The Los Angeles Dodgers (28-17) play the 2nd game of a 4-game series against the St. Louis Cardinals (19-26) on Friday at Busch Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 8:15 p.m. ET. Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the Dodgers vs. Cardinals odds and make our expert MLB picks and predictions for the best bets.
Season series: Dodgers lead 3-1
The Dodgers were blown out 16-8 by the Cardinals Thursday in the series opener. Los Angeles is 7-3 in its last 10 contests and is 2.5 games ahead of the Arizona Diamondbacks for 1st place in the NL West.
The Cardinals hit 7 home runs in Thursday’s victory. 3B Nolan Arenado remains one of the hottest hitters in baseball recently and has hit a home run in 6 of his last 7 games.
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Dodgers at Cardinals projected starters
RHP Tony Gonsolin vs. LHP Steven Matz
Gonsolin (1-1, 1.42 ERA) makes his 5th start. He has a 0.95 WHIP, 2.8 BB/9 and 7.6 K/9 through 19 IP.
- Outside of allowing 3 ER on May 1 vs. the Philadelphia Phillies, he hasn’t given up an ER in his other 3 starts
- Has registered 6-plus K’s in back-to-back starts
Matz (0-4, 5.62 ERA) makes his 9th start. He has a 1.61 WHIP, 3.5 BB/9 and 8.0 K/9 through 41 2/3 IP.
- Has surrendered 3-plus ER in 5 of his first 8 starts
- Owns a 3-1 record with a 3.68 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, and 10.4 K/9 in 5 career starts against the Dodgers
Dodgers at Cardinals odds
Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 8:53 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Dodgers -130 (bet $130 to win $100) | Cardinals +105 (bet $100 to win $105)
- Run line (RL)/Against the spread (ATS): Dodgers -1.5 (+125) | Cardinals +1.5 (-155)
- Over/Under (O/U): 8.5 (O: -120 | U: +100)
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Dodgers at Cardinals picks and predictions
Prediction
Dodgers 6, Cardinals 4
Moneyline
With the struggles that Matz has had on the mound this season, the DODGERS (-130) are the pick in Friday’s matchup. The Dodgers are 11-9 on the road this season compared to the Cardinals being 8-14 at home.
Los Angeles is also 5-0 in Gonsolin’s last 5 road starts against a team with a losing record and is 5-1 in the last 6 meetings with St. Louis overall.
Run line/Against the spread
DODGERS -1.5 (+125) has solid value with Gonsolin performing well in recent starts since returning from an injury. While the Dodgers struggled against southpaws earlier this season, they have the 8th-best wRC+ (134) against left-handed pitchers in May (195 plate appearances).
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Over/Under
OVER 8.5 (-120) is how I’d wager on the run total with the Dodgers performing better against lefties recently. The Dodgers are 5-1-1 to the Over in Gonsolin’s last 5 starts against teams from the NL Central and the Cardinals are 6-3 to the Over in their last 9 games overall.
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