Atlanta Braves vs. Washington Nationals Prediction, Preview, Picks & Odds - 6/13/2022

Time: 7:05 p.m. ET

Venue: Nationals Park, Washington, DC

Where to watch: Bally Sports South, MASN

DraftKings: Braves -155, Nationals +135

BetMGM: Braves -160, Nationals +135

Caesars: Braves -161, Nationals +140

Braves: 34-27

Nationals: 23-39

You ever have one of those moments where you just glance at the standings one day nonchalantly and realize that one team is on a winning streak that was 100 percent not expected? Let us welcome the Atlanta Braves to the chat, shall we?

Eleven straight victories. Yes, that's two ones put together, and now suddenly the NL East is the division no one wants to face. The New York Mets are the best team in the NL right now, the Philadelphia Phillies were on a crazy winning streak after firing their manager, and now we remember the defending World Series champions, because why not?

The Braves will hit the road after completing a four-game sweep at home against the Pittsburgh Pirates, and they will begin a three-game trip against the Washington Nationals to begin a six-game road trip. Atlanta extended its streak with a 5-3 win on Sunday to complete the sweep.

Adam Duvall hit two of the Braves' four homers on Sunday, with Matt Olson and William Contreras joining in on the fun. Kyle Wright continued his tremendous rookie season by improving to 7-3, going six innings and striking out seven while allowing the only three runs the Pirates could muster.

"We're playing good baseball and getting some timely hits is key, so it feels good," Duvall said.

Suddenly, with this run the Braves are on, the lead in the NL East seems a little more manageable. Atlanta is only 5.5 games back after the Mets finally got back to their winning ways Sunday night against the Los Angeles Angels. But we say that as if things are going completely haywire in New York. The Mets are still sitting pretty at 40-22.

But still, this Braves team hums well when their bats are clicking at the right time, and when they have a healthy Ronald Acuna Jr. In the last seven days, Atlanta's star is hitting 10-for-23 with four homers. If he keeps this pace up, that's an MVP-type line and one hell of a comeback story.

"It'll be business as usual tomorrow," Atlanta manager Brian Snitker said. "They'll come out prepared and try to go out and win another series. That's what the focus is."

Meanwhile, look further down the division standings, and you'll see the Nationals 17 games back of the Mets and with the full understanding they will not be making a run any time soon. But at least for Washington, they're coming into this series with some sort of confidence taking two of three over the weekend against the Milwaukee Brewers.

The of three was the loss Sunday, a 4-1 defeat that ended the Brewers' eight-game losing streak.

Washington got hits on Sunday, putting up eight, but could only bring one run across. Cesar Hernandez went 2-for-5, but Josh Bell went 0-for-2 and drove in the only RBI.

“We got just one run out of two bases-loaded (situations),” Washington manager Dave Martinez said. “The last few days, it’s been ongoing where we scored multiple runs. It was just one of those days.”

It has been one of those days a lot, but the Nationals have found ways to keep things competitive on most days. They will be sending their top pitcher this season, Josiah Gray, to the mound against Ian Anderson for the Braves.

The Braves will lose one game this week, but I don't forsee it being Monday. They're traveling after an impressive sweep, still fired up, and I think they push the streak to 12. Braves win 7-4

Braves are 42-14 the past three seasons as a road favorite of -125 or more.

Braves are 14-8 as a favorite of -125 to -175 this season.

Nationals are 5-12 as a home underdog this season.

Braves:
Ronald Acuna Jr. (R) RF
Dansby Swanson (R) SS
Austin Riley (R) 3B
Matt Olson (L) 1B
Ozzie Albies (S) 2B
Marcell Ozuna (R) DH
William Contreras (R) C
Adam Duvall (R) LF
Michael Harris II (L) CF
SP - Ian Anderson

Nationals:
Lane Thomas (D) CF
Cesar Hernandez (A) 2B
Juan Soto (Z) RF
Nelson Cruz (D) DH
Josh Bell (A) 1B
Yadiel Hernandez (Z) LF
Keibert Ruiz (A) C
Luis Garcia (Z) SS
Ehire Adrianza (A) 3B
SP - Josiah Gray

Batting average: Dansby Swanson -- .290

Home runs: Austin Riley -- 16

RBI: Austin Riley -- 35

Wins: Kyle Wright -- 7

ERA: Kyle Wright -- 2.57

Batting average: Josh Bell -- .302

Home runs: Juan Soto -- 13

RBI: Juan Soto -- 37

Wins: Josiah Gray -- 6

ERA: Josiah Gray -- 4.33