The 2020 Major League Baseball season is finally here, and one of the best rivalries in the sport will kick things off on Opening Day. The Los Angeles Dodgers will host the San Francisco Giants in a battle of two of the most accomplished teams over the last decade.
With that said, these two teams are in very different places heading into 2020. Los Angeles is one of the favorites to win the World Series, and the San Francisco Giants might be one of the worst teams in baseball. FanDuel Sportsbook has the Dodgers at -310 in the season opener, but anything can happen on a given night.
Giants Offense Without Two Key Pieces
The San Francisco Giants were expected to struggle on offense during the 2020 regular season even with a full lineup. San Francisco will be without both Evan Longoria and Buster Posey, and that takes away two of their top bats. The Giants struggled to score runs a season ago, and that trend is likely to continue this season, especially against a pitcher like Kershaw.
Johnny Cueto has put up some big numbers during his MLB career, and he was an easy choice to pitch on opening day for the Giants. The hard-throwing right hander is still working his way back from Tommy John surgery, but he is a dynamic pitcher when fully healthy.
San Francisco has a ton of issues in the bullpen, and they will need Cueto to go deep in this game if they want a chance to knock off the Dodgers. The Giants simply cannot afford to get into a slug fest with their rivals.
Kershaw Gets Start For Dodgers
Veteran Clayton Kershaw gets the start for the Dodgers, but manager Dave Roberts had a number of intriguing options.The left hander went 16-5 with a 3.04 earned run average a season ago, and he has made a career of beating the Giants.
The Los Angeles Dodgers were already the most feared offense in the National League a season ago, and then they went out and signed Mookie Betts. Los Angeles could have set some offensive records this season if there was a full 162-game schedule.
Cody Bellinger is the reigning MVP of the National League, but the Dodgers have multiple candidates that can win that award this season.
Dodgers Offense Simply Too Explosive
Having Johnny Cueto on the mound will give the Giants a chance to keep this game close, but he is unlikely to go all nine innings. At some point, another pitcher will take the mound, and the Dodgers will be ready to pounce.
The addition of Mookie Betts makes this lineup almost impossible to shut down, and they will have some big offensive games throughout the year. The Dodgers won’t need to do a ton of scoring with Kershaw on the mound, and that combination will pick up a win in the season opener.
Head to FanDuel and bet on the Los Angeles Dodgers -310 over the San Francisco Giants.
