The Dodgers look to complete the three-game sweep of the Cardinals on Wednesday afternoon. On Tuesday night, the Dodgers won 3-1 behind another solid outing by Clayton Kershaw, who went seven innings, allowing only four hits and one run while striking out nine. LA’s offense was led by Justin Turner, who had two hits, including a go-ahead double in the third.
Jack Flaherty (5-6, 3.93 ERA) will go to the mound for St. Louis coming off his best start of the season. He went seven innings, allowing only one hit and no runs against the Cubs in his last outing. The Dodgers will counter with Dustin May (0-1, 4.76 ERA), who will be making his second major league start.
The Dodgers are the slight favorites at -125 and the over/under is 8.5.
Trying To Chase Down The Cubs
Oh, how things have changed in less than a week. The Cardinals were coming off a series victory of their NL Central rival Chicago Cubs and sitting alone in first place by one game just five days ago. Now they find themselves 2.5 games behind Chicago with a record of 58-54. The Cardinals are 27-31 on the road.
Flaherty has been back to his old form since the All-Star break. In the five games since then, he has an ERA of only 1.15. In the five starts, he has only surrendered two home runs, which was a big problem in the first half. Flaherty defeated the Dodgers earlier in the season, allowing only three hits and one run over six innings. He is 1-1 in his career with a 1.50 ERA in three career starts against LA.
The Cardinals have never seen May and aren’t quite as good against right-handed pitching on the season with an OPS of only .714 compared to .732 against lefties. Marcell Ozuna leads the team with a .872 OPS against right-handed pitching, including 16 of his homers.
The Cardinals have Tyler O’Neill and Yadier Molina on the IL, and Alex Reyes is listed as day-to-day.
Dodgers Gearing Up For Postseason
The Dodgers seem to be firing on all cylinders. The only real question for LA is who they will face in the first round of the playoffs. Their starting pitching and hitting are as deep as any team in baseball, and everyone they call up produces. About the only player slumping at all is Cody Bellinger, who is one for his last 15, and his average has dropped to a season-low .322. The Dodgers enter the game with a record of 76-40 and are 45-15 at home.
May was really good for the first five innings in his major league debut, then surrendered the lead in the sixth to the Padres. He went 5 2/3 innings, allowing nine hits and four runs, three of which were earned. May is regarded as the Dodgers’ top pitching prospect.
Flaherty has had the Dodgers’ number, as they are a combined 5 for 34 against him, with only Joc Pederson having an OPS over .500. Pederson is 3 for 9 with two homers off of Flaherty.
LA has Rich Hill, Alex Verdugo, Hyun-Jin Ryu, and Ross Stripling on the IL, and AJ Pollock is listed as day-to-day.
The Pick
I anticipate a bit off a mix-and-match lineup for LA, which will probably give a few guys the day off. I could see Bellinger getting a blow today and a few others as well. Flaherty has been absolutely on fire since the break, and St. Louis is desperate for a win. The Cardinals are 33-18 as underdogs. I really like the Cardinals’ chances in this one at +115.
