Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Los Angeles Dodgers Preview
Where: Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles
When: Wednesday, August 14, 2016, 4:10 PM ET
Line: Pittsburgh Pirates (+135) at Los Angeles Dodgers (-150); total: 8.5– view all MLB lines
TV Broadcast: SportsNet LA, SNLA Spanish, ROOTPIT
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Betting on the Pittsburgh Pirates (+135)
The Pittsburgh Pirates had their two-game winning streak snapped on Saturday with an 8-4 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers. With the defeat, the Bucs dropped back to 58-56 in the NL Central standings. They are now 1.5 games behind the St. Louis Cardinals for the second and final wild card spot in the National League.The Pirates will look to return to winning ways when they lock horns with the Dodgers in their series finale today. Starting for Pittsburgh this afternoon is Chad Kuhl (2-0, 3.91 ERA). He was terrific in his last start against the San Diego Padres, allowing just two runs on five hits in six innings of action. It was a solid performance by Kuhl who’s still unbeaten in his Major League career. The Bucs are 5-0 in Kuhl’s last five starts.
He can’t do it all alone, though, and he needs the Bucs’ offense to pick up the scoring slack as well. Expected to lead the Pittsburgh lineup tonight is David Freese. The third baseman is 7-of-17 in his last five games with a walk and three RBIs. Freese has yet to face LA starter Brett Anderson in his storied career.
Betting on the Los Angeles Dodgers (-150)
Pitching for Los Angeles in the final game of this three-game set is Brett Anderson. The left-hander has been out since March due to back surgery, and will be making his season debut on Sunday. Anderson hurled 71 pitches in five innings in his last rehab start with Triple-A Oklahoma City. He allowed two runs in that contest. Anderson has been solid over his last three rehab starts (two with High-A Rancho Cucamonga), turning in an 11:1 K:BB ratio during that span.
With Anderson still a big question mark at this point, the onus is on the LA hitters to put up some runs on the board this afternoon. Expected to lead the Dodgers offense in this series finale is the red-hot Adrian Gonzalez. He is 11-for-25 in his last six games with a homer and three RBIs. Howie Kendrick is primed for a huge game today as well. The second baseman is 10-for-23 over his last six games with a homer and five RBIs. He is 1-of-3 lifetime against Pittsburgh starter Chad Kuhl.
Writer’s Prediction
Pittsburgh (+135) wins, 5-3.
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