Freddie Freeman’s son Charlie clearly had a difficult decision make. With the opportunity to pick his father’s walk-up music for a recent Atlanta Braves game, Charlie could’ve gone with any song. But he seemed very pleased with his decision. As the music played on the loudspeaker, Charlie burst out in laughter with a big grin on his face.
This time, with a mic on him during Sunday night’s Atlanta Braves 13-4 blowout of the Chicago Cubs, Rizzo had Freddie Freeman in a rundown and he started shouting “FREDERICK! FREDERICK!” at him as he chased down the first baseman on the basepath.
For the record, Rizzo is correct: Freeman’s full first name is indeed Frederick, and even if it wasn’t, this is just fantastic and delightful. Nice to get a glimpse at pro athletes having fun like they were kids:
As part of the Major League Baseball’s bubble setup for the postseason, family members of the players were permitted to quarantine and stay in the bubble. That way — for the first time in months — players would be able to compete in front of their loved ones.
Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman was joined in the bubble by his wife, Chelsea, and young son, Charlie. They were in attendance for Atlanta’s Game 1 and 2 wins over the Miami Marlins. And Fox Sports cameras caught a glimpse of what they thought was a touching moment between the NL MVP favorite and his wife during batting practice on Thursday.
The actual explanation was much (and I mean MUCH) funnier.
Freeman wasn’t waving and blowing kisses to Chelsea, but rather he was joking with his former Braves teammate A.J. Pierzynski who is on the call for Fox Sports.
Chelsea shared the text exchange she had with Freeman about the video. It was great — so great.
Freeman suffered from a 104.5-degree fever while battling coronavirus.
Atlanta Braves first baseman thought he was in danger of losing his life at the toughest point of his battle against COVID-19, and he said during a press conference that he feels like a “kid in a candy store again” being able to return to a baseball field after his experience.
Freeman revealed that he dealt with an extremely high fever, which spiked to 104.5. He said that after checking his temperature in the morning and finding it to be completely normal, he went through his typical at-home workouts – only for a fever to level him later that day.
“The crazy thing is is, Friday morning I woke up in a pool of sweat, [temperature gunned] my forehead and it said 98.2. So I had no fever that morning, and that was 7:30 in the morning. So I went – since I couldn’t go to the field, I had to wait for that test – I went and threw, I hit, I worked out and I ran at my house and felt completely fine. By 2:00 p.m., it hit me like a ton of bricks.
…. Friday night, that was the scariest night for me. I spiked to 104.5 fever…. I said a little prayer that night, because, you know, I’ve never been that hot before. My body was really, really hot. So I said ‘please don’t take me.’ I wasn’t ready. It got a little worrisome that night for me.”
Freddie Freeman says his "scariest night" while battling COVID-19 was when his fever spiked to 104.5 degrees.
Analyzing the top 10 MLB season prop bets that should be exploited for easy wins.
The 60-game MLB season begins Thursday, July 23. The truncated season means player stats will look different. Nonetheless, there is action to be had with prop bets for the coming season. Below, we look at BetMGM futures odds, making our picks and best bets for the top 10 MLB season props to bank on.
St. Louis Cardinals 1B Paul Goldschmidt has become a slow starter, struggling the last two seasons in March, April and May. But this 2020 MLB season is July, August and September. He batted .274 from March to May in 2019 and .209 in 2018 during the same months. Take the UNDER .275 (-115) for his batting average this season.
2. Gerrit Cole’s strikeouts: 104.5
(Over -115/Under -115)
Gerrit Cole should get 12 starts for his new team, the New York Yankees, this season. He had 112 strikeouts in his first 12 starts last season and 116 in his first 12 starts of 2018. Take the OVER 104.5 (-115).
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3. Gerrit Cole’s wins: 6.5
(Over -130/Under +100)
Cole has had more than six wins in his first 12 starts of a season only once in the last four years – and that was 2015. He’ll have the quality Yankees lineup to give him support, but it’s smart to go with history. Go UNDER 6.5 (+100).
4. Arizona Diamondbacks’ runs: 299.5
(Over -125/Under -105)
The Diamondbacks averaged 5.01 runs per game last season. They upgraded two bats in the lineup with CF Starling Marte and RF Kole Calhoun. That, combined with a likely scenario in which batters are better than pitchers early in the season, means the Diamondbacks will not struggle to score runs. Go OVER 299.5 (-125).
