MLB Championship Series Betting - Home sweet home for Dodgers, Yankees
MLB championship series betting rages on tonight with the American and National Leagues both in action. First up, the Dodgers will try to avoid falling behind 2-0 to the Phillies for the second straight year. Later, the Yankees will try to confirm their status as top World Series betting contenders as they host the Angels.
MLB championship series betting: Expect lots of runs in both games
|
Today, 4:07 p.m. ET
Phillies vs Dodgers odds: Phillies +126, Dodgers -146
Pedro Martinez (NR) vs Vicente Padilla (1-0, 0.00) The Dodgers started on the wrong foot in Game 1 but that shouldn’t have surprised the savvy bettor, as Clayton Kershaw had never beaten the Phillies. He was also one of the youngest pitchers to start a championship series game; the five youngest, Kershaw included, all lost those games. Now, L.A. turns to its hottest pitcher for Game 2. For whatever reason, Vicente Padilla is a man possessed since joining the Dodgers, going undefeated in eight starts. It’s tough to know what to expect from Padilla; on one hand, he’s pitching better than he ever has and is 6-1 in day games. On the other hand, he struggles against left-handed hitters and the Phillies have plenty of them. Raul Ibanez, Chase Utley and Ryan Howard have all tattooed Padilla in limited at-bats against him before. The bigger wildcard is Pedro Martinez. What can we expect from the future Hall-of-Famer, who hasn’t pitched since September 30? He has a strong history at Dodger Stadium but hasn’t pitched there this year. Sportsbook players should note that he pitched poorly on the road in 2009, winning three times but sporting a 5.66 ERA and .322 opponents average. Also, he faced the Braves, Giants, Astros, Nationals, Mets – no truly dangerous lineups in the regular season. A road game in L.A. is a step up. Expect another high-scoring game, but the Dodgers will even the series. Phillies vs Dodgers betting edge: Dodgers
Tonight, 7:57 p.m. ET
Angels vs Yankees odds: Angels +157, Yankees -177
John Lackey (1-0, 0.00) vs C.C. Sabathia (1-0, 1.35) It’s natural for online sports betting sharps to feel confident in the Yankees for Game 1. After all, the Bronx Bombers send ace C.C. Sabathia to the hill – a man who went 11-2 after the All-Star break. But C.C. has some red flags; few teams hit him harder than the Angels, who beat him twice this year and scored nine runs in 13.1 innings against him. In 14 career starts versus L.A., he’s just 5-7 with a 4.72 ERA. Specific Angel hitters give him major trouble; Torii Hunter has three homers and 17 RBI in just 68 at-bats against Sabathia. Angels ace John Lackey was also dominant in the second half this season (7-4, 3.05) but differs from Sabathia in that he’s already beaten the team he’s facing tonight this season. He’s even held the red-hot Alex Rodriguez to a .174 lifetime average. The thing about the Yankees, though, is that a different guy from their lineup can beat you on any night. So Lackey owns A-Rod. So what? Mark Teixeira bats .388 off Lackey. Jorge Posada hits .414. Derek Jeter: .341. Johnny Damon: .333. Someone will get to Lackey as the Yankees win a slugfest. Angels vs Yankees betting edge: Yankees
For sportsbook betting tips on all MLB championship series betting matchups, bookmark the Betting Edge at BetOnline.com. Dale Lalonde is BetOnline.com's MLB expert.
