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Click the link, sign up for your new BetMGM account, deposit at least $10 via your preferred method and then place your first bet on St. Louis vs. LAD this Wednesday night. You don’t need to win your bet to receive the bonus.

St. Louis Cardinals at Los Angeles Dodgers

The St. Louis Cardinals had a historic 17-game winning streak in September.

You'll hear often that you want to back the hot team going into the baseball playoffs, and that is a good angle. Just be aware that the Cardinals might not be the hottest team in this game.

The Los Angeles Dodgers were great down the stretch. The San Francisco Giants were just a little better and won the NL West. The Dodgers were 22-7 in September and October. The Cardinals were 23-9. The Dodgers were 21-6 in August too. Los Angeles was blazing hot, just without stringing together 17 in a row.

The Dodgers are -225 favorites at BetMGM for Wednesday night's game. That high spread isn't unjustified.

Los Angeles went 106-56 in the regular season, 16 games ahead of the Cardinals in the standings. St. Louis had a heck of a run to get the second wild-card spot, and it should feel better about its chances in a one-game playoff against Los Angeles than it would have a month ago, but it will still be an uphill battle.

The pitching matchup sums up the game itself: The Cardinals' starter is good, and the Dodgers' starter is clearly better. Adam Wainwright had a surprising revival, winning 17 games with a 3.05 ERA. He'll face Max Scherzer, who had a 1.98 ERA in 11 Dodgers starts after he was acquired in a trade. He'd be a fine pick for NL Cy Young.

Anything can happen in a one-game baseball playoff. It seems unfair the Dodgers' 106-win season comes down to one game against a Cardinals team that did win 17 in a row to make the playoffs. But the Dodgers are the right side, even at some steep odds. Think of it this way: The Dodgers' season could end tonight, but they're still BetMGM's World Series favorite at +400.

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