Monday didn’t exactly give us the terrific start to the week that we enjoyed last week but we did go 2-1 yesterday, barely putting us in the black at $5.00 in winnings on our imaginary $10 bets. Now we’re looking back to a familiar lineup as our random game today has selected the Los Angeles Angels (56-51) at the Atlanta Braves (67-37).
The Pitchers
The last time we covered Atlanta’s Spencer Strider (11-2, 3.73 ERA) he was getting ready to take on the Boston Red Sox. Now he’s facing another American League opponent but with a better lineup. Strider has only won twice in his last five starts despite producing double-digit strikeouts in his last four consecutive appearances. He’s only allowing 2.6 earned runs in his last five starts which is a full run less than his season average.
Los Angeles will put Patrick Sandoval (6-7, 4.13) on the mound tonight to battle Strider. He’s coming off back-to-back wins (Detroit & Yankees) and has allowed just 2.8 earned runs per game over his last five starts while striking out a combined 27 batters. That said, he’s only gone deeper than five innings once in his last five appearances.
The Lineups
Shohei Ohtani does it all for the Angels. He leads the team in home runs (39), batting average (.305), and RBI (81). Over the last five games the Angels are scoring an average of four runs per night.
Matt Olson has blasted 36 home runs, and knocked in 89 RBI for the Braves, while Ronald Acuna Jr. has a .333 batting average. Atlanta has averaged 6.6 runs scored, per game, over the last five.
The Streaks
L.A. snapped Atlanta’s three-game winning steak on Monday night with a 4-1 win to open the series. For the Angels it was their second win in a row.
The Odds
Braves -1.5
Braves -240 on the moneyline
O/U 9
The Braves are heavy favorites tonight but I think this is going to be a close finish. For sure that Atlanta on the moneyline (terrible odds) but I like the Angels against the spread at -105 as the best bet. Picking the under was the only bet that beat us yesterday but we’re going with it one more time today. I think the run total will be less than nine in this one.
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