Atlanta at New York 7:10 p.m. ET

Having made all three of his starts on the road since getting called up, Matt Harvey is looking forward to making his Citi Field debut. 

The 23-year-old rookie, though, appears to have a tough task at hand with the surging Atlanta Braves coming to town. 

Coming off their first home win in over a month, the New York Mets try to avoid a sixth consecutive defeat to the Braves as these NL East rivals open a three-game set Friday night. 

After dropping nine straight at home for the first time since 2004, New York (54-58) finally came out on top during Thursday's series finale against Miami. Andres Torres went 3 for 3 with a homer and a season-high three RBIs in the 6-1 victory while R.A. Dickey threw a five-hitter to earn his major league best-tying 15th win. 

Building on that victory, though, could prove difficult against the Braves (64-47). Atlanta has outscored New York 44-22 during a five-game run in this series and enters the weekend on quite a roll. 

The Braves have hit .299 with runners in scoring position in winning 12 of 15 - the best mark in baseball since July 24. 

Atlanta now gets its first look at Harvey (1-2, 3.86 ERA), who since earning the win and setting a club record with 11 strikeouts during his big league debut July 26 in a 3-1 victory at Arizona, has compiled a 5.73 ERA in losing his last two starts. He was tagged for five runs and eight hits over five innings Sunday in a 7-3 loss at San Diego. 

The promising right-hander, though, could bounce back in front of a home crowd that's been eagerly waiting to see him pitch. 

Acquired from the Chicago Cubs before the trade deadline, Braves scheduled starter Paul Maholm (9-7, 3.75) held his own during his Atlanta debut Saturday but took the loss in a 3-2 defeat to Houston. The left-hander gave up all three runs on a pair of homers but struck out a season-best eight over seven innings. 

Despite Saturday's disappointing result, Maholm is 5-1 with a 1.41 ERA over his last seven starts. 

He had gone 0-2 with a 10.13 ERA over his previous four matchups against New York before scattering three hits over seven scoreless innings during a 3-1 win while with Pittsburgh on June 13, 2011. 

Braves are 12-2 in their last 14 road games vs. a right-handed starter.
Braves are 21-5 in their last 26 games vs. a right-handed starter.
Braves are 4-1 in their last 5 road games.

Mets are 2-9 in their last 11 games following a win.
Mets are 1-9 in their last 10 home games.
Mets are 1-10 in their last 11 home games with the total set at 7.0-8.5.
Mets are 0-8 in their last 8 home games vs. a team with a winning record.
Mets are 0-5 in their last 5 games as a home underdog of +110 to +150.
Mets are 0-4 in their last 4 home games vs. a left-handed starter.
Mets are 0-6 in their last 6 games as a home underdog.

Braves win this one 6-2. Maholm should do well against the struggling Mets and they know this. The big bats of Atlanta will destroy Harvey today and there's not much he can do about it. Take the Braves today both on the ML and the RL. Good Luck

ATL BRAVES -119
ATL BRAVES -1½+135

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