For a neutral observer, you can’t ask for much more from the National League Divisional Series matchups between the Milwaukee Brewers and Atlanta Braves along with the San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers.
Both tilts are tied at one game apiece in the best-of-five series after the lower seeds took Game 2.
Saturday saw Max Fried spin a gem for the Braves in Milwaukee to spark a 3-0 victory while the Dodgers bats came alive in a 9-2 triumph over their hated division rivals.
As the Braves return home to Atlanta for Game 3, the hope is that their big bats can continue trending in the right direction after getting just enough to get past the Brewers in Game 2. Those three runs don’t pop off the scoreboard, but it was better than the one run on four hits they posted in Game 1.
Three of their biggest bats in Freddie Freeman, Austin Riley, and Ozzie Albies played major roles in the Braves’ win while five of their seven hits were recorded by their top four batters in the lineup.
A shift down south doesn’t necessarily mean the Braves are going to turn this series on its head. The Brewers had one of the top road records in baseball at 51-30 this season.
Out west, the Dodgers will turn to the veteran workhorse in Max Scherzer to write the next chapter of his Hall-of-Fame career in Los Angeles. The righty has been brilliant since he was acquired from the Washington Nationals at the trade deadline, going 7-0 with a 1.98 ERA in 11 starts with the Dodgers.
The Giants haven’t seen Scherzer this year, though, as the 37-year-old only pitched one-third of an inning against San Francisco.
NLDS Game 3 odds, Oct. 11
Milwaukee Brewers at Atlanta Braves (1:07 p.m. ET)
- Favorite: Braves (-1.5)
- Over/under: 7.5 runs scored
- Brewers Moneyline: +105
- Braves Moneyline: -125
San Francisco Giants at Los Angeles Dodgers (9:37 p.m. ET)
- Favorite: Dodgers (-1.5)
- Over/under: 7 runs scored
- Giants Moneyline: +175
- Dodgers Moneyline: -210
Odds courtesy of DraftKings
