Former Cardinals hurler Shelby Miller gets his first crack at his old team when the Atlanta Braves and St. Louis meet for the first time this season. The Cards own the major league’s best home record and are the most profitable team in the majors.
ODDS ANALYSIS
The Braves have been hovering around the .500 mark for most of the season and they could be much better if not for their poor road record. They must now contend with the best home team in the majors when they face the Cardinals. Atlanta split its last six games with Chicago and Los Angeles and now hits the road for the first time since the All-Star break. The Braves ended the first half with five straight road defeats and are just 3-11 in their last 14 away from Turner Field. Overall the Braves are 19-30 down 5.04 units in away games. St. Louis is the most profitable team in the majors in the black 20.98 units on the moneyline, thanks to their 60-34 overall record that includes a MLB-best 33-12 mark at Busch Stadium, where the Cards are up 16.94 units. The Cards have won each of the last four starts made by Carlos Martinez and are 9-1 in his last 10 with the under at 8-1-1 in the same span.
PITCHING MATCHUP
Shelby Miller (5-6, 2.33 ERA) logged another quality start, surrendering one earned run on four hits over six innings in Sunday’s loss to the Cubs. A victim of poor run support, Miller has compiled a 3.17 ERA over 65.2 innings in his last 11 starts and has zero wins to show for it. The righty has posted a 5.16 ERA in his last four road starts with a trip to Coors Field, where he yielded a season-high five earned runs in five innings, doing much of the damage.
Miller will be making his first career start against the Cardinals, who drafted him in 2009 and employed him through the end of last season.
Carlos Martinez (10-4, 2.51 ERA) had his first start of the second half delayed a few days after he was summoned to cover the final four innings of Sunday’s 18-inning game. He took the loss giving up two runs – one earned – in four innings matching a season-high with four walks.
Martinez tossed 2.2 scoreless frames in four previous relief stints against the Braves and will be making his first career start against them.
QUOTE TO NOTE
“He’s one of the best hitters in baseball. When you’re missing a guy like that, it makes it tougher. You’re going to get pitched tougher when they know they don’t have to face him, when they don’t have to save some stuff for him. So, when you’re missing a guy like that, you’re missing a guy who can change the game with one swing.” – Braves leadoff hitter Jace Peterson on Freddie Freeman, who hasn’t played since June 17.
LIVE BETTING or SITUATIONAL BETTING
The return of slugger Freddie Freeman can’t come soon enough for the Atlanta Braves, but he won’t be in the lineup when the Braves face the best pitching staff in majors in a weekend set with the Cardinals. Freeman hasn’t played since June 17 and the Braves have gone 13-16 since while averaging less than three runs per game. The team had scored four runs per game with the slugger in the lineup. The Braves now rank 14th in the NL in total bases, last in the league in home runs and 13th in triples. And when opponents get a lead, the Braves have found it nearly impossible to respond. They are now 3-33 when trailing after the sixth inning.
PROP TALK
Yadier Molina probably knows Shelby Miller better than anybody after catching the righty’s pitches for three seasons. That might give him an advantage when he steps into the box against his former teammate. His hot bat will do that, too. Molina had six hits in nine at-bats as the Cards swept the White Sox during the week, and is hitting .391 in five games since the All-Star break. He’s driven in six runs during that span, including all three with a bases loaded triple in a 3-2 win over the Sox on Wednesday.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
The Braves showed glimpses of an offense that can produce runs, plating 11 of them in a pair of wins over the Dodgers, but it remains a struggle without Freddie Freeman in the lineup. It’s hard to imagine a team relying on one player for a bulk of its offense. Freeman remains the Braves’ home run leader and is second in RBIs and he hasn’t played since June 27. That’s how much they miss him. And facing Carlos Martinez won’t be easy for a team scuffling. Shelby Miller will have to be nearly perfect to get a win and he just hasn’t been recently. His mates haven’t helped scoring just 1.3 runs a game in his last six starts and going winless in that stretch.
St. Louis 4, Atlanta 2
The MLB odds for this game will be available first at BookMaker Sportsbook. Gamble on the game between every half inning with BookMaker’s live betting feature. Along with an adjusted in-game moneyline, you can wager on what will happen in the next at-bat or how many runs will be scored in the next inning. Live betting is the most exciting way to play!
Load your betting bankroll from your smartphone with BookMaker’s new cashier feature! Depositing and withdrawing funds from your account has never been easier. BookMaker's live betting platform means you always have access to odds and lines to every sporting event. Click here and start wagering today! First pitch for the game between the Atlanta Braves and St. Louis Cardinals is scheduled for Saturday, July 25, 2015, at 7:15 p.m. ET at Busch Stadium. The contest will be televised nationally on FS1.
