The Milwaukee Brewers have given it a good fight, but have fell to 3 GB from the Cubs in the NL Central. The Brew Crew find themselves in this position after dropping four of their last five games including a 1-10 series opener in Atlanta last night. Speaking of those Braves, they’ve ridden a 7-3 stretch in their last 10 to pull .001 percentage points ahead of the Phillies in the East. Oddsmakers are calling the August 11th NL free pick a close one (MIL -112, ATL -105) but why not more love for the Braves?
Can the Brewers Get Things Back On Track?
It was a disappointing recent home stand for the Brewers, going just 3-3 to slip further past Chicago for the division race. The good news for Milwaukee is that they are still a game up in the wild card standings. They’ve also hit the ball well lately (4+ runs in 8 of the last 9) but have been victims of some poor pitching performances. Hernan Perez, Ryan Braun, Travis Shaw, and Orlando Arcia all have OBP’s of over .400 over the past week so the August 11th NL free pick total of 9.5 should give a lean towards the ‘over.’
The job of turning around the recent pitching woes falls on Wade Miley (2-1, 2.10 ERA) tonight. He has been great since coming over from Baltimore, allowing 2ER or less in 6 of his 7 Brewers starts. Miley has held opponents to under 4 hits in 5 of those 7 games which could be why today’s total is a bit lower. The Braves also have just a .222 collective average in 45 AB’s against the left-hander.
Will Atlanta Avoid the Offensive Letdown?
The Braves hammered the Brewers 10-1 last night as Johan Camargo and Ronald Acuna, Jr. combined to go 7-10 and Ender Inciarte knocked in 4 runs. It was the second time in 3 games that Atlanta plated 8+ runs and bettors always worry about a letdown after a huge offensive night. These Braves might just be red hot though. Nick Markakis has an OBP of .500 over his last 7 games and Freddie Freeman is hitting .357 over that span. The Braves have won 4 straight home games and are 9-3 over their last 12. Expect a majority of the public to hammer Atlanta in this situation tonight.
Julio Teheran (8-7, 4.48 ERA) is on the hill for Atlanta in the August 11th NL free pick. The Braves are 9-3 in Teheran’s last 12 home starts and have won 7 straight when he takes the hill at home against a team with a winning record. This bodes well for the ATL despite the fact that Teheran has allowed 13 total ER in his last 3 starts (15 IP). He also has a 5.03 ERA over his last 10 outings which is a major factor why the Brewers are getting oddsmaker love in tonight’s game.
August 11th NL Free Pick Betting
The Brewers are slumping a bit but they have one of their most consistent starters on the hill tonight. With a couple big games vs. the Cubs coming up this week, the Brewers can stay in the NL Central race – but they have to get at least one against the Braves this weekend. With Teheran’s struggles, today is the day they do that.
Free Pick: Milwaukee Brewers -112
