Rockies vs Braves Betting Prediction

The Atlanta Braves (-140) finished interleague play with a 10-5 record this season and now get back to facing National League opponents with the opening game of a four-game set versus the Colorado Rockies (+120) Monday night at Turner Field.

Atlanta opens the week four games back in the National League East standings, trailing the Philadelphia Phillies, a club that has the best record in baseball.  The Braves have won nine of their last 10 and 10 of 13.

The Braves received word that four of their players will be heading to the 2011 All-Star Game in Phoenix, Arizona next week.  Catcher Brian McCann is the most notable, being named starting catcher for the National League, hitting .340 with 10 home runs in his last 27 games.

Right-handed starter Tommy Hanson (9-4, 2.62 ERA) also had a case for being named to the Midsummer Classic, entering tonight’s contest on a four-game winning streak.  Atlanta has outscored opponents 13-8 over that span.

Hanson has been rock solid at home, posting a 4-2 mark and 2.40 ERA, as opponents are hitting just .182 against him.  He has allowed just 41 base runners in 41 1/3 innings at Turner Field.

The 24-year-old didn’t fare to well in his only lifetime appearance against the Rockies, allowing four runs on six hits in five innings of work, picking up a no-decision in a 7-6 road loss during his rookie campaign.

Colorado finds itself in third place in the NL West race and was handed a 16-8 blowout loss by Kansas City Sunday at Coors Field.  The Rockies finished their season against American League opponents with a winning 8-7 mark.

The Rockies are 7-5 versus NL East opponents this year and will likely be playing without the services of star outfielder Carlos Gonzalez in the series opener.  He left yesterday’s contest with a wrist injury after crashing into the outfield wall.

Gonzalez’s presence will certainly be missed in the lineup, considering he was hitting .409 with five round trippers and 17 RBIs over his last 23 games.

Colorado sends out ace Ubaldo Jimenez (3-7, 4.35 ERA) for his 16th start of the year, coming off a no-decision home effort against the White Sox.  In that particular outing, he surrendered two runs and four hits in seven strong innings.

The hard-throwing right-hander has registered an even 2-2 mark and 2.14 ERA in six road starts, as opponents are hitting .135 against him.  Jimenez is certainly in position to keep that momentum going outside of Denver, holding Braves hitters to a .209 (27-for-129) average.

Bettors will certainly be interested in knowing the ‘under’ is 4-0 in Jimenez’s last four road starts, while the Braves have fallen below the number in six of Hanson’s last eight efforts at home.

Weather forecasts suggest a game-time temperature in the low-80s and a southwesterly breeze of 5 mph.  There’s also a 40 percent chance of thunderstorms throughout the game in the Atlanta area.

Odds represented in this article are representative of 2BetDsi.com at the time of writing.