Dodgers vs. Astros odds, picks, predictions for Sun. 7/28: Should you fade L.A.?

Dodgers vs. Astros Odds

Sunday, July 28, 2:10 p.m. ET, MLB.TV

Odds via DraftKings. Get up-to-the-minute MLB odds here.

Los Angeles Dodgers

The Dodgers' offense is fairly similar to that of the Astros as both are top heavy. The Dodgers rely on a pair of former MVPs — Shohei Ohtani (189 wRC+ in July) and Freddie Freeman (141 wRC+) — while Teoscar Hernandez (161 wRC+) and Will Smith (123 wRC+) provide some legit right-handed pop behind the lefties (it's important to note Freeman will miss this game). Beyond the top four, the Dodgers rely on Gavin Lux, Enrique Hernandez and whoever else rounds out the lineup on a given day.

Lux likely won't ever become the start he was expected to be as a prospect, but he's hitting .400 over the past two weeks. Maybe he unlocked something over the break? The Dodgers and their fans sure hope so.

Injuries forced the Dodgers to dive deep into their organizational depth, which is why Justin Wrobleski pitched Saturday, and Ryan, who has pitched just 23 1/3 innings in AAA over the past two season, is getting another crack at the bigs. In his first start, Ryan pitched a scoreless 5 1/3 innings and notched a pair of strikeouts.

He ranks as the Dodgers fourth-best prospect and is the second-ranked pitcher in the system. The only problem is that he hasn't thrown many innings.

Houston Astros

It’s easy to see why the Astros value Arrighetti. He's had his fair share of unlucky results as his 4.32 FIP gives a good indication that he's performing better than his 5.65 ERA suggests. Water tends to find its level, and Arrighetti's level is better than he's been thus far. It's also impossible to ignore his 10.1 strikeouts per nine innings.

The main obstacle Arrighetti faces is his command. He walks over three batters per nine innings and has walked at least three in 10 of his 18 outings. The Dodgers' offense is very patient, so he'll need to locate his pitches Sunday.

The Astros' lineup offense relies on four players — Yordan Alvarez (206 wRC+ in July), Alex Bregman (145 wRC+ in July), Jeremy Pena (143 wRC+ in July), and Jose Altuve (110 wRC+). Those four have been the only consistent sources of offensive production since Kyle Tucker went down with an injury.

Getting extra production from the other pieces could prove paramount in this battle.

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Dodgers vs. Astros

Betting Pick & Prediction

This matchup is pretty close to even. Both teams are missing strong hitters (Freeman, Tucker and Mookie Betts) and sending rookie pitchers to the mound. However, I like Arrighetti more than Ryan. Arrighetti has put together some dominant starts and several real clunkers. He's hit or miss, but he could hit versus the Dodgers.

Pick: Astros Moneyline (Play to -140)