Game Time:  1:00 pm ET, Wednesday, April 13th, 2022 

Venue: Target Field, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Where to Watch: Bally Sports North, MLB Extra Innings, Spectrum SportsNet

DraftKings: Moneyline: Dodgers -169 ** Twins +150; O/U 8.5

 BetMGM: Moneyline:   Dodgers -164 ** Twins +138; O/U 9

PointsBet: Moneyline:

Dodgers: 1-2, 4th place NL West

Twins: 2-2, 3rd place AL Central

An MLB Inter-league matchup.  The season is desperately young.  The numbers are all speculative so far… based almost entirely on last season’s performances.  Yet every ball club has a few fresh faces called up from the Minors.. Every ball club has lost a vet or two… Every ball club picked up a guy here and there.  Yet now is now… and though early now is important.  Last season the Dodgers won 100+ games but did not win the NL West.  That honor went to the San Francisco Giants who won a smidgeon more.  The Dodgers have opened the season 1-2… Will they again regret it at the finish line.  The Minnesota Twins finished in last place in the AL Central last season. The Twins racked up 89 losses last season.  There have not been too many major changes in Minnesota.

The Los Angeles Dodgers were the losing team in last season’s World Series… They had to beat the dreaded San Francisco Giants to get there. In response to losing the World Series to the Atlanta Braves… The Dodgers went out and picked up Freddie Freeman… Freddie was the Braves best hitter by far… He led that team in batting average, hits, and home runs.  He will have real competition for those marks as a member of the Dodgers.  He will enter a lineup that has Mookie Betts, Trea Turner, Cody Bellinger, etc etc.  The Dodgers do not suffer for offense and they got more.  In their opening 3 game series with the Colorado Rockies the Dodgers only won 1 game.  (They are tied with the Twins 1-1 in the 7th as press time nears).  The game we will be wagering on is Game 2 of the Dodgers/Twins series.

Minnesota opened the season with a four-game series against the Seattle Mariners.  The Twins went 2-2.  Seattle won the first two netting Twins starting pitchers Joe Ryan and Sonny Gray losses to start 2022.  Seattle then won two games giving wins to Starters Bailey Ober and Dylan Bundy.  Beating Seattle is not really anything to write home about… but for Minnesota going .500 in the first series is a good enough start.  

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The Dodgers are 17th in runs scored with 3.67 per game, 13th in batting average with .238, and 

24th in OBP with .283.  

The Twins are 14th in runs scored with 4.50 per game, 17th in batting Average, and 17th in OBPO with .298

The Dodgers have struggled from the mound so far with a team ERA of 4.32 for 21st in the league.  If it stays that way trades and call ups will be needed.

The Twins have gotten off to a fine start from the mound: 4th in the league in ERA with 2.50… A glaring problem is the errors.  They already have 4 in 4 games for 29th place in the league… get it right, keep it tight boys.

Our prediction for Wednesday April 13th is... Dodgers 9 - Twins 2

The Dodgers are going to break out against Chris Paddock.  They are a raging fire from the plate that has only been smoldering in the cold air in the Colorado series.  A day game in the spring will light up the strike zone and the boys in blue will take turns cracking it deep. 

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There have been no past matchups between these teams the last 3 seasons.

Clayton Kershaw has never pitched against the Minnesota Twins his entire career.

The Dodgers are 9-0 in an inter-league game when Clayton Kershaw is pitching the last 3 years.

The Dodgers are 83-30 in day games since 1997 (+34.2 Units)

Minnesota is 30-44 against left handed starters the last 3 seasons. (-24.1 Units).

Dodgers: Lefty Los Angeles legend Clayton Kershaw will take the mound.  For more than a  decade Clayton has been the Dodgers ACE, while also ranking as the best pitcher in baseball most seasons.  He has 185 career wins to 84 losses.. And 2670 career strikeouts in 2454.2 innings pitched, all of them for the Dodgers.  His body has been breaking down the last two seasons… age has crept in.  He is not the merciless flamethrower that he once was… still if the off-season rest and rehabilitation has him even back to close to normal… He’s still a Hall of Famer pitching against the Twins.

Twins: Righty Chris Paddock will take the mound for Minnesota.  26 years old… completely unheralded. 20 wins, 19 losses and a 4.21 ERA for a career that has only seen 308 inning pitched so far. He does have good strikeout numbers… 310 in 308 innings… a 1.13 WHIP.  He should do neck stretching exercises before this game… so he doesn’t hurt himself craning to see where they all land.

Dodgers: RF Mookie Betts, 1B Freddie Freeman, SS Trea Turner, DH Max Muncy, 3B Justin Turner, C Will Smith, CF Cody Bellinger, LF Chris Taylor, 2B Gavin Lux, 

Twins: CF Byron Buxton, SS Carlos Correa, 3B Luis Arraez, 2B Jorge Polanco, DH Gio Urshela, RF Max Kepler, C Gary Sanchez, 1B Miguel Sano, LF Alex Krilloff

Dodgers: Dave Roberts

Twins: Rocco Baldelli

Soggy field tomorrow as there is a Severe Thunderstorm Watch tonight. Game time tomorrow will be partly cloudy but not raining… with a high of 48*.   It is still amazing that these leagues allow teams in rotten weather zones to go without domes.  Build a dome or move the team.