Diamondbacks vs. Dodgers odds opened with Los Angeles as a sizeable favorite over its National League West rival.
The Diamondbacks limped to the finish line with losses to the Astros, but secured their spot by virtue of losses by both the Cubs and Reds. However, in the NL Wild Card Round, they were able to defeat the favored Milwaukee Brewers in two games.
The Dodgers, who will host Games 1, 2 and potentially 5, opened as -188 favorites to advance to the NLDS at FanDuel. The visiting Diamondbacks are +152 underdogs.
Below, you'll find the full schedule for this series, as well as a breakdown of both teams and how they got to this point.
All odds cited below via FanDuel. For updated odds on every series throughout the postseason, be sure to visit our MLB futures page. For individual game odds throughout the postseason at a variety of sportsbooks, visit our MLB odds page.
Diamondbacks vs. Dodgers NLDS Schedule
- Game 1: Saturday, October 7, 9:20 p.m. ET, TBS
- Game 2: Monday, October 9, 9 p.m. ET, TBS
- Game 3: Wednesday, October 11, Time TBD, TBS
- Game 4: Thursday, October 12, Time TBD, TBS (if necessary)
- Game 5: Saturday, October 14, Time TBD, TBS (if necessary)
Arizona Diamondbacks
- World Series Odds: +1500
- Pennant Odds: +600
- Regular Season Record: 84-78
- Team wRC+ (Rank): 98 (18th)
- Starting Pitching xFIP (Rank): 4.36 (18th)
- Bullpen xFIP (Rank): 4.27 (16th)
How They Got Here
The Arizona Diamondbacks played well down the final stretch of the season, but they got out to one of the hottest starts in baseball, which has helped keep them in the race. Outside of the Baltimore Orioles, there is probably not another team in the playoff race with a more stacked supply of young players at their disposal. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. is one of the veteran regulars, and he is not even 30-years-old.
This team will not necessarily get by in the playoffs with luck. They may look like underdogs, but having two aces at the top of the rotation with two go-to arms in the bullpen helps. They could cause some chaos if they manage to get some consistency from the lineup and ‘pen.
In the NL Wild Card Round, the Diamondbacks beat the Brewers in two games.
Offense
Arizona has worked its way around some pretty bad expected numbers. The Diamondbacks do not hit the ball all too hard. They rank in the bottom-10 in Hard Hit Rate and the bottom-half of the league in wRC+ and OPS.
They have some stars, like Corbin Carroll and Christian Walker, who are dangerous threats against any pitcher, but the lineup does drop off from there, when it comes to consistency.
Rotation
The D'backs have arguably the best 1-2 punch at the top of the starting pitching rotation in the playoff field. Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly are great pitchers and can be some of the most reliable starters in the league.
However, Arizona ranks in the bottom-10 in starting pitcher xFIP this season. Since August 1, on the other hand, they rank in the top-10, and this is basically because the rest of the rotation has not been as bad.
Since they have a couple great starters, they can get by in a shortened series with just that and a bullpen. They might have some trouble after the Wild Card Round.
Bullpen
The Snakes added Paul Sewald at the deadline to help supplement Miguel Castro at the back-end of the bullpen. This was a savvy move, as on the season they rank in the bottom-half in bullpen xFIP.
Since August 1, they are pretty much in the same spot, but having those two at their disposal will make the decisions easier for manager Torey Lovullo.
—D.J. James
Bet Diamondbacks vs. Dodgers at FanDuel
Los Angeles Dodgers
- World Series Odds: +450
- Pennant Odds: +200
- Regular Season Record: 100-62
- Team wRC+ (Rank): 116 (3rd)
- Starting Pitching xFIP (Rank): 4.38 (19th)
- Bullpen xFIP (Rank): 3.95 (3rd)
How They Got Here
They may not have been the powerhouse they’ve been in years past, but the Dodgers were still pretty good this season. They won the NL West running away and spent 131 days in first place.
Offense
The Dodgers didn’t boast the best offense in the National League, but were still elite offensively. They finished second in Isolated Power, second in walk rate and had a strikeout rate in the bottom third of the league. Mookie Betts led the league in bWAR and posted the third-best season of his career at 30 years old. Ageless wonder Freddie Freeman finished second on the team with a 161 OPS+ and veteran J.D. Martinez remembered how to hit and slugged 32 home runs.
This offense really turned around once the team sent down struggling rookie Miguel Vargas. The Dodgers took advantage of Betts’ ability to play the infield and shuffled Jason Heyward and newly-acquired infielders Amed Rosario and Enrique Hernandez into the lineup to provide some more consistency.
Rotation
Many pitchers have started games for the Dodgers this year and that could continue into October. Clayton Kershaw has been every bit as good as he’s been in the past few years, albeit in limited action. Bobby Miller is unquestionably this team’s next ace, and he’s settled in nicely after a volatile first few months. After that, Los Angeles may opt to go with rookie Ryan Pepiot, or it could turn to veteran Lance Lynn, who’s been better than he was in Chicago earlier this year, but is still very hit-or-miss.
Bullpen
Despite a laundry list of injuries, the Dodgers bullpen still managed to finish top five in ERA and top three in xFIP. Despite losing some seriously valuable arms like Blake Treinen and Daniel Hudson, Los Angeles’ relievers stepped up.
Evan Phillips and Brusdar Graterol were excellent in filling the void left by Kenley Jansen. Ryan Brasier has also become a good late-inning guy and Alex Vesia and Joe Kelly have seemingly regained their form.
This bullpen may not have the allure it did in previous seasons, but the front-end remains incredibly strong and the Dodgers have done what they always do, which is fix broken pitchers.
—Kenny Ducey
