Happy Friday, fellow sports investors! We can't wait to get into the weekend slate of MLB games, as the action should be more than highly entertaining from Friday, June 21 through Sunday, June 23. While there are plenty of interesting matchups on the docket, none are bigger than Atlanta at New York.
The Braves have been red hot of late, and they'll hit the highway north to take on the Yankees for a 3-game series. Friday night's game can be seen on Apple TV + and Saturday evening's showdown will be televised by FOX. Check out our best bet for this iconic series below. Good luck and enjoy the games!
Two of the Best in MLB Collide This Weekend
Atlanta at New York is the kind of series that hardcore baseball fans dream about. It's also a tremendous rematch of the 1996 World Series, which was one of the best in baseball history. Fans and bettors alike can't wait to see how this series shakes out.
The Yanks have been on a bit of a skid, but they still have the best record in baseball at 51-26. The Braves are starting to catch fire, but they've been a slight disappointment at 41-31.
Let's break down each team's strengths before giving out our best bet!
Sale and Fried Should Dominate
New York's starting pitching has looked good all season, but I have to give the edge to Atlanta in that department in this series. Chris Sale was, by far, Atlanta's best off-season signing. The veteran lefty is sitting at 9-2 with a tiny ERA of just 2.98.
Sale's slider is arguably the best in the game, and he should cause some of the Yanks' hitters to knees to buckle on Friday. Sale will be facing off against Carlos Rodon in Game 1. Rodon has pitched much better lately, but he has a poor hard-hit rate of 43.5%. That could be a problem against guys like Austin Riley and Sean Murphy.
Fried got off to a rocky start in 2024, but he's been locked in for the last couple of months. The powerful lefty is sitting at 6-3 with a respectable ERA of 3.60. Fried is one of the best in baseball at getting weak contact, and that will be needed against the Yanks on Sunday in Game 3.
Yanks Have Slightly Better Offense
New York definitely has more star power in their lineup than Atlanta. Guys like Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, and Juan Soto are the modern-day version of Murderer's Row. Judge just hit his 27th homer of the year and could break his own AL record of 62 homers before all is said and done.
Atlanta took a big hit when reigning NL MVP Ronald Acuna Jr. tore his ACL. It looked like the entire lineup kind of panicked and started pressing after that happened. Things look better now for the Bravos, though, as Matt Olson and Ozzie Albies are starting to heat up.
The Yanks have the offensive edge in this one, but I think it's minimal. New York does its best work at the plate against righties, but they'll face 2 tough lefties (Sale and Fried) in this series. New York is 1st in WRC+ vs. right-handers but just 13th against southpaws.
Best Series Bet: Braves +110 (DraftKings)
Faithful readers of my MLB column on our sister site know by now that I'm a diehard Braves fan. That being said, I have no trouble betting against them when they're struggling. My true allegiance is to our overall betting bankroll.
Now that the PSA is out of the way, this is an ideal spot to back Atlanta at an underdog price. The Braves have won 6 of their last 7 ball games and their lineup is finally looking more like last year's record-setting version. The Yanks, on the other hand, have been scuffling, as they've gone just 2-5 over their last 7 outings.
New York has the better offensive numbers this season, but I think the rotation of Sale, Morton, and Fried can keep the Yanks hitters at bay. I also think Atlanta has the slightly better bullpen. Let's bet on the Bravos to take 2 of 3 from the Yankees in New York over the weekend!
