Today is a big travel day for much of the NL East, so the only game we have this evening is the Miami Marlins taking on the Los Angeles Dodgers, as the Marlins continue their West Coast trip. The Marlins ended up losing their series to the San Francisco Giants after winning the first game of the series, and things won’t get any easier against the Dodgers “super team.” On the mound tonight, we will see Chris Paddack against Yoshinobu Yamamoto, creating an uphill battle for this Marlins team.

Yamamoto has been sharp early on this year with a 2-2 record and produces great swing-and-miss with his pitch mix and nasty splitter, which can pose a huge threat to an already inconsistent Marlins’ lineup. Paddack, 0-4 on the season, has been very vulnerable in spots, getting behind in counts, which could prove costly against a deep Dodgers offense. Miami will need to keep this game low-scoring and capitalize on limited opportunities if they want a chance to pull off the upset tonight.

Miami Marlins vs. Los Angeles Dodgers 10:10 PM ET

Chris Paddack Over 5.5 Hits Allowed (-109 per DraftKings)

Chris Paddack comes into this contest against the Dodgers with a 6.38 ERA, and a 1.54 WHIP on the season. He is going up against a Dodgers lineup that currently leads the MLB in team batting average at .278.

Across Paddack’s first 5 starts of the season, we’ve seen him allow north of 5.5 hits in 3 games, and in the 2 that he didn’t allow over that number, he let up 5, and 3 hits respectively, making his H/9 11.63, which is the highest mark of his career. You’ve also got 5 hitters in the Dodgers’ lineup who have over a .250 batting average against Paddack, so it will be interesting to see how he attacks this deep lineup that already picks him up well.

Liam Hicks Over 0.5 Hits (-171 per DraftKings)

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Marlins catcher Liam Hicks has been one of the stronger hitters in the lineup this season, as he has a .314 batting average, and an .877 OPS in 86 at-bats this season. Looking at some splits for Hicks, he has been really impressive against starting pitching with a .340 average and has been much better against right-handed pitching this season with a .338 batting average.

Hicks has recorded hits in 3 of his last 5 games, as well as 8 of his last 10 games. The one thing that makes this pick a little risky is that he and the rest of this Marlins lineup have yet to see Yoshinobu Yamamoto on the mound, so it will be a learning curve for all of them.

Thankfully, Hicks isn’t a leadoff hitter, and typically bats in the 5-hole, so he will be able to gather information from the guys ahead of him before he inevitably steps in the box.

Otto Lopez Over 0.5 Hits (-211 per DraftKings)

Otto Lopez has been the epitome of consistency this year, as he has a .314 batting average, and an .846 OPS in 105 ABs. While Lopez is usually better against lefties, batting .355, he is still batting an impressive .297 against righties this year.

We’ve seen Lopez record hits in 3 of his last 5 games, and 8 of his last 10. Last year, in 3 games against the Dodgers, he was able to record a total of 4 hits and had hits in 2 of the 3 games.

Miami will obviously need a good pitching performance out of Chris Paddack if they want a chance tonight, and they will also need production from their go-to bats like Otto Lopez.