Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Prince J. Grimes

The Braves are the hottest team in baseball, but they won’t be a lock for much longer

The Atlanta Braves are on a 13-game winning streak after defeating the Washington Nationals on Tuesday, the longest in the majors this season. And with another meeting against the Nationals on Wednesday and a three-game set against the Chicago Cubs to follow, they have a very good opportunity to extend it to 17 games.

Like the other four teams Atlanta has played through the streak, Washington and Chicago have losing records – bottom five in the entire MLB, in fact. That makes the Braves moneyline the rest of this week as close to a lock as any. The teams they previously beat were the bottom-five Athletics, and the barely better Pirates, Rockies and Diamondbacks.

When the streak started June 1, the Braves were just 23-27 themselves. Now, they’re 36-27, having drawn a clear divide between themselves and the league’s bottom tier. They’re just five games back of the Mets in the NL East.

For more value, Atlanta’s spread is also a safe play through Sunday. The Braves have won by an average of four runs during their streak. Passing on the -200 moneyline odds Tipico Sportsbook is giving them for Wednesday’s game in favor of the -125 odds for them to cover 1.5 points makes more sense. The Nationals have the second-worst point margin in the majors, and the first two games of this series had an average margin of five runs.

Bet on sports with Tipico

Exclusive USA TODAY Network offer: Deposit $10 or more, get $200 in instant bet credits at Tipico Sportsbook! New customer offer in CO and NJ. 21+, see Tipico.com for Terms and Conditions.

That’s also the best approach when Atlanta opens against Chicago on Friday. While the Cubs have a better margin than Washington, they’re one of the coldest teams in the league, losing eight straight games by an average margin of more than five runs.

Next week, things get a little tougher for the Braves with back-to-back series against the top-10 Giants and the Dodgers looming — both teams have better records than Atlanta. Now is the time to capitalize on the hottest team in baseball before it’s too late.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.