MLB Preview: Mets at Dodgers Odds & Betting Tips

Don’t tell the Dodgers money can’t buy championships. The two-time defending World Series champions are the overwhelming MLB odds favorite to three-peat and enter the week with the best record in MLB. They finish off a home stand by entertaining the Mets on Wednesday with Shohei Ohtani expected to take the bump.

On their way to the first of their two straight titles the Dodgers beat the Mets in six games in the NLCS. New York has won 4 of 7 regular season games since dropping the Fall Classic. Former reliever turned starter Clay Holmes is expected to get the nod for New York.

Mets at Dodgers Game Preview

The finale of the 3-game set between the New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers is scheduled for Wednesday, April 15, 2026 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. First pitch is set for 10 p.m. ET with ESPN airing the game live.

A winner of three straight MVP awards and four total, Shohei Ohtani said prior to this season that he wants to win the Cy Young award. He started 14 games a season ago and has made every scheduled start so far in 2026 giving up just 5 hits and no runs in 12.0 innings. Ohtani will face the Mets for the first time in his career.

It seems as though every club is basking in mediocrity early in the season; every team except the Dodgers. LA became the first to win double digits with Friday’s 8-7 win over the Rangers and they enter the week having yet to lose consecutive games.

The offense has carried LA early in the season. The Dodgers led the Majors hitting nearly .300 as a team with the most home runs of any club. That’s helped them score the most runs per game in MLB with the best run differential at plus-38.

Eight players already have multiple homers with Andy Pages and Max Muncy leading the way with 4. The offense has operated at a high level despite the slow starts for Ohtani and free agent slugger Kyle Tucker. Tucker is hitting just .250 with one homer through 14 games.

The Mets enter the series on a 5-game losing streak getting blanked 1-0 on Sunday, their second shutout loss in three games. They scored nine times during the skid, but 6 of those runs came in Saturday’s 11-6 loss to the Athletics.

With Juan Soto on the IL the Mets are without a key player in the lineup. Soto had a torrid start to the season hitting .355 through 8 games before going on the shelf with a calf injury. Soto is expected to miss the entire road trip that finishes with three games against the Cubs.

Holmes is in line to make the start on Wednesday. He exited Friday’s game against the Athletics with a tight hamstring after allowing one earned run on five hits over 5.1 innings in a 4-0 loss.

Mets at Dodgers Predictions

Ohtani had a slow start offensively, but he has picked it up at the dish recently. And not surprisingly the offense has been humming. Starting with their 13-6 win over Washington on April 3, the Dodgers averaged more than 8.3 runs going 7-1. During the 8-game stretch, Ohtani hit .343 with 4 homers and 9 RBIs. LA cashed the OVER on the MLB spread in six games.

The offense is coming around but the pitching has been there for Ohtani in two starts. In his first start he allowed just one hit in 6.0 shutout innings with 6 strikeouts. Last time out against the Blue Jays, who he struggled with in the World Series, Ohtani gave up 4 hits and one unearned run in 6.0 frames, though the Dodgers lost 4-3.

Mets at Dodgers Betting Tips

Holmes has been good, sporting a 1.50 ERA in 18.0 innings over 3 starts this season. However, a tight hamstring is an issue for a pitcher leaving him vulnerable against the best offense in MLB.

The Mets enter the series having won their last 3 road games going 3-0-1 against the OVER in their past 4 road encounters.

LA won more than 64 percent of their home games last season and they’re off to another good start winning 6 of their first 8 at Dodger Stadium in 2026.

Mets at Dodgers Head to Head and Key Stats

The Dodgers won the 2024 NLCS 4-2 averaging 7.7 runs in the series with every game going OVER the closing total. The teams have cashed the OVER in 9 of the past 13 meetings.