Arguably the hottest team in baseball is looking to keep their momentum going towards making a run at the Mets in the NL East: the Atlanta Braves.
The Braves continue their weekend series against the Pittsburgh Pirates with a Saturday afternoon that features Charlie Morton facing off against Zach Thompson. Ronald Acuña Jr. is hitting .341 over the last two weeks three home runs and seven RBI's, can we expect more fireworks on Saturday?
Let's check out the odds and find a best bet for this National League meeting:
Pirates vs. Braves Odds, Run Line, Total
Run Line:
- Pirates: +1.5 (-105)
- Braves: -1.5 (-115)
Moneyline:
- Pirates: +200
- Braves: -240
Total: 9 (Over -110/Under -110)
Pirates vs. Braves Prediction and Pick
Acuña is the catalyst for the Braves resurgence, but the whole lineup is producing at elite levels, posting the third best wRC+ since May 29th. The team is playing at an absurdly high level and should have little issue teeing off on Thompson and the pirates pitching staff.
Thompson has pitched past the 5th inning once due to an inability to keep runners off the base paths (walking more than 3 batters per 9 innings). The Pirates bullpen is right around the big league average but this is an elite Braves lineup that is hitting to their potential.
I'm not trying to back the Braves as these big of favorites with Morton on the mound. The 38 year old starter is staring to show his age, posting a 5.63 ERA in 11 starts this season. Even if his FIP hints that he should see some better outings in the near future (4.60), I'm not banking on it at this steep of price.
I'm going to look towards the over with the Braves offense surging but also being backed by questionable starting pitching.
LEAN: OVER 9
You can find all of Reed's bets HERE!