5. J.D. Martinez’s home runs: 14.5
(Over -110/Under -120)
To hit 15 home runs in 2020, Boston Red Sox DH J.D. Martinez will need to average one every four games he plays – and that’s playing every game. He has averaged fewer than four games per homer only once in the last three seasons. Go UNDER 14.5 (-110).
Jul 12, 2020; Boston; J.D. Martinez during practice at Fenway Park. (Photo Credit: Brian Fluharty – USA TODAY Sports)
6. J.D. Martinez’s hits: 62.5
(Over -115/Under -115)
In his last two seasons, Martinez averaged 1.23 hits per game, while appearing in 91.3% of Boston’s games. In a 60-game season, that means playing in 55 games and getting 67-68 hits. Take OVER 62.5 (-115).
7. Jose Altuve’s batting average: .300
(Over -115/Under -115)
Houston Astros 2B Jose Altuve only batted .298 in 2019, snapping five consecutive seasons of .313 or higher. Take OVER .300 (-115).
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8. Clayton Kershaw’s strikeouts: 70.5
(Over -115/Under -115)
If Los Angeles Dodgers lefty Clayton Kershaw makes all 12 of his starts this season and averages only six innings per outing, he will pitch 72 innings. He has averaged at least nine strikeouts every nine innings in four of the last five seasons. In his career, the future Hall of Famer averages 1.08 strikeouts per inning. Using his career rate, he would have 71 strikeouts if he made only 11 starts and averaged only six innings per start. Take the OVER 70.5 (-115).
9. Freddie Freeman’s batting average: .295
(Over -115/Under -115)
Atlanta Braves 1B Freddie Freeman has batted at least .295 four seasons in a row. Go OVER .295 (-115).
10. Aaron Judge’s home runs: 15.5
(Over -110/Under -120)
Based on Aaron Judge’s last two seasons, the Yankees slugger averaged a home run every 3.96 games. At that rate, he would have 15 if he played in every single game. Take the UNDER 15.5 (-120).
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At this point, it’s unclear when we’ll get to see the next MLB game played. The league — and every other American sports league — delayed its season amid the global coronavirus outbreak.
With this move coming towards the final stretch of spring training, MLB players are left to get ready for a season that they don’t know when exactly it will take place.
But at least Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman is doing his part to stay fresh for the season, and he has his son to help.
Freeman’s wife, Chelsea, posted a video of Freddie and their 3-year-old son, Charlie, playing some backyard baseball on Sunday. Let’s just say that Freddie didn’t go easy on his son.
Previewing the National League Most Valuable Player MVP odds, with MLB betting odds, picks and best bets
Unlike in the American League, where it’s Mike Trout against the field, the competition for the 2020 National League MVP is wide open — to the point that one pick ain’t enough, Jack. You better make it three.
As of 3 p.m. ET Sunday, March 8, BetMGM has 13 different players listed at +3000 or less:
Mookie Betts (+500)
Cody Bellinger (+700)
Christian Yelich (+800)
Juan Soto; Ronald Acuna Jr. (+1000)
Nolan Arenado (+1600)
Fernando Tatis Jr.; Bryce Harper; Manny Machado (+2000)
Javier Baez; Kris Bryant; Freddie Freeman (+2500)
Ketel Marte (+3000)
National League MVP: Breaking down the field
The first thing that jumps out is that two Dodgers outfielders top the list. Personally, I would lean to Bellinger over Betts because Betts is a career American Leaguer and has to learn many new pitchers. Dodgers dominance has become expected and the two may end up canceling each other out, barring a gigantic season from one of them.
What I’m looking for (and often find) is a guy who is head and shoulders the best player on his team, reinforcing the notion that “valuable” means where would that team be without that guy? It also helps greatly to be a playoff team — or at least a playoff contender into the finals weeks of the season. For our purposes, I’m giving myself a $500 bankroll and splitting it three ways (wait for it).
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I’m putting $150 on Yelich at +800. Entering his seventh season as a full-time starter, Yelich last season hit 44 home runs, drove in 97 runs, stole 30 bases and hit .329 to win his second straight batting title. And he did all of that in in just 130 games. He may not get quite the national attention that some other stars do, but he has MVP potential (and the 2018 MVP Award on his mantle), and a lot of times it takes a couple years of dominance to get deserved recognition. He fits well in that category. At +800, the value coming back is right.
