By Stephen Nover
Braves minus $1.37 at Pirates
The Pirates are looking to do something they haven’t done all season – win a fourth straight game.
I don’t see the 32-53 Pirates accomplishing the task here.
The Braves have been one of the more disappointing teams in the league. But they still are nine games better than the Pirates and have a far more talented lineup. It would be the height of embarrassment for the Braves to get swept by the Pirates.
The pitching matchup favors the Braves with Drew Smyly facing Will Crowe and the price is low enough to safely back Atlanta.
Smyly is enjoying his finest stretch with four consecutive victories. He’s allowed only three earned runs in his last four starts spanning 22 1/3 innings. He has 21 strikeouts during this time frame.
Crowe, who has a 6.26 ERA, is a bottom-tier starter for a bottom-tier team.
(I am 14-6 on his last 20 NBA plays for 70 percent after winning with the Suns on Tuesday and 38-20-1 on my NHL Max Unit plays for 66 percent after winning with the underdog Canadiens on Tuesday. I have a strong card today headed by my Puck Line Game of the Month in Game 5 of the Canadiens-Lightning Stanley Cup Finals and my Baseball Total of the Week. If you are interested in my sports service, please email me at scriber26@gmail.com, or message me via Twitter. Thanks and best of luck.)
