Weekend Watch

Saturday, Aug. 10

The Atlanta Braves and Miami Marlins square off in Miami on Saturday evening at 6:10 p.m. ET, and RHP Mike Soroka looks to stay hot against RHP Sandy Alcantara in a battle of All-Star righties. The Braves look to stay hot with Soroka on the hill. Atlanta is 13-0 across the past 13 starts by Soroka when facing a team with a losing record, they're 9-0 in his past nine outings on the road against a losing club and 11-1 in his past 12 inside the National League East Division. They're also 6-1 in his past seven starts on the road, 18-5 in his past 23 starts overall and 4-1 in his past five outings working on four days of rest. Atlanta has posted 16 victories over the past 21 road games against teams with a home winning percentage under .400, too.

For the Marlins, they have won just once in the past seven games overall, while going 1-4 in the past five against teams with a winning overall mark. They're also 20-48 in the past 68 games inside the NL East, too. Miami has also dropped five straight starts against a right-handed starting pitcher, while going 2-11 in the past 13 against a starting pitcher with a WHIP under 1.15. The Marlins have won just seven of the past 26 starts by Alcantara, while going 1-6 in his past seven home outings. They're also 0-4 in his past four inside the division, and 1-7 in the past eight when working on eight days of rest.

Overall, Atlanta has won 35 of the past 51 meetings in this series, while going 54-26 in the past 80 meetings in Miami. While the under is 12-5-1 in the past 18 meetings, the over has connected in five of the past seven in South Florida.

 The Cleveland Indians have won the first two games on their key AL Central Division battle with the Minnesota Twins, pulling into a tie for first place. The Twins had a double-digit lead inside the division shortly before the All-Star break. RHP Adam Plutko and RHP Jake Odorizzi will battle on Saturday for first place.

The Indians have managed 12 victories in the past 14 road games, and they're 5-1 in the past six against teams with a winning overall mark. They have also picked up four straight wins on the road vs. RHP, while going 38-15 across the past 53 games, best mark in the majors since mid-June. They have won four straight starts by Plutko on the road, while cashing in seven of his past eight starts overall, including 4-1 in his past five games inside the division.

The Twins have faltered, winning just once in the past six against winning teams. However, they're still 17-5 in the past 22 games played on a Saturday, and 37-15 in the past 52 inside the AL Central. While they're 1-10 in the past 11 in Game 3 of a series, Odorizzi could be the stopper. The Twins have won eight of his past 10 starts at home, while going 5-1 in his past six starts inside the AL Central, and seven of his past 10 outings against teams with a winning record. They're also 15-4 in his past 19 outings overall.

The Arizona Diamondbacks and LHP Alex Young try and tame RHP Kenta Maeda and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Chavez Ravine. The Snakes have won four of the past five, and they're 11-4 in the past 15 road games against a team with a home winning percentage over .600. The Dodgers have won five of the past six vs. LHP, while going 53-22 in the past 75 inside the NL West. They're also a whopping 41-11 in the past 52 games at home. L.A. is 7-3 in the past 10 home outings by Maeda, too, while hitting in six of his past eight against teams with a winning overall record. However, L.A. has managed just one win in the past seven starts by Maeda against the Diamondbacks, and the over is 9-4 in his past 13 vs. Arizona.

Weather Report

The Angels and Red Sox will be squaring off at Fenway Park with a 10-13 mph wind blowing out toward Pesky's Pole in right field. Outside of that game, the winds will be light and variable across all other MLB venues with no chance of precipitation across the board.

Sunday, Aug. 11

The Pittsburgh Pirates use LHP Steven Brault against the St. Louis Cardinals in Sunday's series finale. Brault has no-decisions in four straight outings, and six of his past seven. The Pirates are 0-3 across his past three outings, and 2-5 in his past seven starts overall. In his only start against the Cardinals, Brault allowed six earned runs, nine hits and two walks over 3 2/3 innings in a no-decision on May 12 at Busch Stadium. RHP Miles Mikolas will face the Bucs, and it's good he is at home. He has posted a 2-7 record and 6.34 ERA across 59 2/3 innings in 12 outings on the road, but he is 5-5 with a 1.98 ERA and .230 opponent batting average in 11 home starts.

Colorado Rockies RHP German Marquez will lock horns with San Diego Padres RHP Dinelson Lamet at Petco Park. Unlike many pitchers, Marquez's split solidly favor him on the road. He is 4-2 with a 6.45 ERA in 68 1/3 innings at Coors Field, and 6-3 with a 3.53 ERA in 86 2/3 innings on the road. The opponent is hitting .320 against him at home, and just .209 on the road. While he is 2-0 across two starts against San Diego, he also has a terrible 7.15 ERA and .385 opponent batting average.

As far as Lamet is concerned, this will be just his third outing at home. He is 0-1 with a 6.30 ERA and .250 opponent batting average across 10 innings at Petco. This will be his first appearance against the Rockies this season. His only previous appearance against Colorado came on July 18, 2017 at Coors Field, allowing six runs - five earned - and four hits with four walks across four innings in a 9-7 loss.

The Philadelphia Phillies wrap up their three-game set at Oracle Park against the San Francisco Giants. RHP Jake Arrieta takes ball against rookie LHP Conner Menez in the nationally-televised battle. Arrieta enters 8-8 with a 4.30 ERA, but he hasn't won a start since June 30 in Miami. The Phillies are still a respectable 3-2 over his past five starts, and they're 2-2 in his past four outings on the road. The last time he faced San Francisco was on Aug. 1 in Philly, allowing two runs - one earned - and four hits with a walk and five strikeouts across four innings. It was another no-decision for Arrieta, as he didn't last long enough to qualify for the win.