Reds Braves Betting – Reds And Braves Offer Study In Contrasts
The online betting calculus involved in this Saturday’s game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Atlanta Braves involves two teams with similar records but different overall profiles.
National League Betting Pick:
Cincinnati Reds @ Atlanta Braves – Saturday, May 28 – 7:10 PM ET
The sports betting gurus who crank out assessments of Major League Baseball teams on a continuous basis are always having to carry out a balancing act between the immediate details of a specific pitching matchup and the larger, overarching trends that enfold two squads. Baseball, as MLB baseball betting experts know all too well, is the everyday sport in North American life, not just the every-other-day sport that basketball and hockey are. Because action occurs daily and days off between games are the exception rather than the rule during the regular season, it can be hard to make fully accurate evaluations of teams, especially in the early portions of the season. However, now that we’re approaching Memorial Day weekend and the unofficial arrival of summer, the season is closing in on the one-third mile pole, so to speak. Teams are about to hit the 54-game marker when they get to this upcoming weekend, and that point in the season offers a reasonably good time to begin to identify what works – and what doesn’t – with every baseball bunch. Let’s see what Cincinnati and Atlanta offer to the prospective baseball bettor as they get ready for this, the second game of a three-game set at Turner Field in Atlanta.
It can be said with a certain degree of clarity that Cincinnati is a hitting team while Atlanta is a pitching team. The first third of the season has shown that the Reds are much more dependent on the sticks, while the Braves try to ride their arms to victory. Both teams emerged from the weekend hovering just a few games above the .500 mark, and they’re just two of the many MLB teams that are right around the break-even point, but don’t allow the similar records to trick you into thinking these are similar clubs. They’re not.
Cincinnati entered this week (Monday, May 23-Sunday, May 29) as one of just three teams in the big leagues that averages over five runs per game. Only the New York Yankees and the Cleveland Indians had been able to earn the same distinction. Cincinnati plays in a very hitter-friendly yard, The Great American Ballpark, and it’s certainly true that the Reds have customized their team to the quirks of their home stadium. That is part of the formula for regular-season success in baseball.
The Atlanta Braves average roughly four runs per game, a full run less than the Reds, but the Braves also sport a winning record entering the last week of May because they can pitch a lot better than most squads in the bigs. Atlanta’s team earned-run average was just 3.04 as of Sunday, third in the majors behind Oakland and – fractionally – Philadelphia. The Braves have a deep, balanced bullpen and a lot of veteran starters who eat up innings. Since Cincinnati’s earned-run average stood over a run higher, at 4.16, as of May 23, the Braves can claim competitive parity with the Reds. This game on Saturday will pit Cincinnati starter Bronson Arroyo against Derek Lowe. Both men are former Boston Red Sox, and they both know how to manage themselves on the mound. The difference is that this game is in Atlanta, and that Lowe – a ground-ball pitcher – is probably well suited to blunt the Reds’ bats. Take Atlanta because the uniqueness of Derek Lowe matters more than the overall comparisons of these two teams (including the Reds’ superior ability to score runs).
Cincinnati Atlanta Betting Pick: Atlanta
