Braves vs Mariners Betting Should Be On Atlanta
Division Leaders Clash In Emerald City
A pair of first-place teams square off this week, as the Atlanta Braves take on the host Seattle Mariners in a three-game Interleague series that begins on Monday night. Atlanta is atop the NL East standings and holds the best record in baseball at 19-7 heading into this series, while Seattle is leading the AL West by a half-game over the defending World Series champion Texas Rangers.
The Braves have won five of six coming into the series, including taking two of three from the team with the best record in the American League, the Cleveland Guardians, over the weekend. They lead the second-place Philadelphia Phillies by 1.5 games heading into Monday’s series opener.
The Mariners aren’t quite to the point of watching the MLB live scoreboard to see what the Rangers are doing, but they are definitely in for a dogfight for the division’s top spot all season long. Seattle had a three-game winning streak snapped with a loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday.
The MLB betting odds for the series opener give the edge to the visiting Braves, who are listed at -145 on the moneyline. The Mariners are getting +130 odds for a straight-up win. If you’re betting on the run line, you can get Seattle at -135 when getting 1.5 runs, while Atlanta is available at +115 when giving those runs. The over/under for the series opener is set at 7.5 runs, with -110 odds on both sides of that wager.
The series starts with a pair of 9:40 p.m. ET starts on Monday and Tuesday, with the final game of the series scheduled for 3:40 p.m. ET on Wednesday.
Atlanta Braves vs Seattle Mariners 
Day/Time:
Location: T-Mobile Park, Seattle, WA
Streaming: DirecTV STREAM
Pitching Matchups
Game 1: Max Fried (Atlanta) vs Bryce Miller (Seattle)
Left-hander Max Fried will start the series for the Braves, bringing a 2-0 record and 4.97 ERA to the mound for his sixth outing of the season. Fried is coming off a rarity, pitching a complete-game shutout of the Miami Marlins last Tuesday, allowing just three hits while striking out six and walking one. Fried has been solid much of this season, with Atlanta going 5-0 in games that he starts.
Seattle will counter with righty Bryce Miller, who is hoping for a bit of run support from his team. Miller has the 12th-best ERA in baseball at 2.22 but only has a 3-2 record, with his two losses coming when his team has scored just a single run in each. Miller had a subpar performance in his last outing, lasting just four runs against the Rangers on Wednesday and giving up two earned runs on four hits, including two home runs while striking out five and walking four.
Game 2: Reynaldo Lopez (Atlanta) vs Luis Castillo (Seattle)
Atlanta has Reynaldo Lopez on the mound for the second game, which means it should be one of your MLB picks today. Lopez has been fantastic this season, going 2-0 with a 0.72 ERA in four starts. The 30-year-old right-hander has gone at least six innings in each of his starts, allowing a total of two earned runs. He’s coming off his longest outing of the season, going seven innings against the Marlins on Wednesday and allowing one run on three hits while striking out six.
Right-hander Luis Castillo is scheduled to make his seventh start of the season in this contest. Castillo is 2-4 with a 4.15 ERA, though he’s been better in his recent starts. He went six innings against the Rangers on Thursday, giving up two runs on four hits, including two home runs, while striking out six to pick up a win, his second straight.
Game 3: Chris Sale (Atlanta) vs Emerson Hancock (Seattle)
The outstanding starting rotation of the Braves continues with left-hander Chris Sale in the series finale on Wednesday. The 35-year-old is 3-1 with a 3.69 ERA, striking out 33 in 31.2 innings this season. Sale had his best start of the season on Friday, going seven innings against the Guardians and allowing just one run on two hits while striking out six.
The Mariners will send righty Emerson Hancock to the mound for the series finale, as he’s also coming off his best outing of the season. Hancock is 3-2 with a 5.06 ERA but was nearly untouchable on Friday, throwing six innings of one-run ball, allowing two hits and striking out four.
Complete Braves Have Offense As Well
While the Mariners have the edge in team ERA, ranking third in baseball at 3.10 compared to the Braves’ ninth-place 3.62, it’s at the plate that Atlanta has the definitive edge in this series. Atlanta comes into this series with the highest team batting average in baseball at .277, tying for fourth in the majors in runs scored with 149. Meanwhile, Seattle is 25th in baseball with 104 runs scored and 27th with a .219 batting average.
Atlanta outfielder Marcell Ozuna is making his way up the MLB MVP odds in the early going of the season, leading the majors with 31 RBI. He is also tied for second in baseball with nine home runs, ranks sixth in batting average at .340, while also adding six doubles and 20 runs scored.
The Seattle Mariners have been doing it more by committee at the plate, with no player standing out. Outfielder Mitch Haniger has been the most consistent at producing runs, driving in a team-high 18. But he’s batting just .237 with four doubles, four home runs, and 11 runs scored.
Braves Win Battle Of Division Leaders
Your Braves vs Mariners betting should definitely be made on Atlanta in this series. There are a few reasons why the visitors have the best record in baseball, and those should be evident in this matchup.
Seattle is going to be a playoff team this season, but it isn’t quite to the level of the Braves, who should win at least two of these contests. Make sure your wagers are on Atlanta to come out on top in all three of these games.
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