While fireworks may fill the sky Thursday for the Fourth of July, don't expect many fireworks on the field at Dodger Stadium.
Rookie right-hander Landon Knack will be on the bump for Los Angeles against Diamondbacks ace Zac Gallen.
Gallen has simply been one of the best pitchers in baseball for the last three seasons. He stacks up strikeouts, doesn't give a ton of free passes and is generally good at missing barrels.
Knack, on the other hand, has excelled through his first six Major League starts. He has allowed only 21 hits and seven runs in 30.1 innings while stacking up 25 strikeouts against only eight walks. His 2.08 ERA is actually better than Gallen's extremely impressive 2.83 mark.
It should be a fun pitching matchup between an up-and-coming star and an already-established ace. The Dodgers are the betting favorites, but it isn't by much according to BetMGM:
Run line
Diamondbacks +1.5: -185
Dodgers -1.5: +150
Moneyline
Diamondbacks: +115
Dodgers: -135
Total
Over 8.5 runs: -115
Under 8.5 runs: -105
Prediction
Picking a side is tough in potential pitcher's duels. We know we're leaning to the under, but we're also leaning toward the Dodgers thanks to a bit of history.
Gallen is 0-4 with a 4.29 ERA in six career starts at Dodger Stadium while Knack allowed only four hits and one run in 5.0 innings in his lone start against Arizona back on April 30. Those are both small sample sizes, but it's what we've got to go on. Dodgers win a tight one.
Dodgers 3, Diamondbacks 2
