The Atlanta Braves and the Milwaukee Brewers will face off in the first game of the NLDS. It's time to continue our MLB odds series and make a Braves-Brewers prediction and pick based on Braves Brewers odds.

The Braves are back in the playoffs after a heartbreaking end to their season in 2020. Atlanta suffered a game 7 defeat at the hands of the Los Angeles Dodgers last season, ending a legitimate shot at a World Series title. Now the Braves have to start all over again against a Brewers team that has a good shot of contending for the NL crown. These teams played each other six times during the regular season and split the series perfectly at three wins apiece. These games should be some of the best of the entire postseason, so let's get into the pick.

Here's how the bookmakers have set the lines for Friday's game.

MLB Odds: Braves-Brewers Odds

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Atlanta Braves ML (+138)

Milwaukee Brewers ML (-149)

Over 7 runs (-113)

Under 7 runs (-107)

Why The Braves Could Win

While Atlanta is typically thought of as a better offensive team, their pitching in this game might be what gives them the edge. Starter Charlie Morton will take the mound for this one, something that has worked out very well for the Braves recently. Morton earned himself a fantastic stat line on the season, but his last seven starts have been downright elite. Over that span, the righty put up a 2.43 ERA and a .86 WHIP. Helping Morton's case even more is the fact that he's already faced the Brewers once this season, allowing only two runs over six innings. Expect a good performance from the Atlanta ace in this one. Factor that into a Braves Brewers pick.

The Brewers have the privilege of deploying Corbin Burnes to the mound for this game. Burnes has obviously been one of the best pitchers in all of baseball this season, but his track record against the Braves isn't great. The righty faced Atlanta once in the regular season and had one of his worst outings of the year, allowing five runs over four innings. Another outing like that will almost certainly lead to a Braves win in this game.

Why The Brewers Could Win

Despite Burnes' past performance against Atlanta, there's definitely reason to believe that he can put together a good outing in this one. His stats over his last 15 starts are comparable to Morton's stats in his last seven, and Burnes' postseason numbers are even better. In six appearances out of the bullpen in the playoffs, the Cy Young contender earned a 2.00 ERA and a .56 WHIP. Those numbers are insane, and they show that the pressure of the postseason doesn't mean all that much to Burnes.

Burnes also has a couple of advanced metrics that show that this is a decent matchup at the very least for him. The Milwaukee ace produces a whiff rate at a 36.5% clip, one of the highest numbers in the league. There are seven Atlanta batters that whiff at an above-average rate. Burnes has also been fantastic at negating power hitting by only allowing a 3.1% barrel percentage, which should help calm down some high barrel percentages from the Braves hitters. This is why the Braves Brewers odds are where they are.

Final Braves-Brewers Prediction & Pick

This is postseason baseball, so virtually every game is going to be a close one. The Brewers are likely to win this game, but the odds aren't great on a money line pick. Instead, the under is the best pick of the bunch. Lock in the under and watch this pitching duel between two great starters unfold on Friday.

FINAL PICK: Under 7 runs (-107)