The Milwaukee Brewers took Game 1 of this 2021 National League Division Series with a 2-1 victory on Friday, and will look to dig the Atlanta Brewers a deeper hole this Saturday before traveling to A-Town for Games 3 and 4. With that said, it's time to read up on our Braves-Brewers prediction and preview.

Here’s how the bookmakers have set the lines for this Braves-Brewers NLDS Game 2 matchup.

MLB Odds: Braves-Brewers Odds

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Atlanta Braves +1.5 (-195)

Milwaukee Brewers -1.5(+165)

Over 7.5 runs (+100)

Under 7.5 runs (+120)

Why the Braves Could Cover

The Braves’ offense was missing in the series opener, so the main focus for the team going to Game 2 against Milwaukee is on being better at the plate. Atlanta actually had some great chances to score multiple runs in an inning in that game, including in the first frame in which the Braves could have set the tone for the rest of the game but wasted an opportunity to score when there were two runners in scoring positions. Atlanta’s anemic offense spoiled an otherwise solid performance by Charlie Morton who went six innings long, allowing two earned runs on three hits and striking out nine. 

Atlanta hitters don’t want to put too much pressure on Max Fried, their Game 2 starter. The lefty is so used to the Braves backing him up with a nice run cushion, as he got 6.36 runs per nine innings behind him during the regular season. Fried, however, has not let Atlanta’s offense carry him. Fried has gone 3-0 with a 1.54 ERA and a .162 opponent batting average in his last six starts. He will enter Saturday’s game following a regular season wherein he went 14-7 with a 3.04 ERA in 28 starts.

Why the Brewers Could Cover

Rowdy Tellez guided Milwaukee to a win in Game 1 with his two-run homer in the seventh inning, but the Brewers definitely loved the way Corbin Burnes pitched. Burnes did not surrender a run in six innings of work in the series opener, and that’s something Brandon Woodruff is looking to duplicate in Game 2. Woodruff hasn’t picked up a win since August and has posted a shaky 4.09 ERA in September, but he’s also seemingly been stable on the mound over his last two starts. 

During that span, Woodruff has given up three earned runs and fanned 13 hitters across 10 innings. In his career against current Braves hitters, Woodruff has come up with a 23.6 K% that’s pretty much along Atlanta’s 22nd-ranked 24.0K% this year. As for their offense, Milwaukee’s hitters can pounce on Fried, who’s got a suspect postseason track record. He is only 0-4 with a 5.3 ERA and 1.375 WHIP in 12 career starts in the postseason. Christian Yelich went 0 of 3 with a walk in Game 1, but watch out for him, precisely because he is 3 of 11 with a walk and only a pair of strikeouts all-time against Fried.

Final  Braves-Brewers Prediction & Pick

The Braves bounce back and tie the series up behind the arm of Max Fried and the bats of Freddie Freeman and Joc Pederson. Take the Braves’ moneyline and run line, at least. 

FINAL PICK: Atlanta Braves +1.5 (-195)