Dodgers Riding Wave of Momentum Ahead of World Series Game 4

Holding a 2-1 series lead after a big 6-2 victory in Game 3, the Los Angeles Dodgers will attempt to grab a stranglehold on the World Series with another win over the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 4 on Saturday.

Sportsbook Odds Analysis

After Game 3 concluded, sportsbooks opened the Rays as +140 underdogs, but that number had shifted slightly to +145 as of 12 p.m. ET on Saturday. The 8-run total has held firm since Sportsbook.

Starting Pitchers Analysis

A pair of left-handers will make the first World Series starts of their careers in Game 4, as Ryan Yarbrough and Julio Urias will get the nod for the Rays and Dodgers, respectively.

Yarbrough pitched in relief in Game 1 and only got word he would start on Saturday after the Rays used a bevy of relievers in relief of starter Charlie Morton on Friday. The Rays had initially planned on using an “opener” to spare the soft-throwing Yarbrough a first trip through the Dodgers’ potent lineup.

Urias saved the Dodgers not once, but twice in their thrilling National League Championship Series against the Atlanta Braves, so the hurler is no stranger to pressure in this postseason. Urias didn’t get his World Series Game 4 assignment until he wasn’t used in Game 2.

Los Angeles News & Notes

The Dodgers entered the playoffs with one of the best offenses in baseball, and Los Angeles’s bats have lived up to the hype in the World Series. Similar to Game 1, the Rays looked outmatched and outclasses in Game 3, as Walker Buehler completely shut down the Rays’ offense in a game where it looked like Justin Turner’s first-inning home run would be enough to secure them the win.

The last time Urias started was on October 14, 10 days ago, in a game where the Dodgers scored 11 runs in the first inning. Dave Roberts pulled him after five innings and 101 pitches into that contest, in time for him to pitch three scoreless innings to close out Game 7 four days later. Urias is fresh for Game 4 in time to make his 17th playoff appearance.

Tampa Bay News & Notes

The Rays’ top-end starters Tyler Glasnow, Blake Snell and Charlie Morton served as one of the reasons to feel optimistic about their chances to take down the Dodgers at the start of the World Series, but L.A. has taken a 2-1 series lead against that trio.

That means the Rays will be forced to put forth a bullpen game in Game 4, but the reality is they’ve already had three bullpen games. The aforementioned starters put up an 8.78 ERA in their three starts, and none made it out of the fifth inning. It’s going to be important for Yarbrough to pitch late in the game in order for Tampa Bay to not turn to its bullpen early - a move that would make it hard to see them not facing elimination on Game 5 on Sunday.

Betting Pick: Dodgers -1.5 (-110)

Based off the momentum the Dodgers’ offense has right now, you can start to feel the momentum shifting in this series. L.A. looks like the play in this one, but it’s going to pricey to back them on their money line price of -170. Instead, the Dodgers’ -1.5 runline looks like the more profitable play in Game 4.