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It’s not a matter of whether the Los Angeles Dodgers will win yet another NL West title, but how soon they clinch. They figure to beat up on the last-place Arizona Diamondbacks this week. Tuesday’s pitching matchup is incredibly lopsided.

How to Bet Dodgers at Diamondbacks MLB Odds & TV Info

When: Tuesday, 9:40 PM ET
Where: Chase Field
Probable pitchers (away/home): Walker Buehler/Luke Weaver
TV: MLB Extra Innings
Stream/gameday audio: https://www.mlb.com/live-stream-games/
Opening MLB Lines: TBA

Why Bet on LA Dodgers?

The Dodgers are on a rare two-game losing streak after falling 7-6 at home to Colorado on Sunday – L.A. got Monday off. It was the first series loss of the season for the Dodgers.

Corey Seager slugged two home runs in the loss. Seager hit a solo shot off Rockies starter Ryan Castellani in the bottom of the first inning and then got to Castellani again for a two-run blast in the bottom of the fifth, but it wasn’t enough. Seager made final out against Rockies closer Daniel Bard in the bottom of the ninth. Seager is up to 11 home runs and 31 RBI in 35 games this season, to go along with a.331/.377/.634 overall slash line.

Third baseman Justin Turner took at-bats in a simulated game Sunday at Dodger Stadium. Teal test will be running and infield drills. The veteran third baseman was placed on the injured list September 1, retroactive to August 29, because of a left hamstring strain.

Joc Pedereson was away from the team for a family-related reason that the team did not disclose. Manager Dave Roberts said Pederson is fine, but the timing of his return is unknown.

“We’ve obviously talked to him and feel good about it,” Roberts said on a conference call. “If we have to make a roster move on Tuesday, we will. But right now that’s all I can divulge.”

Mookie Betts has tied his season high with at least one hit in eight straight games. He is hitting .407 (13-for30) with a .526 on-base percentage in that stretch. Betts leads the team in hits (48), homers (13), RBI (31), extra-base hits (21), runs (32), OBP (.393) and OPS (1.018). His 13 homers are tied for fourth in baseball, two off the Major League lead (Mike Trout, 15).

It’s young All-Star right-hander Walker Buehler (1-0) on the mound. Buehler didn’t give up a run over five innings with six strikeouts, but didn’t factor into the decision last Wednesday against the Diamondbacks. Buehler didn’t pick up a decision because Zac Gallen matched Buehler with zeroes before Buehler left after throwing 71 pitches. He gave up just two hits, and he issued one walk. It was his hander’s first time on the mound since missing 10 days with a blister, and he looked like there wasn’t any rust to shake off. He lowered his ERA on the year to 3.60 with a K/BB ratio of 34/10 over 30 innings.

Buehler holds a 1-0 career mark against the Snakes with a 2.61 ERA (12 ER/41.1 IP). He has struck out 48 batters and walked just 10 while limiting hitters to a .187/.242/.253 slashline. Buehler recorded his only win against Arizona at Chase Field on June 3, 2019, throwing 8.0 stellar innings of one-run ball, allowing just two hits and striking out 11 over 102 pitches.

Why Bet on Arizona?

The Diamondbacks were 13-11 at one point but have fallen off a cliff since and are simply playing out the string at this point. They traded a few regulars ahead of last week’s trade deadline, waiving the white flag. As of Monday, the team has lost 15 of 17. Over their past 17 games, they have been outscored 82-46, hitting .194 overall and .160 with runners in scoring position.

“Guys’ spirits are OK,” veteran catcher Stephen Vogt said. “They’re not great, they’re not horrible. I’d say we’re kind of in the middle. It’s been a tough week for us, mentally and physically. But we still feel like we can win a lot of games. We still feel like we can get this thing going, and it’s just a matter of us going out and doing it and catching that momentum. It’s about us getting hot all at the same time, that’s something we’ve been missing for the past month or so. We’ve got three, 3 1/2 weeks left to see if we can make a run at this thing and get that offense clicking.”

One bright spot: Tim Locastro has been successful in his first 23 career stolen base attempts, the fifth-longest stolen base streak to start a career (since 1951 – when steals were tracked).

It’s struggling Luke Weaver (1-6) on the mound. Weaver allowed two runs on four hits over 5 1/3 innings in last Thursday’s loss to the Dodgers. Three singles and an error put Weaver in a two-run hole after the first inning, but he cruised from there. The right-hander allowed just one hit the rest of the way, striking out five without issuing a walk. It’s been hit-or-miss for the 27-year-old in 2020, who has turned in decent outings in three of his last four starts. Weaver is the owner of a 7.44 ERA and 1.59 WHIP through eight starts.

“It’s a huge positive, obviously,” Weaver said of last week’s outing. “Something I’m going to be taking out of it personally for the performance I put out there and one I’m going to try to build off of and kind of keep that attack mode going for back-to-back outings.”