Los Angeles Dodgers vs Tampa Bay Rays Prediction, 10/23/2020 MLB Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Los Angelels Dodgers vs Tampa Bay Rays

Date: Friday, October 23, 2020

Location: Globe Life Field in Arlington, TX

TV: FOX

Odds/Point Spread: Dodgers (-163) Rays (+150)

Brandon Lowe and the Tampa Bay Rays go head to head with the Los Angeles Dodgers at Globe Life Field on Friday. The line on this contest has the Dodgers coming in at -163 and the Rays are at +150. The total is set at 7.5. The pitchers who are expected to start will be Walker Buehler and Charlie Morton.

The Rays were able to even the series at 1-1 with a 6-4 win in Game 2. Lowe broke out of a postseason slump to hit 2 home runs, including a 2-run shot to give them an insurmountable 5-0 lead. Manuel Margot finished 2-3 with a walk to help the Rays offense against a Dodgers bullpen that came into the game pretty exhausted. This next matchup should be low scoring because it features 2 pitchers who are capable of going 7+ innings and could give both bullpens a rest. 

Key Los Angeles Dodgers Injuries

10/6/2020 Edwin Uceta RP Suspension Suspended until Oct 5
9/30/2020 Caleb Ferguson RP Elbow Out for the season
9/27/2020 Zach Reks LF Undisclosed Out for the season
7/21/2020 Jimmy Nelson SP Back Expected to be out until at least Feb 1, 2021

Key Tampa Bay Rays Injuries

10/11/2020 Cody Reed RP Finger Expected to be out until at least Oct 19
8/29/2020 Jalen Beeks RP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Sep 1, 2021
8/29/2020 Chaz Roe RP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Feb 1, 2021
8/22/2020 Yonny Chirinos SP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Feb 1, 2022
8/13/2020 Andrew Kittredge RP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Feb 1, 2022
7/21/2020 Colin Poche RP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Sep 1, 2021

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Dodgers had a 43-17 overall record this season. Buehler (24-9 career win-loss mark) holds a FIP of 3.24 and he has gone up against 1,469 batters in the major leagues. His earned run average is 3.15 (128 ER's allowed) and his WHIP is 1.030. He has given up 283 base knocks (7.0 hits per nine innings) and has 93 free passes. Buehler has taken the mound for 365 frames and has totaled 420 punchouts thus far in his career. The bullpen has an earned run average of 2.74 and they have given up 199 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .188 against the bullpen and they've struck out 258 hitters and walked 75 batters. As a team, Los Angeles allows 7.1 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.6 batters per nine innings. They are 1st in the league in team earned run average at 3.02. The Dodgers pitchers collectively have given up 424 base hits and 181 earned runs. They have allowed 66 home runs this season, ranking them 29th in the league. Los Angeles as a pitching staff has walked 145 batters and struck out 517. They have walked 2.4 men per 9 innings while striking out 8.6 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.06 and their FIP as a unit is 3.79.

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Hitting Statistics

As a team Los Angeles is hitting .256, good for 11th in the league. The Dodgers hold a .483 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .338, which is good for 5th in baseball. They rank 8th in MLB with 8.7 hits per game. Mookie Betts is hitting .292 with an on-base percentage of .366. He has 64 hits this season in 219 at bats with 39 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .562 and an OPS+ of 149. Justin Turner is hitting .307 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .400. He has totaled 46 hits and he has driven in 23 men in 150 at bats. His OPS+ is 135 while his slugging percentage is at .460. The Dodgers have 523 hits, including 97 doubles and 118 home runs. Los Angeles has walked 228 times so far this season and they have struck out 471 times as a unit. They have left 391 men on base and have a team OPS of .821. They score 5.82 runs per contest and have scored a total of 349 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

In his MLB career, Morton has allowed 1,402 hits and he has 1,276 strikeouts in 1,440 innings. He has surrendered a total of 653 earned runs while earning a WHIP of 1.334 and being the owner of a FIP of 3.9. His SO/W ratio is 2.46 and he has faced 6,200 hitters so far in his career. Morton (93-89 win-loss mark in his career) holds a 4.08 ERA while allowing 8.8 hits per nine innings. The bullpen has an earned run average of 3.37 and they have given up 234 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .209 against the Rays bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 263 batters and walked 87 opposing hitters. As a team, Tampa Bay allows 8.1 hits per nine innings while striking out 9.4 batters per nine innings. They are 3rd in the league in team earned run average at 3.56. The Rays pitchers as a team have surrendered 475 base knocks and 209 earned runs this season. They have given up 70 home runs this year, which ranks 19th in Major League Baseball. Tampa Bay as a staff has walked 168 hitters and struck out 552 batters. They give up a walk 2.9 times per 9 innings while they strike out 9.4 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.22 while their FIP as a staff is 3.94.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .238, good for 21st in the league. The Rays hold a .425 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .328, which is good for 11th in baseball. They rank 20th in MLB with 7.8 hits per contest. Brandon Lowe comes into this matchup batting .269 with an OBP of .362. He has 52 hits this year along with 37 RBI in 193 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .554 with an OPS+ of 152. Randy Arozarena is hitting .281 this season and he has an OBP of .382. He has collected 18 hits in 64 at bats while driving in 11 runs. He has an OPS+ of 179 and a slugging percentage of .641. The Rays as a unit have 470 base hits, including 105 doubles and 80 homers. Tampa Bay has walked 243 times this year and they have struck out on 608 occasions. They have had 416 men left on base and have an OPS of .753. They have scored 4.82 runs per game and totaled 289 runs this season.

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

Tony's Pick: Take the Dodgers (-163)

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