Only several weeks into the new baseball betting season and some division rivalries are already starting to look like MLB playoff betting series. Perhaps that’s an exaggeration, but you can expect plenty of intensity when the Philadelphia Phillies travel to Atlanta to take on the Braves in game two of this MLB odds series.

Philadelphia (8-4), the defending NL champs are off to a great start to the 2010 ML betting season and are likely an even better team this season than they were last baseball betting season. The reason of course is the addition of ace Roy Halladay who has been dominating NL batters so far in his brief stint as the Phillies’ MLB betting ace.

Halladay has been as close to perfect as you can be in sports betting so far with his new team and has been putting up some of the best numbers in the MLB odds action. He’s 3-0 with a 1.13 ERA and has 21 Ks in 24 innings pitched. And in case you’re wondering that’s an average of 8 innings per starts. He’s already got one complete game this MLB betting season and he’ll sure have a few more by the time the baseball betting season ends.

Halladay should be expected to be the starter in this one as he’ll have five days of rest under his belt from his previous start and if that’s the case you’ve got to like the Phillie’s odds in this MLB betting matchup.

The Braves (7-5) are a pretty good team and will likely challenge for a wildcard spot in the NL playoff betting but if Halladay is on the mound they don’t stand much of a chance in this sports betting matchup. Atlanta is just 1.0 game behind in the NL East standings and would love to gain some ground and maybe even take the division lead by the end of this three game baseball betting series, but this isn’t likely one of the games they’ll win.

Even if the Braves do somehow hit Halladay hard in the early innings that’s only half the battle against a team like the Philadelphia Phillies who also have one of the best hitting lineups in the MLB odds competition. Anyway you look at it, this seems to be one sports betting matchup that the Phillies will win.