The Los Angeles Dodgers open up 2016 as the favorites to win the NL West, but that doesn't mean all is well in Tinseltown. The boys in blue have a brand new manager in Dave Roberts and a ton of changes to their pitching staff to overcome this year. Fortunately though, on Opening Day, Clayton Kershaw will be getting the ball once again versus the San Diego Padres, marking the sixth consecutive year the lefty has started the first game of the year.
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PITCHING MATCHUP
Poor Tyson Ross. He's never beaten the Dodgers in 10 starts against them. Live bettors could make the mistake of merely looking at that stat and the dominance of Kershaw and suggest that the Padres are as good as dead.
That said, if you dig a little deeper, you'll notice that Ross has gotten incredibly unlucky. He's the owner of a 2.67 ERA against the Dodgers, and he even has a complete game to his credit against them. Ross has a career 2.90 ERA here at home, and batters have hit just .218 against him at Petco.
Those are all pretty dominant numbers for a man who is just 32-52 overall, and it's proof that Ross might be one of the best bargains in baseball for bettors who are seeking some good value.
Goodness knows there's never any value in Kershaw, as he's the most hyped pitcher in the game. Though there's always a chance that Kershaw finishes what he starts, as this game gets deeper in, if the Padres are at least hanging around close, this could become interesting for a potential upset.
The raw stats on Kershaw are staggering. He's got a career K/9 of 9.75, and he's coming off of a year with 301 strikeouts. His 2.13 ERA from a season ago was overshadowed by the year Zack Greinke had.
April though, has been Kershaw's worst month. He's only 8-10 with a 3.36 ERA in the opening month of the season, and his Opening Day starts haven't always been the best by his own standards. If most anyone gave up three runs over seven innings, it would be a triumph. If that's what Kershaw does on Monday though, live bettors will find great opportunity in fading him.
ADVANCED STATS
What really killed Ross last year and has plagued him throughout his career is poor pitching in positions with men on base. Batters only hit .234 against him in 2015 when he had men in scoring position against him, but he also allowed seven homers in said stretch.
The real concern is his control, though. Ross walks a ton of batters – 84 last year alone. A whopping 35 of those came with men in scoring position, and that's why his ERA with ducks on the pond was 10.41, almost four runs higher than Kershaw's 6.82 ERA with runners in scoring position. It's definitely something for live bettors to consider.
TALKING BULLPENS
Kenley Jansen didn't even make his debut until almost 40 games into the season last year, and he still managed 36 saves against just two blown saves.
The Dodgers haven't had a closer this strong for this long since Eric Gagne was one of the most dominant stoppers in the game. You know Jansen is going to throw strikes and throw a lot of them. He had 80 strikeouts against just eight walks last year, and though his 3.33 ERA on the road is a bit scary from last season, the sample set was small, and the rest of his core numbers fell into line with what he did at Dodger Stadium.
Consider this game over if Jansen is set to come in for the ninth with LA in the lead for live betting purposes.
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Don't miss out on getting paid because you couldn't bet. Click here, and deposit at BookMaker now! The game pitting the Los Angeles Dodgers versus the San Diego Padres will commence Monday, April 4, 2016 at 7:05 p.m. ET at Petco Park. You can watch the contest live on ESPN.
