Follow Us
The Los Angeles Angels take on the Los Angeles Dodgers. Check out our MLB odds series for our Angels Dodgers prediction and pick.
Reid Detmers goes to the mound for the Angels, while Tyler Anderson takes the bump for the Dodgers.
Reid Detmers threw a no-hitter against the Rays in the second week of May. Since then, he has pitched more than 4 1/3 innings in only one of his starts. His short outings, while not bad (his last two starts were scoreless performances), have taxed an Angel bullpen which has been tagged for repeated late-inning rallies by opponents, creating a perfect storm of misery for the Halos, who have lost 17 of their last 19 games and continue to lose ground in the American League wild card race. It is notable that Detmers has not been pitching every fifth day, either. His no-hitter was on May 10. His next starts have been on May 17, May 25, June 2, and June 8. The Angels are clearly trying to give him extra rest between starts, and that’s in spite of the fact that he isn’t pitching deep into most games.
Tyler Anderson gave up four runs and lasted only three innings in his most recent start on June 9 versus the White Sox. Anderson had allowed just two runs over 27 innings in his previous four starts. His 3.07 ERA would be a lot lower if not for that outing against the White Sox plus a seven-run trainwreck against the Phillies on May 12. Anderson allowed a total of 11 runs in those two starts. In his other nine starts this year, he has allowed a grand total of just nine runs. He has given the Dodgers a needed boost in their rotation while Clayton Kershaw and Walker Buehler have dealt with injuries.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Angels-Dodgers MLB odds.
MLB Odds: Angels-Dodgers Odds
Los Angeles Angels: +1.5 (-115)
Los Angeles Dodgers: -1.5 (-104)
Over: 9 (-104)
Under: 9 (-118)
*Watch MLB Games LIVE with fuboTV (click for free trial)
Why The Angels Could Cover the Spread
The Angels have played horribly the past two and a half weeks, but the Dodgers are not playing well in their own right. The Dodgers left a Tournament of Roses Parade number of runners on base this past Saturday and Sunday in a pair of brutal losses to the Giants. Then they were shut down by the Angels on Tuesday, save for one early run and an eighth-inning solo homer by Mookie Betts, who scored his first run for the Dodgers since June 3. The Blue Crew has gone into a noticeable slump at the plate, and until the Dodgers wake up, it’s perfectly reasonable to pick against them. They’re going to wake up at some point, but when? It didn’t happen against Angel pitching Tuesday night. The Halos’ relievers were able to overpower Dodger hitters with fastballs, a sign that Dodger batters are simply not confident. They don’t trust themselves to catch up to heat; normally, they would eat fastballs for breakfast.
Why The Dodgers Could Cover the Spread
After yet another bad game at the plate, the Dodgers — who have been absolutely horrendous over the past three games with runners in scoring position, and who have lost nine of their last 14 games — have to be sick and tired of their level of performance. The Dodgers have had bad weeks of baseball earlier in the season, notably their three straight home-field losses to the Phillies. They pulled out of that tailspin with a strong week. They can certainly pull out of a nosedive this week and regain the level of form they displayed when they forged a 33-14 record. Tyler Anderson has been very good for them, and he gives the Dodgers a great chance to win convincingly in this game. It comes down to the top of the order’s ability to get a good start to this game and set the right tone.
Final Angels-Dodgers Prediction & Pick
If you read our pick for Tuesday night’s game, we went under nine runs, and that worked out well. It’s true that the Dodgers’ bats could come alive and score seven runs in this game, roasting the under, but until the Dodgers start hitting better with RISP, the under remains a solid play.
Final Angels-Dodgers Prediction & Pick: Under 9