Friday, October 23, 2020, Globe Life Field, Arlington, Texas, 8:08 p.m. ET
Dodgers at Rays Betting Preview: Dodgers (-165), Rays (+143)
Los Angeles Dodgers
Keeping Tampa Bay at bay will be the task of right-hander Walker Buehler, who authored his best performance of the postseason on Saturday, striking out six over six scoreless innings of a 3-1 win against the Atlanta Braves in Game 6 of the National League Championship Series. The mild-mannered 26-year-old would love a repeat performance of his previous World Series outing, when he spun seven scoreless innings against the Boston Red Sox in 2018.
Corey Seager walked three times in the Dodgers’ 8-3 win in Game 1 of the World Series before flexing his arms instead of his legs in a 6-4 setback on Wednesday. The National League Championship Series MVP belted his seventh homer of the postseason and fourth in his past five games, with his 16 hits matching Mookie Betts for the team lead in the playoffs.
Unfortunately for the Dodgers, they struck out 15 times in Game 2 — with Chris Taylor getting punched out three times on Wednesday. Taylor has fanned at least once in each of his past 10 games, and he is batting .194 (7-for-36) in that span.
Tampa Bay Rays
Brandon Lowe belted two homers and drove in three runs on Wednesday to resemble the player who led the team in most offensive categories during the regular season, as opposed to the downtrodden star who was 6-for-56 (.107) with 19 strikeouts in his first 15 postseason games. The opposite-field blasts boosted Tampa Bay’s home run total to 28 in the playoffs, the most by a team in a single postseason.
Manuel Margot has flipped the script since mustering just four hits total over his first seven playoff games, going 9-for-27 (.333) with three homers, six RBIs and six runs in his past eight contests. Margot is one of the few Rays who have faced Buehler, going 1-for-4 with a solo homer against him.
Right-hander Charlie Morton has been money during the postseason for the Rays, winning all five of his starts this year and last while recording an 0.70 ERA. The 36-year-old has done even a shade better in 2020, going 3-0 with an 0.57 ERA and 0.96 WHIP.
World Series Betting Pick for Game 3: Dodgers at Rays Betting Pick
The Dodgers surrendered the first five runs on Wednesday, putting them back on their heels as their four-game winning streak come to a halt. With an off day to regain its composure, Los Angeles will get back on track behind the timely hitting of Seager and Betts.
Expect the Dodgers to take control of the series, starting on Friday.
Dodgers at Rays Betting Pick:
Dodgers 4, Rays 2
World Series Best Bet for Game 3: Dodgers at Rays Betting Pick
While the teams combined for 21 runs and eight homers in the first two games, Friday’s encounter likely will be a low-scoring affair considering both starting pitchers have been downright stingy in these playoffs. Don’t forget: The Dodgers surrendered the second fewest runs per game during the regular season and the Rays tied for fourth.
Dodgers at Rays Best Bet: UNDER 7.5 total runs (-109)
–Field Level Media
