Thursday afternoon in Atlanta, the Atlanta Braves and St. Louis Cardinals opened the 2019 NLDS at SunTrust Park. The Braves went 97-65 and won the NL East. The Cardinals went 91-71 to claim the NL Central. Here is the full postseason schedule.

Now let's set the scene with some essentials. 

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How to watch

Date: Thursday, Oct. 3 | Time: 5:02 p.m. ET
Location: SunTrust Park (Atlanta, Georgia)
TV: TBS | Stream: fuboTV (Try for free)
Odds: ATL: -135 | STL: +154 | O/U: 9
Pitchers: Miles Mikolas vs. Dallas Keuchel 
Follow: CBS Sports App 

Preview

This season the Braves were 41-30 at home while the Cardinals were roughly a .500 team on the road (41-40). Atlanta gave Keuchel what amounts to a half-season contract in June and he rewarded them with a 3.75 ERA in 19 starts. He remains a ground ball machine and of course has postseason chops dating back to his time with the Astros. Mikolas starts for the Cardinals after ace Jack Flaherty started the division clincher Sunday.

Ronald Acuna Jr. flirted with a 40/40 season before a groin strain shut him down the last few days of the regular season. He's been taking at-bats throughout the week and is fully expected to be in the lineup Thursday. The Cardinals have been getting contributions from up and down their lineup this season, though Paul Goldschmidt and Marcell Ozuna remain the centerpieces of the offense. The Braves have been in cruise control for a few weeks now. St. Louis had to battle right to Game 162.

Prediction

The SportsLine Projection Model (@SportsLine on Twitter) sees the Braves as favorites. We see no cause to disagree. We'll say Keuchel turns in a workmanlike start while Mikolas falls victim to #Octhomer, and exits early. Acuna and Ozzie Albies begin the series with big Game 1s and give Atlanta a 1-0 series lead. 

Pick: Braves 7, Cardinals 2