Los Angeles Dodgers vs. San Francisco Giants Betting Preview
Where: AT&T Park, San Francisco, CA
When: Friday, September 30, 2016, 7:15 PM ET
Line: Los Angeles Dodgers (+115) at San Francisco Giants (-125); total: 6.0 – view all MLB lines
TV Broadcast: CSBA, SportsNet LA
Writer’s Pick: San Francisco Giants
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Betting on the Los Angeles Dodgers (+115)
Just when we thought that the Los Angeles Dodgers (91-68) would take it easy this final week of the regular season, they handily defeated the Padres on Thursday, 9-4, to avoid the three-game sweep in San Diego.
Los Angeles is basically just improving its already dazzling record for it to have home-field advantage in the National League Division Series. The team currently trails the Washington Nationals by one game in doing so, with the mighty Chicago Cubs as the other team in the NL to have locked-up home-field advantage. The Dodgers have refused to cool off in their bid at that, as they’ve won nine of their last 13 contests, including taking two of three against the Giants in L.A. last week.
Yasiel Puig has been a lightning rod of sorts for the team since his return from the minors, and will play the role of arch-villain to San Francisco’s Madison Bumgarner again in Friday’s season-ending series opener in the Bay Area. Puig knocked in a pair of doubles and drove in two runs on Thursday, giving him 12 hits, three doubles and four RBIs in his last 10 games.
Then again, pitching is still king in pitcher-friendly AT&T Park, so having Rich Hill (12-5, 2.05 ERA) start on Friday is a welcome sight. However, and although Hill has been nothing but spectacular this 2016, he’s still dealing with blisters on his throwing fingers. We don’t expect the AL Cy Young candidate to work a lot of innings that evening, especially with him already penciled-in to start Game 2 of the NLDS.
Betting on the San Francisco Giants (-125)
The 7-2 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Thursday was a huge one, as the San Francisco Giants (83-75) tighten up their grip of the final NL Wild Card spot with that win.
The St. Louis Cardinals remain one full game behind the Giants for that last spot, while San Francisco is still a full game behind the New York Mets for home-field advantage in the NL Wild Card game. This means that these last three home games against the Dodgers will be extremely pivotal for the Giants to keep their even-year magic going.
Six different batters reached home plate in Thursday’s win, and that’s a good sign for a Giants offense that sputters more than it hums. The team has now scored seven or more runs in three of its last six games, but it also has some stinkers in between like getting blanked by the Rockies on Wednesday, 2-0.
Even though the offense can be maddeningly inconsistent, at least the Giants can count on their ace, Madison Bumgarner (14-9, 2.71 ERA), to have another solid start against their NL West rivals. Bumgarner may have given up five runs and three homers in his last start versus San Diego, but he also did pitch seven scoreless innings with 10 strikeouts of one-hit ball the last time he faced the Dodgers this month.
Furthermore, San Francisco has gotten the better of Los Angeles this season when their battles are held near Fisherman’s Wharf. The Giants have won five of their last seven meetings at home against the Dodgers, and they’ll definitely be more pumped than their opponent this Friday considering that their shaky postseason hopes are on the line.
Writer’s Prediction
The Giants (-125) cling on to that final NL Wild Card spot with a thrilling, down-the-wire victory, 3-2.
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