Subscribe
Follow Us
The New York Mets and the Los Angeles Dodgers will finish up a four-game series on Sunday afternoon. It's time to continue our MLB odds series and make a Mets-Dodgers prediction and pick.
These teams are on opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of recent success. The Mets have lost eight of their last ten games, dropping their last three series and the lead in the NL East. The Dodgers have won their last nine contests in a row, including pulling off a sweep of the Mets in that span. Los Angeles has closed the gap to 1.5 games in the NL West, and they'll soon take first place in the division if they keep up their winning ways.
Here's how the bookmakers have set the lines for Sunday's game.
MLB Odds: Mets-Dodgers Odds
*Watch MLB games LIVE with fuboTV (click for free trial)*
New York Mets ML (+159)
Los Angeles Dodgers (-173)
Over 8 1/2 runs (-115)
Under 8 1/2 runs (-105)
Why The Mets Could Cover The Spread
The Mets are missing their ace in Jacob DeGrom due to a forearm injury, but pitcher Marcus Stroman has done an admirable job filling DeGrom's shoes. Stroman has pitched well all season long, earning himself a 2.84 WHIP and a 1.12 WHIP on the year. Los Angeles should have a tough time hitting Stroman, especially since the Dodgers are a much worse offense when they play at home. Los Angeles sees a drop in their batting average, OBP, OPS, and slugging percentage whenever they play in Dodger Stadium.
The Dodgers will deploy starting pitcher David Price in this series finale. Price has been utilized out of the bullpen for most of the season, but injuries to the Dodgers pitching rotation have force the lefty back into a starting role. Price has had some success in his return to the rotation, but he struggles to go deep into games. Price typically lasts four or five innings, which means the Dodgers will rely on their bullpen for a big portion of this game.
Asking any bullpen to pitch five solid innings expecting a lot, but especially this Los Angeles bullpen that has five relievers on the IL. This struggling Mets offense should be able to take advantage of this weakened Dodger bullpen and put up some runs late in the game.
Why The Dodgers Could Cover The Spread
On paper, the Dodgers face an intimidating matchup in Mets pitcher Marcus Stroman. In reality, this Los Angeles lineup has plenty of edges on New York's starter. Stroman allows a 42.9% hard hit percentage, a number that's on the higher end of the spectrum. The Dodgers have six hitters in their lineup that have above-average hard-hit percentages and barrel percentages. This is a recipe for plenty of extra-base hits and home runs against Stroman, so don't expect this Los Angeles offense to struggle to put up runs via the long ball.
The Dodgers don't have an ideal pitching situation, but they do face an ideal opponent. The Mets have been completely terrible on offense throughout the entire season, ranking in the bottom ten in baseball in batting average, slugging percentage, OBP, and OPS. New York has had trouble against almost every pitcher they've faced, which should be encouraging to the Los Angeles relievers who will have to pitch the majority of this game.
Final Mets-Dodgers Prediction & Pick
You have to ride momentum in most sports, and baseball is no different. Picking against the Dodgers when they've won nine straight and they're the better team is impossible. Los Angeles should complete their second sweep of the Mets in as many weeks on Sunday afternoon.
FINAL PICK: Los Angeles Dodgers ML (-173)
