The Los Angeles Dodgers look to build off their successful weekend against a strong National League opponent when they visit the major league-worst Colorado Rockies on Monday in the opener of a four-game series.
Los Angeles (71-53) swept a three-game set versus San Diego (69-55) to move two games ahead of the Padres for first place in the NL West. The Dodgers now hope to pad that lead against Colorado (35-89), but that may not be easy, as the Rockies have won three straight games and five of their last six.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto (10-8, 2.84 ERA) attempts to bounce back from his worst start of the year as he takes the mound for the Dodgers in the series opener. The 27-year-old Japanese right-hander surrendered a season-high six runs over 4 2/3 innings in a loss to the Los Angeles Angels last Monday. Yamamoto did record six strikeouts, however, and also fanned six batters while giving up just one hit across five scoreless frames in a win at Colorado on June 25.
The Rockies, who have lost 10 straight—including all six in 2025—and 16 of their last 18 meetings with the Dodgers, counter with Kyle Freeland (3-12, 5.18). The 32-year-old left-hander worked 7 1/3 scoreless innings in a victory against the St. Louis Cardinals last time out but registered only two strikeouts. Freeland is 5-11 lifetime and winless in his last four starts versus the Dodgers.
The top sportsbooks have set the total strikeouts props for Yamamoto (Over +107, Under -139) at 6.5 and Freeland (Over +110, Under -141) at 3.5. The SportsLine Projection Model, which simulates every MLB game 10,000 times, rates Yamamoto’s Under 6.5 strikeouts prop as a 4-star play on its 5-star scale and Freeland’s Over 3.5 as a 3.5-star play.
However, the model has found better value on Monday’s 13-game schedule, as there are two pitcher strikeout player props that it has rated at 4.5 stars and another at 4 stars that returns plus money. Here they are:
Spencer Strider Under 7.5 strikeouts (-144) vs. White Sox (7:15 p.m. ET)
Rating: 4.5 stars
Model projection: 6.2 strikeouts
Strider has gone Under his projected strikeout total in four of his last five starts, averaging 5.2 in that span. The 26-year-old righty has fanned fewer than eight batters in each of his last four outings and is coming off a turn against the New York Mets in which he recorded a season-low two strikeouts over four innings.
Yoendrys Gomez Over 4.5 strikeouts (+135) vs. Braves (7:15 p.m. ET)
Rating: 4 stars
Model projection: 4.8 strikeouts
Gomez made the first start of his major-league career last Tuesday and was impressive, as he registered seven strikeouts over five innings en route to victory against the Detroit Tigers. The 25-year-old Venezuelan righty, who also pitched for the New York Yankees and Dodgers this season before being claimed off waivers in May, racked up 13 strikeouts across 17 2/3 frames in 12 relief appearances prior to the start. Gomez made his only appearance versus the Braves last year, when he came out of the bullpen for the Yankees and fanned five batters across 4 2/3 innings.
Victor Mederos Over 3.5 strikeouts (-111) vs. Reds (9:38 p.m. ET)
Rating: 4.5 stars
Model projection: 4.7 strikeouts
Like Gomez, Mederos made his first major-league start last Tuesday and registered three strikeouts over four innings against the Dodgers. The 24-year-old Cuban right-hander fanned a total of four batters across four frames in two relief appearances earlier this season. Mederos has recorded 15 strikeouts over 16 1/3 innings in 10 career games with the Angels. The Reds are tied for second in the NL with 1,082 strikeouts and have whiffed 43 times over their last four contests, reaching double digits three times in that span.
