Game Time: 10:10 pm ET, Monday, May 30th, 2022 

Venue: Dodgers Stadium, Los Angeles, California

Where to Watch: MLBN

 

DraftKings: Dodgers -323, Pirates +250; O/U 8

Caesars: NL

PointsBet: Dodgers -345, Pirates +265; O/U 8

Dodgers: 31-14, 1st place NL West

Pirates: 19-26, 3rd place NL Central

A Memorial Day MLB National League matchup between the Best in the West and a Central team that is sinking fast.  The Dodgers are on a real roll and they have talent dripping out of every position.  The Pirates are submerging fast… they are really not a relevant team with no apparent direction to take to get better.  The matchup is wildly unfair and will result in a big moneyline.  A way to bet the Dodgers in a first game matchup may be ATS.  That may be sacrilege in baseball betting but the Dodgers have been teeing off on opposing teams in the first time out.   Of course the moneyline will ensure a heavy percentage of winning too… it will just pay less.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have won 8 of their last ten games.  Going 4 Over, 5 Under, and 1 Push.  They Swept the Arizona Diamondbacks 3-0 in a three game series (the last time these teams faced the Dodgers Swept them 4-0 in Arizona), They went 2-1 against the Washington Nationals, 2-1 against the Philadelphia Phillies, and 1-0 against the Arizona Diamondbacks during this stretch.  They are on a 3-game winning streak and loving life.  SS Mookie Betts was the big acquisition a couple of season ago and he works out perfectly leading the team in home runs (14) from the lead off spot, The acquisition this season was Atlanta Braves star Freddie Freeman who now leads the team in batting average (.307)... and of course there is always old reliable Trea Turner who was acquired last season and is a former batting champ on pace to be near great again.  All three of these guys were added to what was and is already a strong hitting line-up.  The Dodgers have no equal at the plate anywhere in the league.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have won 4 of their last 10 games.  3 of the last 4 wins were against other losing teams.  It’s sad to watch a team that stinks through a TV screen.  Literally I had to light a candle when St Louis beat the Pirates 18-4 back on May 22nd.  They went 1-1 against the San Diego Padres (with another game to play today while the Dodgers rest), They went 2-1 against the Colorado Rockies, 0-3 against the St Louis Cardinals, and 1-1 against the Chicago Cubs during that stretch.  The Pirates have no clear studs in the lineup.  The Home Run leader is Daniel Vogelbach who only has 6 on the season.  The batting average leader is Cal Mitchell at .294 but that isn’t real as he has only been to the plate 17 times and is at best a deep backup, OPS leader is Tucupita Marcan, but that isn’t real as he has only been to the p[late 7 times and is also a deep backup.  It is all a sham that will lead to more and more losses as the season drags on.  The fans in the greater Pittsburgh area would rather know what Kenny Picket had for lunch than what the final score was in the Pirates game.  

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The Dodgers are 1st in scoring with 5.49 runs per game, 9th in batting average with .246, and 1st in OBP with .335.

The Pirates are 29th in scoring in the MLB with 3.40 runs per game, 27th in batting average with .223, 26th in OBP with .295

The Dodgers pitchers are 2nd in team ERA with 2.85, 1st in WHIP with 1.08, and 12th in fielding errors with only 19 on the young season so far.

The Pirates pitchers are 26th in MLB with 4.56, 26th in WHIPP with 1.39, and the fielding is the worst in baseball… They rank 30th with 38 errors on the season.  They have a plethora of guys on the injured list, but the fielding problem speaks to a deeper issue of the franchise having no real direction.  They routinely play guys who should have never made it out of the minors.

 

 

Our prediction for Monday May 30th is… Dodgers 9 - Pirates 2

 

The Dodgers are head and shoulders above the Pirates in EVERY statistical category that judges baseball.  This will be an easy win.  The Gauntlet of Dodgers batters… Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Trea Turner… will hit the ball multiple times each… That list leaves off home run hitter Will Smith, World Series hero Justin Turner, and Former National League MVP Cody Bellinger… the whole lineup can and has gotten hot.  Conversely the Pirates will start a bunch of guys who will want Dodger autographs.  

 

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Pittsburgh is 39-92 (-28.1 Units) when playing on the road the last 3 seasons.
The Dodgers are 312-100 (+71.2 Units) as a favorite of -200 or more since 1997.
Dodger Pitcher Walker Buehler is 24-4 (+14.9 Units) as a favorite of -200 or more the last 3 seasons.
Pirates Pitcher Zach Thompson is 0-9 as an underdog of +150 or more the last 3 seasons.

Pirates: LF B. Gamel (leg) Quest ** 1B Y Tsutsugo (back) Out ** CF C. Allen (hammy) Out ** SS K Newman (groin) Out ** C R. Perez (hammy) Out ** CF J. Marsinick (thumb) Out

Dodgers: SP Clayton Kershaw (elbow) Out ** 

Dodgers: RHP Walker Buehler, 6-1, 2.91 ERA, 42 strikeouts in 52 innings pitched.  1.23 WHIP.  Walker Buehler has ascended to the status of Dodger ACE since his debut in 2017.  The 27 year old has Clayton Kershaw footsteps to follow and has the tools to do it.  

Pirates: RHP Zach Thompson, 2-4, 5.50 ERA, 27 strikeouts in 34 innings pitched.  1.54 WHIP. The 28 year old is desperately overmatched He gives up hits and walks in a manner that would have him sent down for work on any other team in MLB.  

 

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

Pirates: RF Cal Mitchell, 3B Ke’Bryan Hayes, CF Bryan Reynolds, LF Ben Gamel, 1B Josh Van Meter, SS Roldolfo Castro, DH Jack Suwinski, C Michael Perez, 2B Tucupita Marcano

 

Dodgers: Dave Roberts

Partly Cloudy. 76*.  Humidity at 50%, sleight winds at 9 mph.  Near perfect weather has gripped the Los Angeles Area, Sunny but not intolerably hot.  Real baseball weather.  Chavez Ravine will be packed on Memorial Day… but then it has been packed for 7 years straight.  Skip the Dodger dogs as they are the most overhyped food in baseball… instead grab a BBQ sandwich from the upper level BBQ stand.  It’s worth the wait in line.