Zack Greinke (6-2, 1.58 ERA) and the Los Angeles Dodgers (45-36) square off against Matt Harvey (7-5, 2.99 ERA) and the New York Mets (41-40) in a game that has the potential to be low scoring. This is the second of a three-game series at Dodger Stadium. The Mets won the last game 2-1 and New York leads the series 1-0. Action begins at 7:15 p.m. ET on Saturday, Jul. 4 and can be seen on FOX and SportsNet LA.
Greinke is 2-1 with a 3.12 ERA in his appearances against the Mets, and goes up against a below-average New York offense which is batting just .231 this season. Justin Turner (.314, 30 Rs, 11 HRs, 37 RBIs, 1 SB) went 1 for 3 yesterday. When pitching against the Dodgers, Harvey is 0-1 with a 5.25 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, and 10 strikeouts. Lucas Duda (.253, 38 Rs, 10 HRs, 33 RBIs) went 1 for 4 yesterday with one run.
Los Angeles is a -157 favorite against New York and the Over/Under (O/U) for this game is sitting at six runs. The Dodgers have an overall money line of -647 and a record as the favorite of 39-32. The Dodgers are one of the best in the MLB in terms of home runs with 103. Turning to the pitchers, opposing offenses have been stifled by the Dodgers, who have a team ERA of only 3.25. The Dodgers are the third-best team in the league at limiting hits and walks to their opponents, recording a WHIP of 1.19 so far this season. Opponents have consistently been struck out by the Dodgers, who lead the NL in strikeouts per home game with 9.2.
Over in the other dugout, New York is coming in with an overall money line of -269 and a disappointing record of 7-27 as the underdog. They played poorly as the underdog over their last 10 games with a 1-4 record, and a 4-6 record SU. Offensively, the Mets have really sputtered in the last 10 games. They have decreased their season average of 3.5 runs per game by averaging 1.7 during that stretch. The Mets allow 3.7 runs per game, but have improved upon those numbers in the past 10 games, allowing 2.1 runs per game during that span. When it comes to preventing batters from getting on base, the Mets are one of the best in the league with a WHIP of 1.19 for the season.
The Mets have the edge in the season series, 1-0. The Dodgers have a 41-27 record against right-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Harvey takes the mound. Greinke (RHP) will be on the hill against the Mets, who have a 34-33 record against right-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – LAD, O/U – Over
Notes
When leading after 7 innings, Los Angeles is 17-13, while New York is 17-15.
Having scored one run in their last game, the Dodgers are going to have to up their game if they want to win this matchup. The Mets have an 18-4 record in games where opponents scored that many runs or fewer.
When they are outhit, the Mets are 11-33. The Dodgers have a 10-25 record when opponents outhit them.
Ranking 23rd in home runs, New York has hit 65 this season. Los Angeles ranks fourth with 103 home runs.
Ranking 15th, New York is in the top half of the league in hits, notching 7.65 per game. Los Angeles ranks in the top 10 at 10th with 8.41.
Ranking 29th, New York is near the bottom of the league for its on-base plus slugging percentage (.653). Los Angeles ranks in the top five at second with an OPS of .761.
When the Mets allow at least one home run, they are 17-26. When the Dodgers allow one or more homers, they have an 18-24 record.
