The Atlanta Braves and the Washington Nationals meet Thursday in MLB action from Nationals Park. The Braves are fresh off a series versus the Phillies. Atlanta split the first two games in that set, then in the finale the Braves took a one-run defeat. As for Washington, they played the White Sox this week. After a similar split in the first pair, in the rubber match Wednesday the Nationals took a blowout victory. Check back all season long for free MLB picks at Sports Chat Place. 

Atlanta Braves 

The Braves took a rough 7-1 loss to the Phillies in their Monday opener. Atlanta looked better in game two, powering out a 9-3 victory thanks in part to two solo homers and three runs from Ronald Acuna. In the Wednesday rubber match the Braves came back from a 4-0 deficit but eventually lost 6-5. Ozzie Albies (run) and Marcell Ozuna each had two hits and one RBI. 

In the starter role for Thursday’s matchup the Braves are sending out Max Fried. Over his 13 starts this year Fried is 7-1 with a 2.64 ERA and 73 Ks in 71.2 innings. Fried is 4-0 with a 3.40 ERA over his last seven starts. 

Atlanta Braves Team Facts

The Braves have won each of their last seven games following an extra innings loss.
The Braves have covered the run line in each of their last nine games following an extra innings loss.
The Braves have trailed after 5 innings in three of their last four games as favorites against National League opponents.
The Braves have trailed after 3 innings in each of their last three games as road favorites against National League opponents.
The ‘Inning 1 OVER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Braves’ last four night games.

Washington Nationals

Over on the Nationals’ side, they posted a 6-1 loss in the Monday opener versus the White Sox, but then eked out a 4-3 win in game two. Washington’s Joey Meneses bagged a three-run pinch-hit homer in that one. On Wednesday the Nats’ offense exploded for 14 hits in a 13-3 blowout win to take the series. Lane Thomas had two runs and a grand slam along the way. 

As starting pitcher Thursday, Washington is sending out Jake Irvin. This season in 23 starts Irvin is 3-6 with a 4.34 ERA and 98 Ks in 118.1 innings. Irvin is 0-1 with a 3.26 ERA over his last seven starts. 

Washington Nationals Team Facts

The Nationals have lost each of their last 21 Thursday games against NL East opponents.
The Nationals have failed to cover the run line in each of their last five games as underdogs following a win.
The Nationals have trailed after 7 innings in each of their last nine Thursday games against NL East opponents that held a winning record.
The ‘Inning 1 OVER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Nationals’ last six games as underdogs against NL East opponents.
The Nationals have lost the first inning in each of their last four games against NL East opponents.

Matchup/League Facts

The Washington Nationals rank 30th in the league for home runs allowed this season (232).
The Washington Nationals rank 29th in the league for home runs this season (143).
The Atlanta Braves rank 1st in the league for runs scored this season (880).
The Atlanta Braves rank 1st in the league for hits this season (1437).

ANDREW’S FREE PICK 

I’ll stick with the Braves, but the line’s way too thick to mess with. Fried is looking good on the mound this month—prior to taking a little extra time off due to a blister on his index finger, that is. Over three starts so far, Fried is 2-0 with 18.0 total innings, four earned, 13 hits and six walks. The last time he lost a game was way back on May 5 (prior to missing time due to a forearm issue), so Fried should be solid here as well. In Wednesday’s game Atlanta posted a nice comeback after some early trouble but ultimately couldn’t finish it out. The offense kept rolling though; the Braves’ bats should be potent behind Fried in this opener.