 odds to cover its +1.5 run line. The Total is 9.5 runs with -118 odds for the Over and -102 odds for the Under. With the Dodgers starting pitcher's generosity for home runs, the Over appears to be a good bet.
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