I’m putting $150 on Acuna at +1000. Entering his third season, he has set the table for superstardom and a mid-nine-figure contract at some point. It’s not easy for a leadoff hitter to win MVP because his numbers suffer in terms of consistently having men on base when he comes up. But in his second MLB season in 2019, Acuna led the NL in plate appearances (715) runs scored (127) and stolen bases (37). And, by the way, he hit 41 bombs and had 101 RBI, anyway. If he drops his 2019 strikeout total (188) by 40, it means he makes contact 40 more times and the numbers will follow.
I’m putting $150 on Harper at +2000. He’s only a career .276 hitter and has posted — by far — the highest strikeout totals of his career in each of the last two seasons. But he has missed just eight of 324 games over the last two seasons and no player in baseball rides a hot streak longer than Harper. He’s Player of the Month material often. He’s +2000 for a reason, but a good dice roll at that altitude.
THE BET: Do a three-way parlay covering spots with Yelich, Acuna and Harper. However, our roll still has $50 left. How about throwing it the way of the gold standard Paul Goldschmidt? He has established himself as a mid-30 HR guy, but he is primed for blowing those out of the water. Over the last five years, he has played 791 of a possible 810 games. At +4000, he’s worth a chip-and-a-chair.
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This time, we get Atlanta Braves slugger Freddie Freeman running the bases with two outs on Friday as what could be a routine pop-up turns into a hit. He informed the broadcast that “THERE’S WIND, BOYS!” and that the ball is going to drop in, allowing him to score. As usual, it made for must-see television when he was right.
Analyzing the Atlanta Braves’ projected wins for the 2020 MLB season.
The Atlanta Braves’ rebuild came to fruition rather quickly in 2018, going from 72-90 in 2017 to winning 90 games two seasons ago. They improved further in 2019 by going 97-65 and winning the NL East for a second straight year, but how much further can they climb?
Today, we focus on the Braves’ 2020 regular season win totals and World Series odds. Does Atlanta have what it takes? Let’s analyze:
Atlanta Braves 2019 wins
The Braves went 97-65 last season behind one of the league’s best offenses. They scored the seventh-most runs, slugged 249 home runs (seventh) and posted a team ERA of only 4.17 – 10th in the majors. Outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. has quickly become a star, while first baseman Freddie Freeman continues to get better with each passing season.
Atlanta Braves offseason
The Braves didn’t rest on their laurels this offseason, staying aggressive in free agency. They signed catcher Travis d’Arnaud, left-hander Cole Hamels, infielder Adeiny Hechavarria and outfielder Marcell Ozuna, fortifying what’s already a supremely talented roster.
Their outfield is now one of the best in baseball with Acuna, Ozuna and Ender Inciarte, as well as Nick Markakis. They have suffered a body blow, though, as Hamels (shoulder) had a recurrence of a strain in his left shoulder, and he won’t be ready to start the season.
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Atlanta Braves odds to win NL East division
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full list.
Lines last updated on Sunday at 9:30 a.m. ET.
The Braves are the favorites to retain their division title, despite the reigning World Series champion Nationals also playing in the NL East. The Nats lost superstar third baseman Anthony Rendon to free agency, which will have an impact in 2020. Atlanta is +190 to win the division, slightly ahead of the Nats (+250). It’s going to be one of the best division races in baseball, but Atlanta has an edge on the rest of the teams.
Atlanta Braves World Series odds
The Braves have as good of a chance to win the World Series as anyone in MLB. They’re fourth on BetMGM’s list of contenders at +1100, behind only the Astros (+550), Dodgers (+400) and Yankees (+350). The National League is going to be daunting in 2020, especially the East with the Nationals, Braves and Phillies contending.
How many games will the Atlanta Braves win in 2020?
BetMGM has set the over/under for the Braves at 90.5 wins. Atlanta hasn’t won 90-plus games in three straight years since 2002-2005, which is something the team is trying to accomplish this year. They have the talent to win close to 100, but the pitching staff has its limitations. For that reason, I’d bet the UNDER (-110).
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