The Los Angeles Angels and the Atlanta Braves will lock horns in the first game of an interleague series at Truist Park on Friday night, fresh out of the All-Star break.
Reigning AL MVP Shohei Ohtani will test his mettle against the defending World Series champs in this spot. Which club will kick off the season's unofficial second half with a win?
Find out in our free MLB picks and predictions for Angels vs Braves on Friday, July 22.
Angels vs Braves odds
This odds widget represents the best odds available for each betting market from regulated sportsbooks.
The Braves were priced as consensus favorites of -145, and that line has drifted a bit to -155 at the majority of sportsbooks. The total opened at a low 7.0, and some sites have since had to raise the bar to 7.5.
Use the live odds widget above to track any future line movements right up until first pitch and be sure to check out the full MLB odds before placing your bets.
Angels vs Braves predictions
Picks made on 7/22/2022 at 12:00 p.m. ET.
Click on each pick to jump to the full analysis.
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Angels vs Braves game info
• Location: Truist Park, Atlanta, GA
• Date: Friday, July 22, 2022
• First pitch: 7:20 p.m. ET
• TV: Bally Sports
Angels vs Braves betting preview
Starting pitchers
Shohei Ohtani (9-4, 2.38 ERA): Shohei Ohtani has his eyes set on a second straight AL MVP Award, and if he carries his momentum on the mound into the second half of the season, the trophy is his to lose. Ohtani has earned the win in each of his last six starts, pitching to a 0.45 ERA in that span. His strikeout/walk ratio in this stretch is a robust 58-11.
Charlie Morton (5-4, 4.45 ERA): Prior to July 13, Charlie Morton had lowered his ERA from 5.67 to 4.21 over a five-start span. But the Mets roughed him up his final outing before the All-Star break, tagging Morton for five runs over five frames. The 38-year-old will try to bounce back at Truist Park, where batters are hitting just .210 against him, compared to .258 everywhere else.
Weather
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Key injuries
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Betting trend to know
The Braves are 6-13 in their last 19 games against starters with a WHIP less than 1.15. Find more MLB betting trends for Angels vs. Braves
Angels vs Braves picks and predictions
Our side and total predictions are based upon our analysis of the line and total in this game. Our best bet is our favorite pick across all markets.
Moneyline analysis
Baseball is not an individual sport, but Shohei Ohtani should carry the Angels to victory over the Braves on Friday night. Ohtani has been practically untouchable during his current six-start win streak, authoring a 0.78 WHIP and posting 13.2 strikeouts per nine innings.
He’ll take on a Braves lineup that produced the second-most baseball strikeouts before the All-Star break. Ohtani hasn’t allowed a single home run over his last 39 2-3 innings pitched, and that spells trouble for an Atlanta roster that’s highly reliant on the longball.
The Braves are second in the majors in home runs hit this season but 19th in average with runners in scoring position (.253). Ohtani is as stingy as any starter in that latter situation, yielding a .118 opponent batting average.
“Sho-Time” has been pitching deep into games during this run as well, averaging 6.6 innings per start. He gets tougher to hit as the games go on, authoring a .225 opponent batting average the first time around, a .206 average the second time through the order, and a .143 average when facing batters a third time.
Ohtani will have to do the heavy-lifting on offense as well with Mike Trout on the shelf. Fortunately for the Halos, he’ll take on a right-handed starter in the Braves’ Charlie Morton. Sixteen of his 19 homers on the campaign have come against righties.
Most of L.A.’s other hitters are in some kind of slump, but at least Luis Rengifo has been hot at the plate, hitting .315 in July.
Prediction: Angels moneyline (+135 at WynnBet)
Over/Under analysis
The total seems much too low for this tilt in Atlanta tonight. The Angels have pledged a new approach at the plate coming out of the All-Star break, with Jared Walsh being most vocal about it.
“We need to pull the trigger on the fastball earlier in the count, team-wide,” Walsh told the Orange County Register. “We’ve all spoken about that. I think being more aggressive in the zone would help.”
Walsh, in particular, has been so cold at the dish — hitting .075 over 40 at-bats in July — that the former All-Star simply seems due to turn it around. The Braves should not be silenced for all nine innings, especially once the Halos’ subpar bullpen enters.
This month, closer Raisel Iglesias is off to a rough start, recording a 9.64 ERA. Set-up man Ryan Tepera (7.36 ERA) hasn’t been much better. The scorching Austin Riley — batting .400 in July with nine homers and 18 RBI — is an Atlanta hitter that most prop players will want to focus on.
The trends suggest the Over is the way to go, as the Angels have exceeded the total in seven of their last nine interleague road games against right-handed starters. The Over is also 27-11-1 in the Braves’ last 39 interleague home games against right-handed starters.
Prediction: Over 7 (-120 at DraftKings)
Best bet
If Ohtani is his usual brilliant self in Atlanta this Friday, the Braves will be hard-pressed to win this game. Ohtani should outduel Morton on the mound, and the Angels should be able to build a lead safe enough for their bullpen to hold onto.
Facing the Braves’ fourth-rated relief corps by ERA (3.14) — rested, no less — could be tricky for Los Angeles, but their first five innings moneyline being about 20 cents less than their full-game price is too steep a decline to accept.
Pick: Angels moneyline (+135 at WynnBet)
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