The Atlanta Braves (6-2, 1-1 home) host the San Diego Padres (4-4, 1-1 away) in the third game of a four-game set between the two National League foes. San Diego jumped on Atlanta early in Friday’s opener, scoring three runs over the first two innings and holding on for a 5-4 victory. Atlanta won the series opener, 7-6, on Thursday night.
Saturday’s tilt begins at 7:20 p.m. EST inside Truist Park in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are the betting favorite (-165 moneyline), and the over/under total is 8.5 runs.
What to Know – San Diego Padres
The victory over Atlanta last night ended a two-game losing skid for the Padres. San Diego is on the road for the first time this season and will stay on the East Coast following the conclusion of this series on Sunday, traveling to New York for a three-game series against the Mets.
Michael Wacha (1-0, 6.00 ERA, 1.50 WHIP) is the expected starter for the Padres in Saturday’s bout. Wacha didn’t have his best stuff in his season debut, allowing four earned runs on six hits, one walk, and a pair of strikeouts over six innings of work. The right-hander was 11-2 with a 3.32 ERA and 104 strikeouts over 127.1 innings of action last year for the Boston Red Sox.
On offense, the Padres are hitting .229 as a team and averaging 4.5 runs per contest through the first eight games. San Diego’s bats are coming around, averaging a run over per game over the last four outings.
Leasing the Padres offensively is shortstop Xander Bogaerts. The talented veteran is hitting .333 at the plate with a trio of home runs and eight runs driven in. Matt Carpenter has added six RBIs in six games played.
What to Know – Atlanta Braves
Atlanta is off to a solid start to the 2023 season, winning six of its first eight games played. Like the Padres, the Braves are expected to be one of the top-performing teams in the National League this season.
Veteran Charlie Morton (1-0, 5.06 ERA, 2.06 WHIP) looks to get the Braves back in the win column as Saturday’s expected starter. In his debut, the 39-year-old surrendered three earned runs over 5.1 innings, scattering nine hits, walking two, and striking out one. Morton was 9-6 with a 4.34 ERA and 205 strikeouts over 172.0 innings in 2022.
Atlanta’s offense scores 5.4 runs per game thanks to a .278 team batting average that ranks near the top of the MLB. The Braves are third in the majors with 43 runs scored.
Matt Olsen and Austin Riley are off to hot starts at the dish. Olsen leads the Braves in home runs (3) and RBIs (9), while Riley is batting .357 with two home runs and seven RBIs.
The Pick is In
Two heavyweights are battling it out in the Peach State. The first two games were decided by one run. Atlanta gets it done on Saturday in s high-scoring battle between these two offenses.
The Pick: Atlanta Braves ML
