Online Betting Overview The Arizona Diamondbacks are not exactly pulling away from the San Francisco Giants in the battle for the NL West pennant. While Arizona enjoys a two and a half game lead, it continues to open doors that the Giants are unable to walk through. The Diamondbacks are currently on a two-game losing streak but it only cost them one game in the standings as the Giants wound up losing its most recent game as well. Arizona is surviving mostly on some great pitching, but its offense is starting to come to life lately as well. In the last 10 games, Arizona is 7-3. But it is Arizona’s habit of losing games at the wrong time that could cost the Diamondbacks the NL West lead. The arrival of the Atlanta Braves does not make things any easier for Arizona. Baseball betting fans have to sympathize with the Atlanta Braves. The Braves have the third best record in all of baseball and would be leading almost any other division in the AL or NL. But in the NL East, the Braves are trailing the Philadelphia Phillies by eight and a half games. The Braves seem to be a lock to win the NL wild card but the Braves do not want to sit back and glide into the playoffs. Atlanta has started to experience some injuries in its starting pitching rotation and in the batting order that could affect its chances in the playoffs. Some of the offensive players are coming back, but the Braves are still waiting on pitchers to return to the line-up. Against the Diamondbacks, the Braves will need to put the best pitching they have on the mound if it wants to maintain its winning ways. Arizona Diamondbacks Arizona starting pitcher Jason Marquis is out with an injury, so that opens the door for rookie Wade Miley to make his MLB debut. With no MLB baseball scores in his past, Miley becomes a problem for the Braves. Atlanta does not know what Miley has to offer and have no idea what to expect. Miley was 4-1 in AAA ball this year, but his 3.64 ERA may be something that Diamondbacks fans will want to watch. Arizona cannot afford to give up games to the Giants, and with San Francisco getting an easy draw against the Astros this weekend, this will be a serious test for Miley and the Diamondbacks. Atlanta Braves Brandon Beachy is one of those Atlanta youngsters that has flourished in the starting rotation this year. He is 5-2 on the regular season with a 3.43 ERA. In his last five starts, he is 2-0 and pitched seven and a third shutout innings against the Florida Marlins on July 29th. The Bottom Line The betonline.com baseball fans in Arizona are still on edge about winning the NL West pennant. Nothing has been decided and Arizona has some tough games coming up. If the Diamondbacks cannot close that door on the Giants, then this race in the NL West could get interesting. Pick: Atlanta Braves
