The Los Angeles Dodgers are 3-1 this season in four games that rookie sensation Kenta Maeda has started. The Dodgers hope that Maeda can continue his dominance this Thursday night against the Miami Marlins.
Marlins vs. Dodgers 2016 odds: Los Angeles, Maeda favored over Miami on Thursday
The Los Angeles Dodgers are set as betting favorites as they wrap up their four-game series against the Miami Marlins on Thursday.
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Los Angeles is set as a -123 betting favorite with Maeda on the mound on Thursday night at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com. Through four career starts, Maeda has allowed only one earned run and carries a dazzling 0.36 ERA and a 0.87 WHIP.
The Marlins send ace Jose Fernandez to the mound in the series finale as +113 underdogs. The Marlins are just 4-5 in Jose Fernandez's last nine starts.
The Dodgers looked like an absolute force to be reckoned with in their season-opening sweep against the San Diego Padres, racking up a remarkable three straight shutouts while outscoring the Padres 25-0. But after that 3-0 start the Dodgers went just 9-9 over their next 18 games, including back-to-back home losses to start this series against the Marlins.
Before losing the first two games in this series, Los Angeles was 10-4 in its previous 14 home games per the OddsShark MLB Database.
With a fairly mediocre pitching staff, the Marlins entered this season with high hopes that their young and talented offense could lead the team to some wins. Things haven't clicked yet for the Marlins who are averaging only 3.8 runs per game, but Tuesday's 6-3 win against one of the league's best pitchers in Clayton Kershaw may have been a step in the right direction.
Thursday's total is set at 6.5 runs on the MLB betting lines.The UNDER is 3-0-1 in Kenta Maeda's four major league starts thus far.
Games like these ones are particularly important to the Dodgers, who figure to have a season-long dogfight on their hands for first place in the NL West with San Francisco and potentially Arizona or Colorado.
Stuck in the same division as the Washington Nationals and the New York Mets, the Marlins will need a pretty impressive run to play themselves into playoff relevance down the road.
After Thursday’s series finale, the Dodgers start a three-game home series against the San Diego Padres on Friday.
