Subscribe
Follow Us
The San Diego Padres take on the Atlanta Braves. Our MLB odds series has our Padres Braves prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Padres Braves.
The San Diego Padres were not an especially good home-field team last year, finishing 44-37 in Petco Park. What saved them last season was that they were a better road team than they were a home team. The Padres were 45-36, which enabled them to win 89 games and survive a tough National League wild card race. If the Padres were 41-40 on the road — which is not bad — they would not have made the playoffs. They needed to be a good road team to make the postseason and then generate their run to the National League Championship Series.
So far in 2023, we have once again seen that the Padres play better away from home. They split six games at home against the not-very-good Colorado Rockies and the upstart Arizona Diamondbacks. They have come to Atlanta against the loaded Braves and have won two of three games in this weekend series. The Padres blew a 6-4 lead late in Thursday's series opener, but they promptly punched back with tough wins on Friday and Saturday. It has to be annoying to Padre fans that the team can't flex its muscles in San Diego, but if the team makes the playoffs, that's the most important thing. Road performance could once again guide the Friars to October.
Here are the Padres-Braves MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Padres-Braves Odds
San Diego Padres: -1.5 (+152)
Atlanta Braves: +1.5 (-184)
Over: 9 (-102)
Under: 9 (-120)
How To Watch Padres vs. Braves
TV: ESPN
Stream: ESPN+
Article Continues Below
Time: 7:08 p.m. ET/4:08 p.m. PT
*Watch Padres-Braves LIVE on fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Padres Could Cover The Spread
The Padres are going up against Atlanta starter Dylan Dodd, who did pitch well last week but still lacks copious quantities of MLB experience. The Padres certainly have a lineup which will pose challenges to Dodd, and it's more than reasonable to say that Dodd has to string together a few strong starts and establish a track record of consistency before he gets the benefit of the doubt from a betting standpoint. The Padres are road warriors and are breathing confidence right now. Picking them to beat the Braves for a third straight time might feel like defying the odds and not making the percentage play, but when you realize that San Diego is better away from home, it doesn't seem so ridiculous.
Why The Braves Could Cover The Spread
The Braves are too good to be held down for three consecutive games at home, unless the opposing pitching is out of this world. Atlanta has lost its last two games against Nick Martinez and Michael Wacha, not Sandy Alcantara and Julio Urias. The Braves are going to bounce back against Seth Lugo and what is likely to be a parade of San Diego relievers. The Braves have too much quality, depth and balance in their batting order to once again be handcuffed by Padre pitching. Dylan Dodd should not need to be spectacular in order to win this game. A solid five-inning, two-run outing should be good enough with the offense he has on his side.
Final Padres-Braves Prediction & Pick
The Braves probably merit the edge here, but this is a game you should stay away from since Dylan Dodd is not yet a fully-known entity as a big-league pitcher.
Final Padres-Braves Prediction & Pick: Braves +1.5
