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The Washington Nationals take on the Los Angeles Angels. Our MLB odds series has our Nationals Angels prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Nationals Angels.
The Washington Nationals have a long season ahead of them — long not in terms of playing 152 games, but in terms of facing a lot of difficulties and challenges in what is certain to be an uphill battle. The Nats are 3-7 through their first 10 games of the season, and four of those 10 games were against the Colorado Rockies, a team which is expected to finish last in the National League West. The Nationals are in a full-on rebuild, which began in essence with their trade of superstar Juan Soto to the San Diego Padres last year. Washington elected to start all over, and that means 2023 is going to be a painful year for the franchise. Playoff contention is not a realistic goal; the focus is on developing players and building good habits within the organization for future seasons.
The Los Angeles Angels face a much more interesting and urgent season. They really do need to win now, in order to convince Shohei Ohtani to stay with the team in 2024. If the Angels can't at least make a strong run at the playoffs — in which they are, at worst, in the playoff hunt in the final week of the season — Ohtani will certainly go elsewhere next season, dealing a devastating blow to the franchise. The team has to figure out a way to succeed. Through nine games, the Angels are a respectable 5-4, but they have not yet played the Houston Astros, Tampa Bay Rays, or New York Yankees. They have to hammer the bad teams on their schedule — such as the Nats — if they want to have any chance at the playoffs.
Here are the Nationals-Angels MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Nationals-Angels Odds
Washington Nationals: +1.5 (+114)
Los Angeles Angels: -1.5 (-137)
Over: 9.5 (-118)
Under: 9.5 (-104)
How To Watch Nationals vs. Angels
TV: MASN (Nationals) / Bally Sports West (Angels) / MLB Extra Innings
Stream: MLB.tv
Article Continues Below
Time: 9:38 p.m. ET/6:38 p.m. PT
*Watch Nationals-Angels LIVE on fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Nationals Could Cover The Spread
The Angels have a brutally bad bullpen for several seasons, and they did very little to address that weakness in the past offseason. The Angel pen has blown multiple leads over the past three days, losing games in which the Angels led in the middle innings. The Halos squandered a 3-1 seventh-inning lead this past Friday against the Toronto Blue Jays. They led by six runs midway through Sunday's game versus Toronto and let that lead slip away in a 12-11 loss. The Angels might take a multi-run lead early in this game, but should anyone trust their bullpen to make it stand? The Nationals are a +2.5-run underdog for a price in the range of -125 for this game. The +1.5 spread is very achievable for the Nats, but the +2.5 spread should not be ignored.
Why The Angels Could Cover The Spread
The Angels are a better team than the Nats. They have Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani, who have both been smacking the baseball early in the season and are certainly doing their part to help the Halos thrive. The other obvious and central reason to like the Angels against the spread is that Washington is sending out its punching-bag pitcher, Patrick Corbin, to the mound. Corbin has one of the highest ERAs among regular starting pitchers in baseball over the past two years. His track record of giving up three or more runs in the first five innings of a game makes him a pitcher many people have bet against quite profitably. In any race to three runs or race to five runs betting prop, a Corbin game is an obvious betting choice for his opponent.
Final Nationals-Angels Prediction & Pick
It's Patrick Corbin gameday for the Nationals. That should instantly lead you to take the Angels against the spread.
Final Nationals-Angels Prediction & Pick: Angels -1.5
