San Francisco Giants vs Los Angeles Dodgers Prediction & Betting Tips - MLB

Prediction published on 11/04/2023, 09:42  by Joseph King | Modified on 11/04/2023 at 10:42 in MLB Predictions

The third-place Los Angeles Dodgers take on the fifth-place San Francisco Giants for an NL West matchup at Oracle Park in downtown San Fran. A classic West Coast rivalry between two of California’s teams, this is the second of a three game series before the Dodgers return home to face the Cubs while the Giants hit the road to face the Tigers. Perennial favorites to win the World Series, the Dodgers have experienced somewhat of a rocky start to the 2023 season with six wins from the first 13 games. The Giants have experienced a slow start of their own after missing out on the playoffs last season with a .500 record. They’ve started the season with four wins from the first 10 games. 

The Dodgers will be looking to keep the positive momentum going after blasting the Giants 9-1 in game one to put an end to a former three game losing streak. It was a much needed defensive improvement for the 2020 World Series champions who had come into that game having given up a massive 23 runs in the last three games. Taking the mound for LA is the big righty Dustin May who has experienced a fine start to the 2023 campaign. The 25-year-old is 1-1 on the year, pitching 13 total innings while only allowing one earned run. May’s last outing  saw him last six innings, giving up two hits and one earned run in a 5-2 win for the Dodgers.

The Giants will be desperate for a win to try to snap out of a hole which has seen them drop three of the last four games. They were unable to get the offense going against pitcher Julio Arias in the last game as they managed just one run on seven total hits. They’ll hand a start to Alex Wood in this game with the 32-year-old hoping for a much improved performance over the one which saw him start the year. Wood’s only other appearance on the season saw him last just three innings, giving up six hits and three runs. Despite a sub-par showing by Wood, the Giants were able to win that game thanks to an explosion by the bats as they would go on to win 16-6 five days ago against the White Sox.