Yankees vs. Dodgers MLB Lines & Pick for Friday Night

It’s a potential World Series preview on Friday night and the return from injury of former league MVP Giancarlo Stanton as the New York Yankees visit the Los Angeles Dodgers, who are short favorites on the MLB odds behind Clayton Kershaw.

Yankees vs. Dodgers | 2023 MLB Expert Analysis

How to Bet NY Yankees at LA Dodgers MLB Odds & TV Info

When: Friday, 10:10 PM ET
Where: Dodger Stadium
Probable pitchers (away/home): Luis Severino/Clayton Kershaw
TV: MLB Extra Innings
Stream/gameday audio: https://www.mlb.com/live-stream-games/
Opening MLB Lines: Dodgers -125, Yankees +105 (total 8.5)

Why Bet on New York?

The Yankees had a four-game winning streak end Wednesday in a 1-0 loss in 10 innings in Seattle. Cal Raleigh’s single leading off the bottom of the 10th inning scored pinch-runner Jose Caballero. In the top of the 10th, Yankees failed to score with the bases loaded and one out. Anthony Volpe hit a slow chopper and third baseman Eugenio Suárez was able to get the force out at home plate for the second out. Pinch-hitter Franchy Cordero then struck out on a 3-2 pitch to end the threat.

Slugger and former NL MVP Giancarlo Stanton (hamstring) is rejoining the Yankees ahead of Friday’s series opener against the Dodgers. Third baseman Josh Donaldson and reliever Tommy Kahnle are also making the cross-country trip. Stanton has been on the shelf since mid-April due to a left hamstring strain and should return to New York’s lineup on Friday evening. He’s expected to be limited to designated hitter for a few weeks before being eased back into a corner outfield spot.

The Dodgers series promises to be a homecoming for Stanton, last year’s Most Valuable Player in the All-Star Game at Dodger Stadium and a product of Los Angeles’ Tujunga area. Donaldson has been out since April 5 due to a right hamstring strain, which he subsequently aggravated in an April 18 rehab game. Kahnle hasn’t pitched in the majors this year due to right biceps tendinitis.

“They’ve all been doing pretty well here for a while and have been able to do a lot of physical work to get themselves prepared,” Manager Aaron Boone said of the trio. “For the most part, I feel like they’re ready to go.”

It’s Luis Severino on the mound Friday. Severino (0-0, 1.59 ERA) did not factor into the decision Saturday, allowing two runs (one earned) on one hit and three walks over 6.2 innings against the Padres. He struck out five. Severino’s one hit allowed was a solo homer off the bat of Fernando Tatis in the fourth. He lit up the radar gun, hitting 100 mph at one point and sitting in the high 90s with his fastball.

“I feel pretty good. I feel pretty healthy,” he said. “It’s a matter of getting more pitches in. … I feel all my pitches are there.”

Though it was definitely encouraging to see Severino reach into the seventh inning, he was still pulled after only 82 pitches after going 75 in his first start of 2023. Because Severino has managed to pitch only 120.0 innings combined over the last three years, expect the Yankees to continue to hold him on a pitch count for a few more starts but Severino seems to be on the right track after he missed the first seven weeks of the season due to a strained lat he suffered during the final week of spring training.

Now, he finally feels healthy and ready to regain his form from 2017 and 2018, when he went a combined 33-14 with a 3.18 ERA and struck out 450 hitters across 384 ²/₃ innings.

Bet Yankees to Win Today
MyBookie Betting Lines for the Game

Why Bet on Los Angeles?

The Dodgers had a two-game winning streak snapped in a 10-6 home loss to the Nationals on Wednesday as the Nats avoided a sweep by hitting five homers. Washington scored five runs in the final two innings after the Dodgers rallied back to even it 5-5.

Mookie Betts hit his 40th leadoff homer and added another solo shot in the eighth for the Dodgers, who lost at home for only the second time in 15 games since late April. It was Betts’ 24th career multi-home game. Will Smith added a two-run shot in the first inning, but NL-leading Los Angeles’ home record dropped to 19-8 on manager Dave Roberts’ 51st birthday.

Freddie Freeman capped his spectacular month by extending his hitting streak to 20 games while going 2 for 4 with two stolen bases. Freeman batted .400 in May and set the Dodgers franchise records with 24 extra-base hits and 17 doubles. He had a 30-game hit streak back in 2016 with the Braves, so he’s got a little ways to go before reaching his previous career-high mark. J.D. Martinez extended his own hitting streak to 15 games.

It’s lefty three-time Cy Young winner and future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw (6-4) on the mound Friday. Kershaw allowed four runs on six hits and two walks while striking out six batters over five innings in a no-decision against Tampa Bay on Saturday. Kershaw looked good through three scoreless frames and carried a 3-0 lead into the fourth. However, the Rays converted a walk and two hits into two runs in that inning before taking the lead on a Harold Ramirez two-run homer in the fifth.

Kershaw’s outing ended after five frames and 83 pitches, marking the third straight outing during which he’s had a relatively early exit. The veteran has allowed 10 runs over 12.2 innings over that span, pushing his season ERA up to 3.32. Kershaw is still piling up strikeouts — he has 34 across his past 24.1 frames — but he’s uncharacteristically issued 11 free passes during that span after walking just five batters across his first 38 innings this season.

Kershaw will face the Yankees for the fifth time in his career and is 0-1 with a 1.67 ERA (5 ER/27.0 IP) and 27 strikeouts against no walks. He last faced the club on August 25, 2019, tossing 7.0 innings while giving up four hits, three runs and no walks while sitting down 12 in the loss.

Bet Dodgers to Win Today
MyBookie Betting Lines for the Game