- What: MLB Divisional Series Playoff Game
- When: Friday, October 11th
- Who: San Diego Padres vs. Los Angeles Dodgers
- Time: 5:08 p.m. PST
- Where: Dodger Stadium (Los Angeles, CA)
The Los Angeles Dodgers host the San Diego Padres in the fifth game of their National League Divisional Series. The winner advances to face the New York Mets in the National League Championship Series.
San Diego Padres
The Padres will send Yu Darvish to the mound in this critical fifth game of the series. Darvish has maintained an impressive 2.56 ERA in his last six postseason starts, dating back to the 2020 season.
Furthermore, since 2020, Darvish has not allowed more than three runs in any single postseason start, consistently pitching at least five innings in each game.
Notably, two of these starts were against the Dodgers, and the Padres’ right-handed pitcher has achieved a career postseason ERA of 3.88.
In the second game of the series, Darvish delivered a stellar performance and effectively shut down the Dodgers. He pitched seven strong innings, conceding only one run on three hits.
Keep the faith. pic.twitter.com/ir9r9t3xOx
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) October 11, 2024
The lone run against him came from a pair of singles and a sacrifice fly. The top of the L.A. lineup failed to produce any hits against Darvish.
The Padres will need their lineup to come through if they want to win this one. Right fielder Fernando Tatis Jr. has been performing exceptionally well in the 2024 MLB playoffs.
In the postseason, he leads the team in batting average (.500), home runs (4), RBI (7), OBP (.577), and hits (11). In his last game, Tatis went 1-of-4 with a double.
Third baseman Manny Machado is a versatile player who can impact both defensively and offensively. He is a strong defender with a powerful arm and can also hit home runs and produce runs. In the third game of the series, he went 2-of-4 with two base hits and one run scored.
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Dodgers have decided to start Yoshinobu Yamamoto in Game 5 instead of Jack Flaherty.
Yamamoto had a tough outing in the first game of the series, giving up five runs in three innings, including three runs in the first inning. He only managed to strike out one batter and gave up a home run to Manny Machado.
Flaherty, who may still pitch in this game, also struggled in his previous appearance. He pitched into the sixth inning but allowed four runs, including two home runs, and only recorded two strikeouts, which is usually his strong suit.
In this pivotal game, both starting pitchers are expected to take the mound, but they are likely to have short leashes.
The Dodgers’ bullpen has conceded six runs in 20 1/3 innings, but it performed admirably in the bullpen game on Wednesday, blanking the Padres. Therefore, we may witness a similar strategy in this game.
Your Game 5 starter, Yoshinobu Yamamoto. pic.twitter.com/SO0jhtbRpQ
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) October 11, 2024
Left fielder Teoscar Hernandez has been the standout hitter for the Dodgers in this series. Hernandez possesses significant power and the ability to drive the ball into the gaps. Across four games, he leads the team in batting average (.333), RBI (6), and hits (5). On Oct. 8, he went 1-for-3 with a grand slam.
The Dodgers will also need Ohtani to deliver again. In the last game, Ohtani went 1-for-3 with a base hit, driving in a run and drawing two walks.
Padres-Dodgers Best Bet
This has been a fantastic series with two of the best teams in baseball trading shots. The Dodgers forcing this fifth game surprised me, but they were able to get to Dylan Cease early and their offense exploded.
With that being said, the Dodgers using a multiple pitcher bullpen-strategy worked last game and it doesn’t seem likely they can repeat that performance.
The Dodgers being able to outhit and outscore teams doesn’t seem like a viable strategy, especially against this Padres lineup. The Padres are underdogs on the moneyline and this is a mistake by oddsmakers.
The best bet in this one is Padres on the moneyline at +120 odds.
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Tony Reyes is a sports betting analyst and reporter for Dice City Sports. You can follow him on X @TonyParlay.
