Two of the best teams in the National League will kick off an extended four-game weekend series this Thursday night when the Atlanta Braves and the San Francisco Giants square off at AT&T Park. Game 1 is set for a 10:15 p.m. (ET) start, and it will be available on MLB Extra Innings.

The Braves will continue their 10-game road trip this Thursday after closing out a three-game set against Cincinnati on Wednesday afternoon. They have gone 4-6 in their last 10 games with the total going “over” in their last four games.

San Francisco lost the first two games of a three-game series at home against Philadelphia this week by identical 6-2 scores after reeling off six-straight victories in series sweeps of Arizona and the Los Angeles Dodgers. The total has gone over in four of its last six games.

Braves at Giants Betting Storylines

The fires have cooled from Atlanta’s blazing hot start, but it still leads Washington in the NL East by two games with an overall record of 19-13 that includes a 10-8 record on the road. Pitching is still this team’s strong suit with a team ERA of 3.34, but the Braves have gotten some solid production at the plate from Justin Upton. He leads the team in RBI with 21 and has already belted 12 home runs. Overall, Atlanta is ranked seventh in the NL hitting with a .244 team batting average and seventh in scoring with an average of 4.38 runs a game.

Julio Teheran is scheduled to be on the mound for the Braves in the series opener. The right-hander is coming off an extended rest after his last start was rained out. In five previous outings this season, he is 1-0 with a 5.08 ERA. Teheran gave up two earned runs on 10 hits in 5.1 innings of work on April 29 in a non-decision against the Nationals. This will be his first career start against the Giants.

San Francisco is a half game behind Colorado for the lead in the NL West with an overall record of 19-14. It has gone 11-6 at home this season but just 3-4 in last seven home games. The Giants’ pitching this season has been suspect at times; they find themselves in the middle of the road in the NL with a 3.89 staff ERA. However, their bats have done a good job scoring runs with 144 in their first 33 games. Pablo Sandoval and Hunter Pence have led the way with a combined 44 RBI and 10 home runs.

It will be Ryan Vogelsong’s turn in the rotation for San Francisco in Game 1. He comes in with an inflated ERA of 7.20 through his first six starts in what can only be described as a complete struggle. His last time out against the Dodgers, he was tagged for seven earned runs on nine hits in just 4.2 innings. Lifetime against the Braves, the right-hander is 1-0 with a 2.30 ERA.

Braves at Giants MLB Betting Odds and Trends

Atlanta has been opened by BetOnline as a +105 road underdog on the money line with the Giants listed as -115 home favorites. The “over/under” for this game has been set at 7.5.

The Braves are 1-5 in their last six road games but 5-0 in Teheran’s last five starts. The total has gone over in their last seven games on the road.

The Giants are 16-6 in their last 22 games at home and 7-3 in the first game of their last 10 series. The total has gone over in 20 of their last 26 games against a team from the NL East.

Head-to-head in this matchup, Atlanta is 6-2 in its last eight trips to San Francisco, and the total has gone over in five of the last six meetings there. This will be the first meeting between the two this season after the Giants won four of seven games in last year’s series.

Braves at Giants Picks and Betting Predictions

Past trends along with some very questionable form from both starters paints a strong picture for a play on the total line in this matchup. Atlanta’s bullpen gives it the slight edge to win this game, but by then there should be enough runs on the board by both teams to take this game over the 7.5 run line.

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