Astros vs Braves World Series Game 3 Picks and Predictions: Knotted Up World Series Heads To Atlanta

The Fall Classic swings to Atlanta with the series tied up at one game each, as the Houston Astros and Atlanta Braves are set for Game 3 of the World Series on Friday.

Very little continues to separate the AL and NL winners, with MLB betting lines opening with this game as a pick'em. 

Here are our best free Astros vs. Braves picks and predictions for Game 3 of the World Series. 

Astros vs Braves odds

Odds via the Covers Line, an average comprised of odds from multiple sportsbooks.

Compare MLB odds before betting to ensure you get the best number.

Check out the full line movement for this game

Astros vs Braves picks

• Braves ML (-110)
• Over 8.5 (-105)

Picks made on 10/28/2021 at 11 a.m. ET.
Click on each pick to jump to the full analysis.

Astros vs Braves game info

• Location: Truist Park, Atlanta, GA
• Date: Friday, October 29, 2021
• Time: 8:09 p.m. ET
• TV: FOX

Astros vs Braves betting preview

Starting pitchers

Luis Garcia (Postseason: 1-1, 9.64 ERA): The 24-year-old put together a nice rookie season for Houston, going 11-8 with a 3.30 ERA, a 1.17 WHIP, and 167 strikeouts across 155 1-3 innings. Garcia struggled through his first two starts of the postseason, surrendering 10 runs through 3 2-3 innings of work. However he bounced back with a series-clinching win in Game 6 of the ALCS, holding the Red Sox to just one hit and zero runs through 5 2-3 innings. 

Ian Anderson (Postseason: 1-0, 2.25 ERA): The 23-year-old had a strong regular season going 9-5 with a 3.58 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP through 24 starts. He has also been very sharp during the postseason and during his last start helped the Braves knock out the Dodgers by limiting the Dodgers to three hits and one run in four innings. 

Astros vs Braves series odds (Tied 1-1)

Astros: -140
Braves: +120

Weather

Be sure to monitor the gametime conditions with our MLB weather info.

Key injuries

Astros: Rafael Montero RP (Out).
Braves: Ronald Acuna Jr. (Out), Mike Soroka (Out) Josh Tomlin (Out), Huascar Ynoa SP (Questionable), Charlie Morton SP (Out).
Find our latest MLB injury reports.

Betting trend to know

The Braves are 10-1 in their last 11 home games against a team with a winning record. Find more MLB betting trends for Astros vs. Braves.

Astros vs Braves predictions

Braves ML (-110)

The Astros jumped out to an early 5-1 lead in Game 2 on Wednesday night and held on for a 7-2 victory to even up the series. That was a complete reversal from the first game of the series where the Braves came into Houston and jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the third inning, before winning 6-2. 

Rookie Luis Garcia will toe the rubber for the visitors. Garcia is coming off a fantastic start against the Red Sox where he pitched almost six innings of shutout ball and gave up just one hit. That said, he looked very shaky in his previous three outings, surrendering 16 runs and four homers in just 8 2-3 innings. 

The Braves will send right-hander Ian Anderson to the mound and the youngster is no stranger to the pressure of playoff baseball. In just his second year in the majors, Anderson already has seven postseason starts, pitching to a 1.81 ERA with a 1.10 WHIP through 30 innings. 

Both of these teams have loaded lineups and even without Ronald Acuna Jr., the Braves have been slugging led by Freddie Freeman and midseason acquisitions Eddie Rosario and Joc Pederson. 

While the Astros have better batting numbers during the postseason, that's what happens when you face off against the mediocre Red Sox rotation instead of the stud starters for the Brewers and Dodgers. 

Command has been the biggest problem for Anderson throughout his career. While he still walks too many batters, when he's able to locate his pitches he can be tough to beat as he was in Game 6 of the NLCS and Game 3 of the NLDS. It's tough to seperate these teams but with Anderson's history of postseason success and the Braves going 10-1 in their last 11 games at Truist Park, we're leaning towards the home side.  

Over 8.5 (-105)

The Astros couldn't string together hits in Game 1 while the Braves batted just .206 in Game 2, but the other team was able to have success at the plate in those contests. It might take just one team to go off for this game to cash the Over and with the power hitters on both sides, that seems likely to happen. 

After all, Houston led the majors with 5.40 runs per game during the regular season and has upped that number to 6.33 during the playoffs, while Atlanta has plated 5.14 runs per game since the start of August. 

Keep in mind that both Atlanta and Houston are struggling with runners in scoring position this series (Astros batting .190 and Braves hitting .214) but typically hit very well in those situations.  The Braves led the majors with a .822 OPS with RISP during the regular season, while the Stros were right behind them at .820. 

Expect these sides to a better job of taking advantage of those opportunities on Friday and bet the Over.

Pages related to this topic