Kershaw and Bumgarner Face Off As Dodgers Giants Rivalry Returns
San Francisco Giants vs Los Angeles Dodgers
Time: 7:10 PM PT
Venue: Dodger Stadium
San Francisco Record: 59-60
Los Angeles Record: 64-55
How are the Dodgers Doing?
The Dodgers wrapped up their series in Colorado with a loss on Sunday. They dropped their last three games to the Rockies, with each defeat coming at the hands of the bullpen.
With their loss and the Diamondbacks win, the Dodgers fall to second place in the NL West by one game.
Playing the Giants this week, the Dodgers will face a team with a sub-.500 record for the first time in the second half of the year.
Why is this Game Important?
Any matchup between the Dodgers and Giants is a date that must be circled on your calendar. This game becomes more intriguing when both teams bring their ace pitchers for the series opener. Clayton Kershaw and Madison Bumgarner will go head-to-head for the 11th time. These two southpaws have not faced off since 2016.
Head-to-Head: Kershaw vs Bumgarner
| Pitcher | Clayton Kershaw | Madison Bumgarner |
| Team Victories | 5 | 5 |
| W-L Record | 3-4 | 4-3 |
| ERA | 2.00 | 2.56 |
| Innings Pitched | 72 | 63.1 |
| Strikeouts | 78 | 71 |
| Walks | 8 | 14 |
| Hits | 50 | 55 |
Pitching Matchup
Clayton Kershaw (5-5, 2.58 ERA) vs Madison Bumgarner (4-4, 2.69 ERA)
Clayton Kershaw comes home searching for his 150th career win. Since the beginning of July, Kershaw has pitched at least six innings, allowing three earned runs or less in each start. He struck out just one batter in his last start in Oakland, which is the fewest in a Kershaw start since 2010.
Madison Bumgarner has thrown the ball well in August allowing just one run in 12 innings this month. He has allowed just five home runs all year and has won three of his last four decisions.
Matchup of the Day
Kiké Hernández vs Madison Bumgarner
With the Giants set to throw a lefty in each game of this series, Kiké Hernández should find his way into the lineup. Hernandez has completely obliterated Madison Bumgarner in his past meetings against the Giants’ pitcher. He has recorded 15 hits in 33 at-bats (.455 batting average) with four home runs against Bumgarner.
Vegas Odds
Odds Sharks
Dodgers: -200
Giants: +185
FiveThirtyEight
Dodgers: 61% chance of winning
Giants: 39% chance of winning
Fun Fact
Madison Bumgarner has hit two career home runs against Clayton Kershaw. He is one of three pitchers ever to homer multiple times against a Cy Young Award winner. The other two are Don Drysdale against Warren Spahn and Walt Terrell against Ferguson Jenkins.
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