The Atlanta Braves drew first blood in the 2021 MLB World Series, as they scored a 6-2 win at Minute Maid Park in Game 1 to take a 1-0 series lead against the Houston Astros. Knowing the Astros, they can quickly recover from a bad loss with their big bats. Will the Astros' wake up in Game 2, though? Or, will the Braves outplay them again on the mound and at the plate? With all those said, let's now take a look at our Braves vs Astros World Series Game 2 preview and prediction along with the respective betting odds for each team to win Wednesday night.

Here’s how the bookmakers have set the lines for Braves-Astros prediction for 2021 World Series Game 2.

MLB Odds: Braves-Astros Odds to win World Series Game 2

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Atlanta Braves -1.5 (+162), -104 ML | SP: Max Fried
Houston Astros +1.5 (-196), -112 ML | SP: Jose Urquidy

Why the Braves can win World Series Game 1

It’s going to be Max Fried who’ll be on the mound for the Braves in Game 2 of the 2021 World Series. Fried did not look too good in his last start, as he was hit a lot by the Los Angeles Dodgers in an 11-2 loss back in the NLCS. However, Fried has been generally good in the postseason, with the Braves winning two of his last three appearances. In those games, Fried has collected a 1-1 record and a 3.78 ERA in 16.2 total innings. The Astros’ bats are always a huge challenge for any pitcher, but the Braves are still confident in Fried, who posted a 3.04 ERA and 1.09 WHIP in the regular season.

Plus, the Braves were the first ones to flex their muscle on offense in this series. Eddie Rosario continued his torrid postseason performance by going 2 for 5 in Game 1.

So far in the playoffs, Rosario is slashing .465/.511/.767. Atlanta’s offense came out hot in the first inning of Game 1, and its batters will look to jump out early and provide Fried enough scoring support to make him feel comfortable. The Braves have done an admirable part of supplying ample offense behind their pitchers for the most part of the season. They are seventh overall with 5.38 runs scored per nine innings pitched by their starters.

For what it's worth, the Braves have won all of their last five Game 2s of a series. They are also 15-3 in their last 18 games against a team with a record better than .500.

Moving on to the next part of this Braves-Astros prediction…

Why the Astros can win World Series Game 2

For the Astros, they’ll counter Fried with Jose Urquidy, who’s made just one start so far in the postseason. The right-hander pitched for only 1.2 innings in a 12-3 loss to the Boston Red Sox in the ALCS, where he got torched for five earned runs (six runs in total) on five hits. While expectations may not be high on Urquidy given the misadventure he had on the mound the last time he stepped on it, the Astros are hoping they can finally get their offense going after being silenced in Game 1.

It almost feels like the two-run production that Houston mustered in the series opener was an anomaly, considering how hot the team’s offense had been in the previous series against the Chicago White Sox in the ALDS and versus the Red Sox in the ALCS. Houston’s offense can wake up anytime, and that could come in Game 2.

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The duo of Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman went 0 for 9 together last night. Carlos Correal was just 0 for 3. It’s hard to bet against those three being that anemic at the plate for two games in a row. And then there’s Yordan Alvarez, whose 1.343 OPS is the highest among all players who played more than a game in the postseason.

The Astros are 5-1 in their last six games after suffering a loss. As a favorite, Houston has also won four of its last five games against a team that started a lefty.

Final Braves-Astros Prediction & Pick

Both bullpens of the Braves and Astros were stretched in Game 1 for different reasons; Charlie Morton got injured early while Framber Valdez simply did not have the stuff. This means there will be more focus on the starters, and between Fried and Urquidy, it’s the former that looks a whole lot more dependable. Although Urquidy has a lower ERA and WHIP in the regular season than Fried, the Astros pitcher had not recorded a better monthly ERA than 4.05 since September. For this Braves-Astros prediction, I'm taking Atlanta moneyline.

FINAL BRAVES-ASTROS WORLD SERIES GAME 2 PREDICTION & PICK: Braves ML ( -104)