The Philadelphia Phillies (15-14, 7-9 away) continue their road trip with a three-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers (16-13, 9-6 home) to begin the first week of May. The series marks the first time these two National League contenders will face off against each other this season.
Monday’s first pitch is slated for 10:10 p.m. EST inside Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California. Los Angeles is the betting favorite (-170 moneyline), and the over/under total is 8.5 runs.
What to Know – Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia heads west after taking two of three from the Houston Astros to begin the six-game road trip. The Phillies sit in fourth place in the NL East, trailing the leading Atlanta Braves by four games.
On the hill for the Phillies is expected to be right-hander Taijuan Walker (2-1, 4.97 ERA, 1.38 WHIP). The veteran starter will try and bounce back after posting his worst start of the season in his last trip to the mound.
Over five starts, Walker has pitched 25.1 innings, allowed 14 earned runs on 21 hits and 14 walks while striking out 23 batters.
The Phillies average 4.3 runs per game and rank third in the MLB hitting .272 as a team. Philadelphia’s pitching staff sits 15th amongst league teams with a 4.34 team earned run average.
Brandon Marsh leads the Phillies lineup batting .329 with a .647 slugging percentage. Alec Bohm has driven in a team-high 21 runs, while Nick Castellanos has crossed home plate 23 times.
What to Know – Los Angeles Dodgers
Los Angeles picked up some much-needed momentum over the weekend with a three-game sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals. The Dodgers pulled even with the Arizona Diamondbacks for the top spot in the NL West.
Right-hander Tony Gonsolin (0-0, 0.00 ERA, 1.40 WHIP) is scheduled to make his second start of the season. Gonsolin missed the beginning of the season as he recovered from a sprained ankle. In his first start, the 28-year-old fired 3.1 innings of no run ball, scattering a pair of hits, walking three, and striking out one batter.
Offensively, the Dodgers are last in the NL hitting .224 as a team while scoring 5.1 runs per game. The pitching staff for Los Angeles is 18th in the majors, featuring a 4.43 team ERA.
Quite starts for the top of the L.A. lineup has been concerning, but the Dodgers have gotten production from the back half of the order. Max Muncy leads the team with 11 home runs and 22 RBIs, while rookie James Outman is second in both home runs (7) and RBIs (20).
The Pick is In
A pair of postseason hopefuls take the field in the City of Angels on Monday night. Both teams are starting to turn the corner, playing their best ball recently. Expect Gonsolin to be on a short pitch count, so the L.A.
The bullpen will see extended action. There is potential for a lot of runs to be scored in the opener, and we see the Dodger offense outscoring the visitors by a narrow margin.
The Pick: Los Angeles Dodgers ML
