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Happy weekend baseball fans! To kick off the scheduled slate this Saturday, the Houston Astros will make a trip to the nation's capital to take on the Washington Nationals in a thrilling inter-league showdown. Join us for our MLB odds series, where our Astros-Nationals prediction and pick will be revealed.
The Astros enter play as the hottest team in baseball, as they have pushed their winning streak to an astounding 11 games. Paired with exceptional hitting and pitching that has left opposing teams with no answer, the Astros will look to have a repeat of Friday night's performance when they downed the Nationals by a score of 6-1. Right-handed twirler Cristian Javier will get the start, as he is 2-0 with a 0.83 ERA is an elite mark.
The Nationals must go on an absolute tear in order to save their season through 34 games. On the mound in D.C. will be Erick Fedde, who has compiled a 2-2 record while obtaining a 3.90 earned-run average.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Astros-Nationals MLB odds:
MLB Odds: Astros-Nationals Odds
Houston Astros: -1.5 (+100)
Washington Nationals: +1.5 (-120)
Over: 9 (-110)
Under: 9 (-110)
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Why The Astros Could Cover the Spread
Ladies and gentlemen, the Houston Astros are the real deal. Closing in on the longest winning streak out of any team in the major leagues, the Astros have punished opposing squads and now possess a 22-11 record. Only a week and a half ago, the Astros were barely above .500, struggling to keep their head above water. That was then and this is now, as the Astros seem to yet again be a World Series contender for the fifth consecutive year.
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As a group on offense, Houston has the ninth-best slugging percentage with a .396 mark. Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez has single handily carried Houston's offensive onslaught over the past two contests, as Alvarez has belted three homers including a towering shot to center field on Friday that broke open the scoring for the ‘Stros.
While the offense has been getting the job done, it may be in fact Houston's pitching that makes them such a dangerous squad. Statistically, it is difficult to find another team in all of baseball that has been so productive on the rubber through 33 games. Houston not only ranks first in team ERA at 2.68, but they also are second in total quality starts from the starting staff, and are fourth in WHIP at 1.09. To make a long story short, the arms on this Astros roster are really, really good and could be a big reason why they cover the spread tonight against a lesser Nationals bunch.
Why The Nationals Could Cover the Spread
As for Washington, the ‘Nats are plummeting in the wrong direction at 11-23 and have now lost four of five. Currently 11 games behind the Mets and sitting in last place in the NL East. So, who exactly around the baseball community has the Nationals coming out victorious in this game? Well, not many, and with good reason. When taking a glance at game two of this three-game series set, it becomes quite clear that whatever the Astros excel at, Washington seems t0 struggle with. The good news? Anything can happen in the sport of baseball. All it takes is a few key hits to be strung together and a strong outing from your starting pitcher and all of a sudden, you've got a ballgame!
Over their past few series played, Washington has been faced with a ghastly schedule that has included tough matchups against some of the premier clubs in baseball such as the Angels, Mets, and now the Astros. Washington is currently 2-4 in their six games versus such opponents and has failed to maintain a series win. In order to force a rubber match tomorrow at home against Houston, the Nationals must do the little things right to have a chance.
When looking at the box score from yesterday's defeat, there was obviously a power deficit that the ‘Nats could not overcome. While stringing together single after single can be effective and even wear down the opposition, it will be vital for someone within this lineup to garner an extra-base-hit or even send one whistling into the home stands.
Pitching-wise, can RHP Erick Fedde do enough to give his squad a chance in this one? In his last start, Fedde had his best outing of the season in which he shut out the Angels over five innings tossed, and only gave up a pair of hits in the process. A similar pitching performance would do wonders for a Nationals team that is more than desperate for a quality win against a very skilled foe.
Final Astros-Nationals Prediction & Pick
As much as some of you might want to side with the underdog in this one, please do not. The Astros represent a high-flying tank engine on the train tracks that have no signs of stopping anytime soon, and the recent play of Washington has not been encouraging enough to put money on them. The Astros extended their league-leading winning streak and take care of business out in Washington D.C.
Final Astros-Nationals Pick: Astros -1.5 (+100)
