Tampa Bay Rays vs. Los Angeles Dodgers Prediction 5-26-23 MLB Picks

The Los Angeles Dodgers and the Tampa Bay Rays meet in interleague action in an MLB matchup from Tropicana Field on Friday night. Let’s dive into the odds, starting pitching matchup, history and make a prediction for this game.

Odds

Tampa Bay is a -115 home favorite while the Dodgers are -105 road underdogs. The total for this game is set at 9.5 runs.

Starting Pitching Matchup

Noah Syndergaard will start for the Dodgers here and is 1-3 with a 5.88 ERA and 30 strikeouts this season. Jalen Beeks will serve as the opener for Tampa Bay and is 1-2 with a 4.68 ERA and 22 strikeouts this season.

Matchup History

Los Angeles’ 3-1 win back on October 27, 2020, made it back-to-back wins for the Dodgers in this head-to-head matchup and it was in the World Series as well.

Trends

Los Angeles is 27-11 in their last 38 interleague road games and 61-24 in their last 85 series-opening games while the over is 5-1-1 in their last 7 interleague games against a team with a winning record. Tampa Bay is 39-12 in their last 51 home games and 24-8 in their last 32 series-opening games while the over is 7-0 in their last 7 games following a win.

Pick

I’m leaning towards the Rays here. I don’t love going against the Dodgers, because Los Angeles is still one of the better teams in baseball and are always capable of overcoming any defensive shortcomings with their solid lineup. That being said, I don’t love Noah Syndergaard, especially on the road, and I think the Rays are back to feeling themselves after rattling off a series win following that disappointing showing against Toronto earlier in the week. I think this is an important series for Tampa Bay and being at home is the difference here. Give me Tampa Bay.