Two National League West rivals will do battle at Dodger Stadium when the Arizona Diamondbacks take on the Los Angeles Dodgers Wednesday. Both teams are in the hunt for a playoff spot at the moment. The moneyline on this game is Dodgers -260.
D-Backs Stuck Around .500
The Arizona Diamondbacks come into play mired at the .500 mark on the season with a 43-44 record. This puts the Diamondbacks in third place in the division, 15 games behind the Dodgers. Arizona came into this series off a weekend series where they split four games with the last-place Giants. If they are going make a run, those are games they have to win.
On Wednesday, they will send right-hander Merrill Kelly to the mound. Kelly is 7-8 on the season with a 4.00 ERA. He has struck out 79 hitters in 99 innings. He lost his last outing Friday when he gave up three runs on seven hits and two strikeouts over five innings to the Giants. He has never faced the Dodgers.
The Diamondbacks’ offense is led by All-Star Ketel Marte. Marte is hitting .309 with 20 home runs and 52 RBI. Third baseman Eduardo Escobar is hitting .292 with 18 home runs and 64 RBI. As a team, the Diamondbacks are hitting .258, good for fifth in the National League.
Dodgers Look to Continue Home Dominance
The Los Angeles Dodgers come into play Wednesday with a dominant record at home. They are an eye-popping 26 games over .500 at home with a 35-9 record. The Dodgers ended a string of 18 games in 18 days on Sunday by defeating the Colorado Rockies. In that game, third baseman Justin Turner was hit by a pitch on the forearm. X-rays were negative, but he did not play Tuesday night.
On Wednesday, they will send righty Walker Buehler to the mound, who is looking for his ninth win of the season. He is 8-1 with a 3.43 ERA. He has struck out 104 hitters in 97 innings pitched. In his last outing, he got roughed up in a no-decision against Colorado. He allowed seven runs on 13 hits in 5 2/3 innings. In his last outing against Arizona, he allowed one run over eight innings and struck out 11 in a winning effort.
All-Star rightfielder Cody Bellinger leads the Dodgers offense. Bellinger has done it all in the first half of the season, hitting .346 with 27 home runs and 67 RBI. Centerfielder Alex Verdugo is hitting .311 with nine home runs and 37 RBI, while Turner is hitting .301 with nine home runs and 33 RBI. The Dodgers have eight players with at least 30 RBI.
Prediction Time
The Dodgers are dominant at home. They have been all year, and they will continue that dominance on Wednesday night. Take the Dodgers in this one.
