We have a starting pitching matchup treat this afternoon between Cy Young-caliber aces in a getaway game series finale. It’s one we might see again with much more at stake in late October, as Shane McClanahan and the Tampa Bay Rays visit Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers. It’s a 3:10 p.m. ET first pitch, and I’ll certainly have this on.
Tampa Bay vs. Los Angeles same-game parlay
- Los Angeles money line
- Alt Under 9.5
- Under 1.5 first-inning total runs
DraftKings SGP price: +124
This absolutely could be a preview of the World Series – remember, the Dodgers beat the Rays in the 2020 COVID year – and in a Game 1 these two could be the starting pitching choice by their respective managers if all else worked out.
Do I think we see Rays-Dodgers in October? That would be ironic in a way ahead of a likely lockout with the definition of a small-market “poor” team against a big-market “rich” one. Ohtani’s full contract equals about half the value of the entire Tampa Bay franchise.
It would be almost an upset if Los Angeles doesn’t get back to the World Series as the +110 NL favorite, but Tampa Bay might not have enough hitting and is +700 to win the AL pennant. FanDuel offers a “Double Chance” price on either club winning the Fall Classic at +155.
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Let’s start with Ohtani, who will not hit after accounting for the only run of the game Tuesday with a sixth-inning homer in the 1-0 victory – we might see a similar score today. I’d love to see him do the unthinkable and sweep the NL MVP and Cy Young Awards. Barring injury, a fourth career MVP look like all but a done deal, as he’s the -1600 favorite with the rest of the National League priced at +900.
But to win a first Cy Young, he’s down at +1800 behind two guys who show no signs of slowing down in Milwaukee’s Jacob Misiorowski (-165) and Philadelphia’s Cristopher Sanchez (+250), not to mention Pittsburgh’s Paul Skenes (+1500). There’s also a lot of season left to catch up. FanDuel offers a prop on Ohtani for MVP and teammate Yoshinobu Yamamoto for Cy Young at +2500. That might be worth a few bucks, as Yamamoto has been spectacular of late himself.
As a pitcher, Ohtani is 6-2 with a 1.06 ERA and 0.84 WHIP in 11 starts, with 73 strikeouts in 67.2 innings and a .154 opponents’ batting average. He isn’t a qualified pitcher or the ERA would lead the majors, the OBA would be second and the WHIP tied for second. Yet you would be down $254 if you bet $100 on L.A. to win each of his starts because Ohtani is always a huge favorite, so the losses are very costly.
The Dodgers have tried to treat the 31-year-old with kid gloves around pitching days to keep him from getting worn down as a full-time two-way player, so he is on six days of rest. Ohtani had won four straight starts before a no-decision in Pittsburgh last Wednesday, where his four runs and three earned runs allowed were both season highs.
Ohtani hadn’t allowed more than two earned in a 2026 outing. Ohtani’s 102 pitches were three short of his season high, and he pitched to No. 2 catcher Dalton Rushing for the first time this season after primary catcher Will Smith landed on the injured list. If Ohtani struggles again today, questions about his rhythm with Rushing could be legit.
“Yeah, I shook a few times more than usual, but I think that’s normal given that I haven’t really worked with him this year,” Ohtani said after the Pittsburgh start of Rushing. “It’s something you just have to have a conversation here and there and be on the same page.”
With a quick turnaround from last night’s game and the fact we are now in the heat of summer, it’s not a huge surprise that Ohtani will not bat today. Plus, he left last Thursday’s game in Pittsburgh because of left knee inflammation and missed the next one. That has subsided, but this is Ohtani’s first pitching start since.
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As for Tampa Bay’s McClanahan, he was one of the AL’s top lefties in 2022 and ’23, named an All-Star in both, before injuries caused him to miss the next two seasons. But the 29-year-old appears to be back in pre-injury form at 6-4 with a 3.23 ERA and 1.17 WHIP. McClanahan has some pretty glaring splits: 5-0 with a 2.05 ERA and .189 OBA at home compared to 1-4 with a 4.32 ERA and .242 OBA on the road. Both his June starts have been away, and McClanahan has lost both with an 8.00 ERA.
With all teams in MLB playing each other nowadays, it’s rare to see a pitcher who has been in the league a handful of seasons to have not faced another big-league club yet, but McClanahan hasn’t seen the Dodgers in his career – Ohtani has 11 at-bats off him, but that point is moot.
I’m feeling pretty good about MLB parlays after hitting a three-legger at +150 in this space yesterday on Tigers-Astros — using the same three plays (money line, alt first inning and alt full-game totals). Obviously, from the Dodgers money line perspective I would prefer if Ohtani was hitting, but from the total perspective I would not. The model has Dodgers 4.7-4.2. Check out other expert picks in the SportsLine daily newsletter.
