The Atlanta Braves are expected to go with Kris Medlen on Friday night as they open up a three-game MLB betting series on the road against the division-rival Philadelphia Phillies.
Medlen is just 7-10 with a 3.74 ERA on the season, but he picked up a win over the Cardinals last time out by allowing two runs over six innings of work. The righthander gave up six earned runs over 5 1-3 innings against Philadelphia on July 7.
View Atlanta vs Philadelphia Odds and Stats.
Betting Line:
Sportsbooks such as Sportsbook had set the Phillies as +135 underdogs on the moneyline for this contest. The over under was hovering near 8.5 for bettors hoping to turn a profit on totals at Sportsbook.
Power Rankings:
The Odds Shark MLB Power Rankings have the Phillies at No. 13 in the National League and the Braves at No. 7 in the National League heading into this contest.
How They Match Up:
Rating these teams in several key categories is important for handicappers and Philadelphia has the National League's No. 13-rated offensive output, at 8.6 hits per game. The Braves average 8.6 hits per game, good for No. 7 on the National League list.
Comparing defensive stats, Atlanta owns the National League's No. 6-rated road mark, allowing 4 runs per game on the highway. Philadelphia, on the other hand, rates No. 8 in scoring at home.
In their last action, Atlanta was a 11-2 Sportsbook at home against the Rockies. Bettors on Atlanta at -215 on the moneyline collected their winnings from that game, while the total score (13) sent OVER bettors home happy as well. Atlanta hopes solid pitching and defense that led to their last victory - a 11-strikeout performance from Julio Teheran - will prevail again after their 11-2 victory against Colorado at Turner Field.
Philadelphia lost its last outing, a 2-1 result against the Giants on August 1. Bettors who backed the Giants at +113 on the moneyline won on the day, and the total score (3) sent UNDER bettors to the payout window. Philadelphia suffered a 2-1 loss against San Francisco on Thursday, as Cole Hamels wasn't able to lead his team to victory at Citizens Bank Park.
Atlanta Braves Trends:
When playing on Friday are 5-5
Before playing Philadelphia are 5-5
After playing Colorado are 7-3
After a win are 6-4
Philadelphia Phillies Trends:
When playing on Friday are 4-6
Before playing Atlanta are 6-4
After playing San Francisco are 4-6
After a loss are 2-8
A few Braves at Phillies trends to consider:
Atlanta is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Atlanta's last 6 games when playing Philadelphia
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Atlanta's last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Atlanta's last 5 games when playing on the road against Philadelphia
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Philadelphia's last 6 games when playing Atlanta
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Philadelphia's last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Philadelphia's last 5 games when playing at home against Atlanta
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Philadelphia's last 10 games at home
Next up:
Atlanta at Philadelphia, Saturday, August 3
