Diamondbacks vs. Dodgers Prediction and Odds for Game 2 Tuesday, May 17 (Predicting Regression from Merrill Kelly)

The best and the worst the NL West has will be on display this week when the Arizona Diamondbacks head to LA to face off against the first-place Dodgers. Despite their spot in the standings, the Dodgers have not been playing their best baseball over the last week. In fact, in the lead-up to this series, LA was 2-5 straight up with a four-game losing streak in the middle.

The Pirates took two of three games from LA despite being one of the worst teams in baseball. The Phillies followed that up by crushing LA’s pitching and taking three of four over the weekend. LA allowed Philly to outscore them 33-27 in those four games. 

Arizona, meanwhile, is also dealing with a lot of losses recently. They actually looked poised to break out of their season-long slump with a very solid few weeks of play. But, they might have fallen back to earth with a 1-3 record heading into this series. Arizona is in danger of falling below .500 for the first time since May 3 if this series doesn’t go their way. 

Here are the odds for this game, courtesy of WynnBET Sportsbook. 

Diamondbacks vs. Dodgers Odds, Run Line, and Total

As of writing this article, the odds have not yet been released. We will add the odds to the story once they become available.

Run Line

• Diamondbacks: +1.5 (-105)
• Dodgers: -1.5 (-115)

Moneyline:

• Diamondbacks +190
• Dodgers -220

Total:

• Total: 7.5 (Over -110/Under -110)

Diamondbacks vs. Dodgers Prediction and Pick

There are very few bright spots on the D-Backs this season and Merrill Kelly might be the brightest. The 33-year-old right-hander is having a career year so far and enters this game with a 1.71 ERA and 1.12 WHIP in 42 innings. It’s worth noting that his worst start of the year came against the Dodgers. But, he only gave up three runs in six innings. So, nothing too bad here. 

What worries me about Kelly is that he isn't some young guy experiencing a breakout season. He’s 33 with a career ERA of 4.02. Not bad, but nothing like his numbers from this season. After posting a 6.33 ERA in his final five starts of 2021, I’m not willing to believe that he is all of a sudden a superstar talent. Basically, I’m betting on regression here from Kelly. 

We don’t know as of yet who he will be facing off against, but the Dodgers' entire pitching staff has been amazing this year. They rank among the best in the league with a combined ERA of 2.74 and lead the league in WHIP at 1.07. I’m willing to take a chance that whoever they throw out there will do enough to put the offense in a position to win this game outright and cover. 

Pick: Dodgers

Follow all of Matt De Saro’s betting picks HERE