The Dodgers won't have an easy time replacing shortstop Mookie Betts, but their first foray into life without him will come at baseball's most hitter-friendly ballpark. Los Angeles on Monday opens a three-game series against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field where Shohei Ohtani and his fellow Dodgers can set a tone for how they'll look without their star leadoff man.
BetMGM likes the Dodgers to come out strong, and has them favored in a game where a ton of runs are expected to score. Here's what the lines look like with James Paxton starting on the mound for LA against Cal Quantrill:
Run line
Dodgers -1.5: -120
Rockies +1.5: +100
Moneyline
Dodgers: -175
Rockies: +145
Total
Over 12 runs: -120
Under 12 runs: +100
Prediction
Quantrill has been really good for the Rockies lately. In his last two starts he's gone 11.0 shutout innings, allowing six hits while walking five and striking out six. His last bad outing came against the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium though when LA touched him up for four runs on nine hits in 4.1 innings. The lines say to expect more of the same at Coors Field where Quantrill's ERA is 3.72 compared to 3.06 on the road.
Paxton didn't pitch against Colorado during that series in LA, but it's worth noting his road ERA this year is a whopping 5.23, and the Rockies have walloped left-handed pitching this year.
We're leaning toward a lot of runs in Monday's game, particularly with players like Ohtani, Freddie Freeman, Will Smith and Teoscar Hernandez all getting an opportunity to help carry the offense in MLB's most hitter-friendly park against a pitcher they knocked around in their last meeting.
Dodgers 9, Rockies 6