Rays vs Dodgers Props – Best Bets for Game 1 (Oct. 20th)

• Game 1 of the 2020 World Series between the Tampa Bay Rays and Los Angeles Dodgers takes place on Tuesday (Oct. 20, 8:09 pm EST)
• Tampa Bay’s Tyler Glasnow’s K/9 rate has dropped from 14.28 in the regular season to 11.64 in the postseason
• See the lines on the most popular team and player props as well as our best bets

Game 1 of the 2020 World Series is upon us. The Tampa Bay Rays will square off with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday (Oct. 20) from Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, with the first pitch slated for 8:09 pm EST. Tyler Glasnow will get the ball for the Rays, while Clayton Kershaw will start the championship opener for the third time in four years for the Dodgers.

Rays. Dodgers.

The World Series matchup is set 🔥 pic.twitter.com/mAi6D8TOJP

— ESPN (@espn) October 19, 2020

LA is a hefty favorite to win Game 1, and its first World Series title since 1988, but betting the game, or the series, aren’t the only ways to get action down. There is a bevy of player and team props to choose from, so let’s explore which ones offer value in Game 1.

Rays vs Dodgers Player Props

All Odds taken Oct. 19th at DraftKings

Prop #1: Tyler Glasnow Under 6.5 Strikeouts

Glasnow’s strikeout prop is set at 6.5, the same as Kershaw, with the juice heavily shaded towards the over. The 27-year-old hasn’t made it past the 5th inning in two of his last three starts, and has pitched 3 innings or less in two of his six career postseason outings.

Tyler Glasnow pulled from the game so that he can go back to overseeing his street gang in England

— Nick Stellini (@StelliniTweets) October 15, 2020

There’s no denying that Glasnow’s stuff is filthy, but he’s experienced a sharp decline in strikeouts during the playoffs. His K/9 rate was 14.28 during the regular season, but sits at 11.64 through four postseason starts in 2020. He’s struck out more than six batters in just two of those outings, while the Dodgers whiff at much lower rate than most of the league. LA’s K rate is 3 percent lower than league average and they’ve struck out more than five times versus a starter in just three of 12 playoff games.

 Prop #2: Corey Seager Over 0.5 Runs, Over 1.5 Total Bases

Corey Seager is tearing the cover off the baseball at the moment. LA’s shortstop leads the team in runs, hits, homers and RBI in the playoffs, and is fresh off a 5 home run, 11 RBI performance in the NLCS.

SEAGER SMOOTH.@coreyseager_5 is the NLCS MVP. pic.twitter.com/Ti5ynxNxYi

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) October 19, 2020

Seager has hit safely in seven of his last nine playoff games, scoring a run in six of them. His career slash line is .295/.362/.500, but those numbers climb to .307/.375/.525 versus right-handed pitching. I’m betting he stays hot versus Glasnow in Game 1.

Rays vs Dodgers Game Props

Prop #3: Dodgers Score First

As mentioned Glasnow has been very inconsistent throughout these playoffs, while LA has put up an MLB best 69 runs, twelve more than Tampa Bay in two fewer games.

Corey Seager. That is all. pic.twitter.com/cdZYxRWNbN

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) October 14, 2020

Kershaw meanwhile, has struggled in his last two starts, allowing seven runs, but has pitched very well early in games all playoffs. The left-hander has allowed just one run prior to the 6th in in three starts this postseason, indicating when he’s fresh, he’s still got elite stuff.

I’m betting the Dodgers offense gets to Glasnow well before the Rays cross the plate versus Kershaw.