Arizona Diamondbacks vs Los Angeles Dodgers

The Los Angeles Dodgers are 13-3 in their last 16 games against the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Dodgers will look to continue their dominance over the Diamondbacks when the teams square off in their 2023 season opener Thursday night in Hollywood.

Los Angeles is also 12-2 in its last 14 home games against Arizona. Recent games in this division rivalry series have been low-scoring as the UNDER is 10-1 in the last 11 meetings. Arizona finished last season in a 6-12 slump in its last 18 road games.

Starting Pitcher Report: Diamondbacks

Zac Gallen was a breakout star for the Diamondbacks in 2022. The 27-year-old set new career bests across the board with 184 innings, a 12-4 record, 2.54 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 192 strikeouts.

Arizona is 10-4 in the last 14 games that Gallen has started. One of those four losses came on the road against the Dodgers, though Gallen pitched very well, allowing only two hits and one earned run while striking out 13 in eight innings. In nine career starts against Los Angeles, Gallen has pitched 54.2 innings and is 1-2 with a 2.30 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 65 strikeouts.

Starting Pitcher Report: Dodgers

Julio Urias followed up his 20-win season in 2021 with another excellent campaign last year. The left-hander compiled a 17-7 record with a 2.16 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 166 strikeouts in 175 innings across 31 starts.

Urias was the starter in Los Angeles’ only postseason win against the San Diego Padres last year. The Dodgers are 18-2 in his last 20 starts, and the 26-year-old has allowed two earned runs or less in all but three of those starts. In 52 innings pitched against the Diamondbacks across eight starts and three relief appearances, Urias is 7-1 with a 1.38 ERA and 0.79 WHIP.

Diamondbacks Player Prop: Zac Gallen OVER 5.5 Strikeouts (+104)

Zac Gallen enters this game coming off a season in which he averaged over a strikeout per inning, and he has also averaged 1.2 strikeouts per inning against the Dodgers in his career. In his last 11 starts in 2022, Gallen recorded six or more strikeouts 10 times.

That stretch includes his 13-strikeout game against Urias and the Dodgers in September. Gallen is unlikely to reach a total that high on Thursday night, but there is good reason to believe he can collect six or seven strikeouts across five or six innings in a game that figures to be a pitching duel in Los Angeles.

Dodgers Player Prop: Max Muncy To Hit A Home Run (+500)

Max Muncy had a down year last season with a .196 batting average and only 21 home runs in 136 games. Before last year, Muncy had played in at least 135 games in three of his previous four seasons with the Dodgers and had batted at least .249 and compiled at least 35 home runs in each of those three seasons.

Muncy could be poised for a bounce-back year if spring training is any indication. The Dodgers slugger batted .304 in 46 at-bats with four doubles and three home runs. He’s a long shot to hit a home run on Thursday night, but given the price and his current form, he could be worth a shot here.