Seattle Mariners vs Atlanta Braves Analysis<\/h2>\n
The Seattle Mariners host the Atlanta Braves in the first of a three game set. The M’s dropped two of three to the surging White Sox at home, while the Braves swept two games from the A’s in Oakland.<\/p>\n
It’s a really good pitching matchup with right-handed veteran Charlie Morton going against southpaw Robbie Ray. First pitch is scheduled for 9:40 PM EDT \/ 6:40 PM PDT in T-Mobile Park.<\/p>\n
Atlanta is a short road favorite at -115, the Mariners are a home dog of +105 and the over\/under is set at 7.5. The Braves have punched their playoff ticket with an 86-51 record, just a half game behind the Mets in the NL East – and a comfortable 11.0 games in front of the Phillies for the last wild card berth.<\/p>\n
Seattle looks like they’ll make the postseason with a 77-60 record, a half game ahead of Toronto for the final wild card spot and 5.0 games in front of Baltimore.<\/p>\n
Morton Ready For October Baseball<\/h3>\n
Charlie Morton is in the twilight of his career, but he’s still been a serviceable starter for the Braves. In 26 starts and 146.0 innings, Ground Chuck has posted a 4.01 ERA with a 1.18 WHIP, and an impressive 175 strikeouts.<\/p>\n
While his season-long numbers aren’t much to write home about, he has much better recent numbers. In his last seven starts and 41.0 innings, he has a 3.51 ERA with a 1.07 WHIP with 54 strikeouts and 12 walks.<\/p>\n
I like his low WHIP (Walks and Hits to Innings Pitched) numbers, as he does a great job to keep runners off base. Even in his late 30s he’s going fairly deep into games, averaging about 6.0 innings per start.<\/p>\n
The Braves have shown why they’re the defending World Champions. They rank 2nd in OPS and home runs, have the 6th lowest staff ERA and the 5th lowest bullpen ERA.<\/p>\n
Other than the 3rd highest strikeout rate at the plate, that’s the only liability I can see for this team. Even without Freddie Freeman, they’ve still performed at a really high level and have a good chance to make a return trip to the World Series.<\/p>\n
Mariners Ready To Make Noise In Postseason<\/h3>\n
It’s taken a while, but Robbie Ray is finally pitching like the $115 million man the Mariners signed in the off-season. The months of April and May plus two starts in late July were rough ones for the southpaw, but he’s rounded into All-Star form in August and September.<\/p>\n
In his last seven starts and 41.2 innings, Ray has put up a 2.16 ERA with a 1.08 WHIP and 47 strikeouts. He’s been one of the reasons the Mariners are a playoff contender.<\/p>\n
The Mariners’ improved hitting has been another big reason for their success. Seattle is 10th in team OPS against right-handers in the last 30 days, slightly below average in OPS for the season, but rank 11th best in home runs.<\/p>\n
Team pitching has gotten better, as they have the 15th lowest staff ERA and 8th lowest bullpen ERA in baseball. With the starting pitching trio of Ray, Logan Gilbert and newly-acquired Luis Castillo, this team will be a formidable foe in the postseason.<\/p>\n
Seattle Mariners vs Atlanta Braves Prediction<\/h2>\n
This will be a good game to watch, with two playoff-bound teams and top-tier starting pitchers facing off.<\/p>\n
T-Mobile Park is more pitcher-friendly, and Vegas tells us that runs should be at a premium with the low run total of 7. That’s why I’ll take the 1st 5 under total runs scored.<\/p>\n
Prediction: 1st 5 Innings Under 3.5 Total Runs Scored<\/strong><\/p>\n \n Join Drew Martin and a rotating panel of guests for First Pitch as we break down the daily baseball slate from a betting perspective. Join WagerTalk’s team of MLB betting experts every weekday at 1:45pm ET \/ 10:45am PT for First Pitch as we discuss the baseball betting slate.<\/p>\nFirst Pitch | MLB Predictions for Friday, September 9<\/h3>\n
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