Atlanta Braves vs. San Francisco Giants MLB Pick
 |
vs.
|
 |
The last time these two teams met back in October, the San Francisco Giants completed a four-game NL division series victory over the Atlanta Braves en route to winning the World Series.
Date/Time: Saturday, April 23, 4:10 PM ET
Venue: AT&T Park in San Francisco, CA.
Broadcast: FOX
Money Line: Braves +135, Giants -155
Spread: Giants -1.5 (+150)
Over/Under: 6.5
Click Here for more Free Expert MLB Baseball Picks
It’s eminent that the Braves will be looking forward to the rematch.
However, it won’t be easy as Atlanta continues its early season struggles and is coming into the three-game series losing three of four to Los Angeles, and are four games under .500 after losing to the Dodgers 5-3 in 12 innings on Thursday on Matt Kemp’s walk off homer.
Meanwhile, the Giants too are coming off a 10-2 loss Wednesday at Colorado, and emerged from the game with doubts about the health of two players.
Outfielder Aaron Rowand left in the fourth inning after being hit by a pitch, and Pablo Sandoval was a late scratch after straining his right triceps during batting practice.
The Giants and Braves battled to four one-run games during last October’s series, with San Francisco pitcher Tim Lincecum (2-1, 1.67) winning Game 1 of the series. The righty will take the mound again on Saturday. Lincecum threw six hitless innings in Denver before giving up his first hit in the seventh inning, when Carlos Gonzalez lined a one-out single to right field. Lincecum lasted 7 2/3 innings, surrendered three hits and got credit for the Giants’ 8-1 victory over the NL West’s hottest team.
The Braves will counter “the Freak” going with Tim Hudson (2-2, 4.05) toeing the rubber. The veteran right-hander has been having great difficulty keeping opponents off the scoreboard early and gave up four runs and six hits in six innings while striking out four in a 4-2 loss to LA, after turning in a disappointing performance Wednesday, allowing five runs over six innings against the Marlins. All 13 runs allowed this season by the right-hander have come during the first three innings.
Atlanta right fielder Jason Heyward, who finished second behind Giants’ catcher Buster Posey for last season’s NL rookie of the year award was 0-for-14 against the Dodgers in four games and is hitting just .188. He went 2 for 16 (.125) against San Francisco in the playoffs in 2010. Despite his recent slump, Heyward leads the club in homers with four.
The Giants’ Posey is third on the team in homers and batting average as the Giants bats are good enough for 23rd in the league.
The Braves won three of the last four regular-season meetings with the Giants in 2010.
The odds makers have the San Francisco Giants as a -1.5 point favorite with an run total of 6.5.
Check out the latest MLB Baseball Odds here.
Matt’s Free Prediction: Giants –While both teams appear to be struggling at the plate, the Giants’ pitching with Lincecum getting the nod should been enough to snatch a win.
Need more help making your picks winners? Check out our top handicappers.
Atlanta Braves Betting Trends:
- Atlanta is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games
- Atlanta is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games on the road
- The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Atlanta’s last 8 games when playing San Francisco
- The total has gone OVER in 4 of Atlanta’s last 6 games when playing on the road against San Francisco
San Francisco Giants Betting Trends:
- The total has gone OVER in 4 of San Francisco’s last 5 games
- San Francisco is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games
- San Francisco is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games at home
- The total has gone OVER in 7 of San Francisco’s last 10 games at home
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.