Tampa Bay Rays at Los Angeles Dodgers MLB Picks & Predictions 9/18/2019

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Dodger Stadium

Get todays MLB odds and lines on this game.

Probable Pitchers: Brendan McKay vs. Tony Gonsolin

Tommy Pham and the Tampa Bay Rays (89-62, 2nd in AL East) travel to Dodger Stadium on Wednesday where they'll meet the Los Angeles Dodgers (97-54, 1st in NL West). The Rays open this contest at +125 while the Dodgers are priced at -135. The total has been set at 8.5.

The Rays have been a great bet for baseball wagerers, having gone 89-62-0 SU. The Dodgers cover 64.2% of the time, going 97-54-0 straight up.

Valuable Tampa Bay Rays Betting Trends

The Rays have been a hot and cold Under option for over/under baseball bettors, having gone 72-71-8.

Tampa Bay is covering 60.5% of the time away from home, having gone 46-30-0 straight up.

Important Los Angeles Dodgers Betting Trends

The Dodgers cover 73.7% of the time at Dodger Stadium, going 56-20-0 SU.

The Dodgers have been a hot and cold Under option for over/under baseball bettors, having gone 70-74-7.

Related: Gambling 101 - MLB Betting Tips - Tony George of Doc's Sports

Key Tampa Bay Rays Injuries

9/16/2019 Brandon Lowe 2B Quadriceps Expected to be out until at least Sep 23
9/13/2019 Blake Snell SP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Sep 17
9/11/2019 Hoby Milner RP Neck Out for the season
9/6/2019 Yonny Chirinos SP Finger Expected to be out until at least Sep 20
9/5/2019 Jose Alvarado RP Elbow Out for the season
8/30/2019 Yandy Diaz 3B Foot Out for the season
4/2/2019 Jose Mujica SP Elbow Out for the season

Key Los Angeles Dodgers Injuries

9/15/2019 Justin Turner 3B Ankle Expected to be out until at least Sep 18
9/13/2019 Kristopher Negron CF Personal Expected to be out until at least Sep 17
9/13/2019 Alex Verdugo CF Oblique Out for the season
9/12/2019 Rich Hill SP Knee Expected to be out until at least Sep 25
9/12/2019 Scott Alexander RP Hand Out for the season
9/3/2019 Tyler White 1B Lat Out for the season
8/29/2019 Tom Koehler SP Shoulder Out for the season

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Rays have a 89-62 overall record this season. Starting pitcher Brendan McKay has a 2-4 record with an earned run average of 5.27 and a WHIP of 1.45 this season. He has 50 strikeouts over his 42.2 innings pitched and he's given up 48 hits. He's allowed 10.1 hits per 9 innings and he has a FIP of 4.3. The bullpen has an earned run average of 3.72 and they have given up 614 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .229 against the bullpen and they've struck out 741 hitters and walked 242 batters. As a team, Tampa Bay allows 7.8 hits per nine innings while striking out 9.8 batters per nine innings. They are 2nd in the league in team earned run average at 3.65. The Rays pitchers collectively have given up 1,190 base hits and 555 earned runs. They have allowed 169 home runs this season, ranking them 30th in the league. Tampa Bay as a pitching staff has walked 418 batters and struck out 1,490. They have walked 2.7 men per 9 innings while striking out 9.8 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.17 and their FIP as a unit is 3.68.

Related: Get MLB tips & picks on all of today's games

Hitting Statistics

As a team Tampa Bay is hitting .255, good for 12th in the league. The Rays hold a .432 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .327, which is good for 12th in baseball. They rank 10th in MLB with 8.8 hits per game. Tommy Pham is hitting .277 with an on-base percentage of .375. He has 145 hits this season in 524 at bats with 64 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .456 and an OPS+ of 122. Austin Meadows is hitting .289 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .357. He has totaled 142 hits and he has driven in 87 men in 492 at bats. His OPS+ is 141 while his slugging percentage is at .563. The Rays have 1,334 hits, including 274 doubles and 199 home runs. Tampa Bay has walked 505 times so far this season and they have struck out 1,363 times as a unit. They have left 1,058 men on base and have a team OPS of .759. They score 4.76 runs per contest and have scored a total of 719 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

Los Angeles has a 97-54 overall mark this year. With an earned run average of 2.83, Tony Gonsolin has a 3-2 record and a 1.00 WHIP. He has 31 strikeouts over the 35 innings he's pitched. He also has given up 25 hits. He's allowing 6.4 hits per nine innings and his FIP stands at 3.79. The bullpen has an earned run average of 3.96 and they have given up 412 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .219 against the Dodgers bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 517 batters and walked 169 opposing hitters. As a team, Los Angeles allows 7.5 hits per nine innings while striking out 9.4 batters per nine innings. They are 1st in the league in team earned run average at 3.39. The Dodgers pitchers as a team have surrendered 1,123 base knocks and 507 earned runs this season. They have given up 174 home runs this year, which ranks 29th in Major League Baseball. Los Angeles as a staff has walked 359 hitters and struck out 1,397 batters. They give up a walk 2.4 times per 9 innings while they strike out 9.4 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.10 while their FIP as a staff is 3.76.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .257, good for 10th in the league. The Dodgers hold a .472 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .338, which is good for 7th in baseball. They rank 13th in MLB with 8.7 hits per contest. Cody Bellinger comes into this matchup batting .304 with an OBP of .407. He has 159 hits this year along with 108 RBI in 523 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .625 with an OPS+ of 168. Max Muncy is hitting .249 this season and he has an OBP of .370. He has collected 113 hits in 454 at bats while driving in 87 runs. He has an OPS+ of 131 and a slugging percentage of .513. The Dodgers as a unit have 1,316 base hits, including 281 doubles and 261 homers. Los Angeles has walked 570 times this year and they have struck out on 1,250 occasions. They have had 1,058 men left on base and have an OPS of .810. They have scored 5.42 runs per game and totaled 818 runs this season.

Who will win tonight's Rays/Dodgers MLB game against the spread?

Tony's Pick: Take the Rays (+125)

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