The Atlanta Braves host the Philadelphia Phillies for the NLDS early on Tuesday! It's time to continue our MLB odds series with a Phillies-Braves prediction and pick.

The Phillies advanced after a dramatic Game 1 of the Wild Card series against the St. Louis Cardinals. St. Louis was just three outs away from a victory before the Phillies stormed back with six runs in the ninth. Another easy win in Game 2 left St. Louis shocked as it was an end of an era for the Red Birds.

The Braves sat and waited for the winner of that series. It will be a familiar foe as these two teams have battled it out 18 times this season. The Braves won 101 games and stole the NL East Division from the New York Mets, who fell hard and ended their season thanks to the San Diego Padres. This is an elite team with pitching and offense that is looking to break out once again and inch closer to back-to-back World Series appearances.

Here are the Phillies-Braves NLDS MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel. 

NLDS Odds: Phillies-Braves Odds

Philadelphia Phillies: +1.5 (-126)

Atlanta Braves: -1.5 (+105)

Over: 7.5 (+102)

Under: 7.5 (-124)

Why The Phillies Could Cover The Spread

Starting for Philadelphia is southpaw Ranger Suarez. Suarez ended the regular season (10-7) with a 3.65 ERA and 129 strikeouts in 155.1 innings. He pitched far better on the road with six of his ten wins away from Philadelphia and a 3.20 ERA in 90 innings. He has a lot of weight on his shoulders for this game. The Braves are a very good hitting team with a lot of power coming from the right side. The goal will to try and get at least five strong innings out of Suarez as Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola get an extra day of rest.

Bryce Harper showed up in St. Louis. His second-inning blast off of Mike Mikolas silenced the crowd and the Cardinals just had no response. That 9th inning in Game 1 really hurt the Cardinals and because of it, the Phillies extended their season. The lineup is deep enough that they can make noise going against a strong pitching team. Rhys Hoskins, Kyle Schwarber, J.T. Realmuto, and Nick Castellanos are a tough core to get out and they all will need to play a part in order for them to have a chance in this game. Hoskins, Realmuto, and Schwarber are still hitless so far.

Why The Braves Could Cover The Spread

Pitching for the Braves in Game 1 will be Max Fried. The southpaw was one of the best pitchers in the game this season and was surely among the top lefties. He ended his campaign with a (14-7) record, 2.48 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, and 170 strikeouts in 185.1 innings. The former draft of the Padres was 7th in ERA and 13th in WHIP. His numbers are slightly better at home as well so Fried should give the Brave a good chance if he is on his game.

Atlanta put out one of the best lineups in all of baseball each and every night. Dansby Swanson and Matt Olson played all 162 games and hit the ball very well all year long. The team smashed 243 homers this year and Austin Riley led with 38. They now contain one of the best players in the world in Ronald Acuna Jr., who missed the postseason run in 2021. With his presence, this team can do wonders and will be a tough test for the inexperienced Phillies.

Final Phillies-Braves Prediction & Pick

The pitching matchup favors the Braves. They are also at home and smash southpaws. Take the Braves to cover this spread in Game 1.

Final Phillies-Braves Prediction & Pick: Atlanta Braves -1.5 (+105)