Atlanta Braves vs Arizona Diamondbacks MLB Odds, Betting Preview 9-6-18

The National League East meets the National League West as the Atlanta Braves duke it out with the Arizona Diamondbacks. This is game one of a four-game series and will take place at Chase Field in Phoenix. The start time is 9:40 PM ET. The Diamondbacks took two of three from the Braves in Atlanta earlier in the year.  

Lines:  Atlanta +140… Arizona -150… Over/Under 7.5

Pitching Matchup

Taking the hill for the Braves will be Anibal Sanchez and he has gone 6-5 with a 2.98 ERA in 20 games (19 starts) on the year, including 5-2 with a 2.85 ERa in 10 starts on the road. In his career, he has gone 47-54 with a 4.23 ERA in 151 games (141 starts) on the road and 14-19 with a 3.44 ERA in 51 games (49 starts) during Sept/ Oct. Sanchez is 4-1 with a 4.14 ERA in nine games (eight starts) against the Diamondbacks in his career, including 2-1 with a 6.67 ERA in five games (four starts) here at Chase Field.

The Diamondbacks will send out Zack Greinke and he has gone 13-9 with a 2.97 ERA in 28 starts on the year, including 6-3 with a 2.16 ERA in 14 starts here at home. In his career, he has gone 30-11 with a 3.22 ERA in 55 starts here at Chase Field and 35-15 with a 2.92 ERA in 75 games (72 starts) during Sept/ Oct. Greinke is 4-1 with a 2.56 ERA in nine starts against the Braves in his career.  

A Look At The Braves

The Atlanta Braves just had a very tough series against the Boston Red Sox as they were swept in all three games. Despite that, they still have a three-game lead over the Phillies in the National League East. Both teams are struggling at the moment. The Braves come in having gone just 2-6 in their last eight games, while the Phillies are just 3-6 in their last nine. The three-game lead the Braves have may just hold up down the stretch. The Pitching has been solid for the Braves for much of the year, but it has struggled of late as they have allowed 5.22 rpg over their last nine games. They could have better results against an Arizona team that has not been great on offense at home.     

The Braves really had a tough loss in their finale against the Red Sox and they blew a 7-1 lead in the 8th and then blew an 8-7 lead in the 9th. Boston put up six runs in the 8th to tie the game and then after trailing 8-7 in the 9th, they got a two-run homer from Brandon Phillips to go ahead for good. Those are the losses that can haunt a team if they miss the postseason. A.J. Minter took the loss and is now 4-3 with a 3.31 ERA on the year, while Ronald Acuna Jr. (24), and Freddie Freeman (21) both went deep for the Braves in the loss.

A Look At The Diamondbacks

The Arizona Diamondbacks lead the National League West for much of the year, but they have been struggling of late and are now in 3rd place. The D-Backs enter this contest off a 6-0 home win over the Padres, but still, they have gone just 3-6 over their last nine games. The real culprit over that stretch has been an offense that has produced just 2.22 rpg in the nine games. They hope to get their offense back on track against a struggling Atlanta staff, but it won’t be easy in this game as Sanchez has been pitching well for the Braves of late. The Diamondbacks have gone 36-32 here at home for the year and they have averaged 4.56 rpg and have allowed 3.90 rpg in those games.  

Arizona had lost their last four games in a row, prior to beating the Padres 6-0 on Tuesday night. It was a big win for them and having a great outing was Robbie Ray, who allowed just two hits and two walks while striking out 10 in 6.1 innings of work. He is now 5-2 with a 4.25 ERA on the year, including 2-0 with a 1.08 ERA in his last three starts. He is rounding into form at the right time. The Diamondbacks had nine hits in the game and leading the attack was Ketel Marte, who had two hits, an RBI and a run scored. Arizona is currently 1.5 games out of first in the division.  

Trends

Atlanta is:

8-1 in their last 9 games vs. a starter with a WHIP less than 1.15

6-1 in their last 7 road games vs. a right-handed starter

0-8 in their last 8 after allowing 5 runs or more in their previous game

The Under is 14-4 in their last 18 games vs. a right-handed starter

Arizona Is:

10-2 in their last 12 when their opponent scores 5 runs or more in their previous game

Diamondbacks are 10-3 in Greinke’s last 13 starts vs. the National League East

4-12 in their last 16 home games vs. a team with a winning road record

The Over is 41-15-1 in Diamondbacks last 57 games following an off day