Out on the West Coast tonight, we’ve got a battle for Los Angeles as a couple of cross-town rivals take the diamond. At 9:38 p.m. EST, the Angels (56-62) host the Dodgers (68-50) over in Anaheim. With bragging rights up for grabs in this L.A. special, we’re taking a look at the outlook for this matchup between a National League power and a scrappy AL West squad.
Here’s an Angels vs. Dodgers prediction and pick on DraftKings Sportsbook for Monday night.
Angels vs. Dodgers prediction, preview
The Angels are the home team and may not have the best record in the win-loss column, but they’ve still got plenty of fight in them on most nights. While they’re 9-13 since the All-Star Game, the Halos have a .721 OPS that ranks 16th among all teams and their 30 homers over that span leave them tied with tonight’s opponent for the eighth-most in the MLB. The Angels are also 15th in scoring over the same sample with 97 runs, or 4.41 per game.
Los Angeles’ real powerhouse squad didn’t exactly come out of the break swinging, though. The Dodgers are just 10-11 since the ASG and 5-5 over their last 10 games as they keep struggling to string together wins. As they work to break out of this slump, they rank 20th in scoring and have averaged 4.43 runs per contest, though they’re seventh in OPS at .761. The Dodgers did show some encouraging signs of a turnaround in their weekend series, downing the American League leaders twice with 5-1 and 9-1 wins over the Toronto Blue Jays. That’s something to build on and tonight presents an easier matchup.
There’s quite a difference between the starting pitchers tonight. The Angels start Jose Soriano (4.01 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, 119 SO), who’s seen some high peaks but some very low valleys this season. He takes on the Dodgers’ Yoshinobu Yamamoto (2.51 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 139 SO), so it’s pretty clear that the visitors have the upper hand tonight.
Angels vs. Dodgers pick, best bet
DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Dodgers as favorites in Monday’s game with -180 Moneyline odds. The Angels are listed at +147 on the Moneyline with the run total set at eight.
Were this earlier in the season, I’d be hammering Dodgers -1.5 in this matchup. However, the recent form of L.A.’s big brother doesn’t spark too much confidence even coming off a strong series win against a contender. In tonight’s contest, bettors are likely better off targeting some different picks and staying away from game lines, though Angels +1.5 does hold a bit of appeal.
One of Yamamoto’s pitcher props looks like a fantastic selection though. The Japanese right-hander posts an 87th-percentile strikeout percentage (28.5%) and respectable 68th-percentile whiff percentage (27.3%), as well as a 10.25 K/9. While he’s posted eight or more strikeouts just eight times in his 22 appearances this season, he sees a tasty matchup against this Angels squad. Only four MLB teams have struck out 200 or more times since the All-Star Game and the Halos have gone down on strikes 220 times in 22 games, the worst mark in baseball over that span.
Yamamoto’s typically good for at least six or seven punchouts in his starts, but so risk-averse bettors can target over 6.5 strikeouts at -160 odds. However, there’s plus value available for 8+ strikeouts tonight, and against a team averaging 10 of those per outing lately, I like the young star’s chances of achieving that line.
Best bet: Yoshinobu Yamamoto 8+ strikeouts (+120)
Click the odds on this bet to tail!
