The New York Mets will look to bolster their win total and reward moneyline bettors when the Atlanta Braves invade Citi Field on Friday.

For the Mets, Matt Harvey gets the ball, charged with keeping the Braves hitters off the base paths. He'll face Paul Maholm, 9-7 on the year.



View Atlanta vs NY Mets Odds and Stats.

Betting Line:
On the Sportsbook MLB line for this matchup, New York sat as +110 underdogs. The total was set at 8.

Power Rankings:
It's a baseball betting matchup between the National League No. 9-rated Mets and the league No. 6-ranked Braves, according to the latest MLB power poll here at Odds Shark.



How They Match Up:
The game also pits New York's No. 6-rated National League offense, averaging 4.4 runs per game, against a Braves defense that ranks No. 7 in the National League at 4 in runs allowed per game. The Mets have averaged 8.8 hits per game so far, more than Braves batters have averaged on the year (8.6 hits per game).

Pitching and defensive stats are important baseball handicapping factors and New York has the National League's No. 13-ranked defense. In the other dugout, the Braves own the National League's No. 7 mark in runs allowed.

Last time out for Atlanta, they were a 12-6 Sportsbook as they battled the Phillies on the road. Moneyline bettors who got the Braves at -145 were rewarded, while the 18 combined runs moved the game OVER for totals bettors. The Braves enjoyed a 12-6 victory at the expense of the Phillies on Wednesday, with Tim Hudson throwing 4 1/3 innings of 6-hit ball at Citizens Bank Park.

The Mets were a 6-1 Sportsbook in their most recent outing at home against the Marlins. That made Sportsbooks of bettors who got New York at -153 on the moneyline, while the total score (7) was good news for OVER bettors. New York hopes solid pitching and defense that led to their last victory - a 10-strikeout performance from R.A. Dickey - will prevail again after their 6-1 victory against Miami at Citi Field.


Atlanta Braves Trends:
When playing on Friday are 4-6
Before playing NY Mets are 6-4
After playing Philadelphia are 8-2
After a win are 7-3

New York Mets Trends:
When playing on Friday are 3-7
Before playing Atlanta are 4-6
After playing Miami are 6-4
After a win are 2-8

A few Braves at Mets trends to consider:
Atlanta is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing NY Mets
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Atlanta's last 9 games
Atlanta is 12-3 SU in its last 15 games
Atlanta is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 4 of NY Mets' last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of NY Mets' last 5 games when playing Atlanta
The total has gone OVER in 11 of NY Mets' last 16 games at home
NY Mets are 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Atlanta


Next up:
Atlanta at NY Mets, Saturday, August 11