MLB Best Bet: Here’s Why Angels Can Upset the Braves in Atlanta

Yes, Shohei Ohtani’s squad is the underdog Monday night, but circumstances and matchups point to a plus-money play.

It’s Monday, and we’re feeling frisky at SI Betting.

That’s right. We are going to make a bet today that many may find to be crazy. Maybe it is, but we are going for it anyway. No risk it, no biscuit, right?

Here it is: Angels ML +190.

Yes, that’s right. We are taking the Angels to upset the Braves in Atlanta.

Griffin Canning gets the start on the road for the Halos. Canning has been very good since the All-Star break with an ERA of 3.38. He’s also struck out 20 batters across his last 10⅔ innings pitched. That’s bonkers. Now, Atlanta is not a team that strikes out a lot, but they have a 21.8% K rate for July (18th).

Charlie Morton gets the start for the Braves. Morton has an ERA of 3.57 this season, but according to his xERA at Statcast, it should be closer to 4.66. Morton allowed four earned runs in each of his last two starts while striking out only five.

Is it possible the Angels get off to a better start? We’re betting on it.

For the season, the Braves have scored 5.66 runs per game (second) while the Angels have scored 4.99 (fifth). In July, the Angels scored 5.07 runs per game. They are offensively much closer than many may realize.

Yes, the Braves bullpen is much better. Yes, the Braves have a better record, and yes, the Braves dominate at home. The Braves are comfortably on top of the NL East division -- so much so that Steve Cohen and the Mets started selling this weekend.

The Angels have Shohei Ohtani and a lot more to play for as they fight for an AL Wild Card bid. Over the weekend, they traded for both Randall Grichuk and C.J. Cron -- two big bats from the Rockies.

The Halos have more to play for, have won seven of their last 10, and just may be able to surprise the Braves. At +190, we are willing to pull a ticket for the underdog to pull it off.

The Bet: Angels ML +190 

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