The dust has settled from the MLB trade deadline. After making their changes, the Los Angeles Dodgers and Tampa Bay Rays can return to the stretch run. And that brings a lot of pressure.
The Rays have been fading from the playoff race over the past month. Coming into this one below .500, the clock is ticking on the season. Management believes this team lacks the necessary pieces, so they traded away some players before Thursday’s deadline. It’s up to the players to prove them wrong and put together a hot streak. With the talent present on this club, it’s within the realm of possibility.
The Dodgers is desperate for a different reason. They had a rough July and are no longer the clear-cut favorites in the National League. Some reinforcements came in at the deadline, but not the massive star hauls that Dodgers fans are accustomed to. It’s up to this star-studded roster to figure it out.
The Dodgers are -137 favorites on the moneyline on DraftKings Sportsbook. The over/under is set at 8.5 runs. Let’s dig into a Rays-Dodgers prediction and pick.
Rays vs. Dodgers prediction, pick
On paper, this will be an exciting pitching matchup. And the eyes will be on LA starter Blake Snell.
Tomorrow marks four months to the day since Snell last took the mound for Los Angeles. He made only two starts before being shut down with shoulder inflammation. Not the way you want to start the first season in your five-year, $137 million contract. Appropriately, it comes against the first team Snell ever pitched for.
He’s not known for working deep into games to begin with. Los Angeles has to balance being competitive with protecting its investment. Even if he looks like his normal self, I doubt manager Dave Roberts lets him get anywhere close to his normal workload.
On the mound for Tampa Bay is the best pitcher nobody has heard of, Drew Rasmussen. Since joining the Rays in 2021, he has a 2.78 ERA across 378 innings. The recognition finally came this year, making his first All-Star game. It’s a deserved nod for an underrated hurler.
Rasmussen has the perfect arsenal to neutralize the homer-happy Dodgers. Facing a ground ball pitcher with a deadly fastball-sinker-cutter combo does not bode well for the NL’s premier long ball merchants. That, on top of Snell’s track record (and Tampa Bay’s offensive regression), gives me under vibes for this Saturday matinee.
