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The Athletics make the trip to Atlanta to face the Braves! These two teams are headed in opposite directions with the Braves playing like one of the best teams in the MLB, while the Athletics have really struggled throughout. However, both come into this series not playing well and needing to bounce back. Our MLB odds series has our Athletics-Braves prediction, odds, and pick for Saturday.
The Athletics have struggled this season and have been inconsistent on their way to a 23-35 record. They have lost three out of their last four games and two straight heading into this series. The Athletics have struggled behind the plate and their pitching has not been much better, still ranking near the bottom of the MLB. JJ Bleday, Abraham Toro, Shea Langeliers, and Brent Rooker have been able to stand out on a struggling offense. On the mound, Paul Blackburn, JP Sears, and Aaron Brooks have been decent on the mound despite the staff struggling as a whole. The Athletics are not the disaster they were last season, but that is not saying much because they have still had their fair share of struggles.
The Braves have come out very strong to open the season. They are 31-23, but have lost three out of their last four games and they come into this game losing two straight games. They have one of the best offenses in the MLB up to this point in the season, ranking as a top 10 staff in the MLB. Their pitching has also been very good this season as a top-10 unit as well. Max Fried, Reynaldo Lopez, and Chris Sale have all had varying levels of success up to this point. On offense, Marcell Ozuna has dominated at the plate for Atlanta, with Orlando Arcia, Ronald Acuna Jr. despite his injury, Matt Olson, Austin Riley, Ozzie Albies, and Michael Harris II all not far behind. The Braves are playing great baseball overall, but they have struggled recently, so a matchup against the Athletics might be exactly what they need.
Here are the MLB Odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Athletics-Braves Odds
Oakland Athletics: +1.5 (+118)
Moneyline: +250
Atlanta Braves: -1.5 (-142)
Moneyline: -310
Over: 8.5 (-105)
Under: 8.5 (-115)
How to Watch Athletics vs. Braves
Time: 4:10 pm ET
TV: Bally Sports Southeast / NBC Sports California
Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)
Why The Athletics Will Cover The Spread/Win
The Athletics are starting Aaron Brooks on the mound in this game and he has a 0-2 record, a 3.63 ERA, and a 1.56 WHIP. He has allowed 11 runs on 22 hits through 17.1 innings so far this season. In the three games that he has started this season, the Athletics are 1-2. In his last start, he pitched 4.1 innings and gave up five runs on nine hits with three walks and one strikeout. Brooks has been solid in a limited capacity despite the Athletics struggles, but this is a tough matchup against the Braves behind the plate.
The offense for the Athletics has been one of the worst in the MLB this season. They are 27th in the MLB in team batting average at .222 after having a team batting average of .223 last season which was the worst in the league. Abraham Toro, Brent Rooker, and Shea Langeliers lead the way for the team in most batting categories. Toro leads in batting average at .290 and in total hits at 60. Rooker then leads the way in RBI at 35 and in OBP at .366 and Langeliers is the leader in home runs at 12. The Athletics have been struggling and a matchup against Chris Sale does not do them any favors with how well they have played.
Why The Braves Will Cover The Spread/Win
The Braves are starting Chris Sale to start on the mound. He has an 8-1 record, a 2.12 ERA, and a 0.85 WHIP. He has allowed 15 runs on 45 hits with nine walks and 78 strikeouts through 63.2 innings. He has started in 10 total games so far this season and the Braves are 8-2 in those games. In his last start, he pitched seven innings where he allowed one run on four hits with one walk and eight strikeouts in a Braves win. Sale has been nothing short of great for the Braves this season and this is a favorable matchup with how much the Athletics have struggled behind the plate.
The Braves offense has been very good and is eighth in the MLB in batting average up to this point in the season at .249. They have dipped a bit after leading the entire MLB in batting average last season at .276. Marcell Ozuna has been incredible for the Braves to open the season and leads the way in most of the batting categories. Ozuna leads the way in batting average at .312, in home runs at 16, in RBI at 49, in OBP at .390, and in total hits at 62. The Braves offense can compete with anyone in the league and needs a matchup like this with the slump they are in.
Final Athletics-Braves Prediction & Pick
The Braves have more talent and are the better team on paper, but have slumped recently. In comparison, the Athletics have struggled all year. This is a perfect spot for the Braves to bounce back against the Athletics. Sale has been red-hot on the mound and is better than Brooks, while the Braves have one of the best offenses in the MLB, compared to all the struggles the Athletics have had behind the plate.
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Final Athletics-Braves Prediction & Pick: Braves -1.5 (-142)
