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The Washington Nationals travel to the Cincinnati Reds to begin a weekend series. It is time to continue our MLB odds series with a Nationals-Reds prediction, pick, and how-to watch.
The Nationals come into the game after taking two of three from the Milwaukee Brewers. The Nationals have won five of their last ten games, but it has been some hit-and-miss offense. They have scored 30 runs in their five wins, but just 14 runs in their five losses. The Nationals are well out of the hunt for the playoffs as well. They are 46-63 on the season, which places them in last place in the NL East. Still, the Nationals have what looks like a good plan for their future, as they traded some pieces while keeping others they value.
Meanwhile, the Reds have lost three straight games to the streaking Cubs and lost three of four to them. With the losing streak, they have dropped to 59-52 on the season, a half-game behind the Brewers in the NL Central. They are currently in a Wild Card spot, but the Marlins are just a half-game back, while the Diamondbacks and Cubs sit within two games of them. It was a rough week for the pitching staff though. In the series with the Cubs, they gave up 46 runs in just four games.
Here are the Nationals-Reds MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Nationals-Reds Odds
Washington Nationals: +1.5 (-130)
Cincinnati Reds: -1.5 (+108)
Over: 10.5 (-115)
Under: 10.5 (-105)
How To Watch Nationals vs. Reds
TV: MASN2/BSOH
Stream: MLB.TV
Time: 6:40 PM ET/ 3:40 PM PT
*Watch MLB games LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Nationals Could Cover The Spread
The National offense continues to produce some fairly average results. In the series with the Brewers, they scored 12 runs, good for four a game. That is right about average for them this year, as they average 4.29 runs per game. For the season, the Nationals are 21st in the majors in runs scored, fifth in batting average, 17th in on-base percentage, and 22nd in slugging. This week has been about Joey Meneses. He has five RBIs over the last week while hitting a home run and a double. He is hitting .286 this week but does not have a walk. In July, Meneses drove in 19 runs with the help of six home runs and five doubles. He also scored 13 times while hitting .283. Meneses was patient at the plate too, drawing seven walks and having an OBP of .330.
The only other home run in the last week has come from the bat of Luis Garcia. Garcia has a solo home run and a double this past week while scoring three times. He also has stolen a base but is hitting just .238 over the last week. He has also struck out four times in the last week. Striking out is something that needs to end for Lane Thomas. The last week saw him go from being almost traded to being told he was too valuable to move. This clearly has had an impact on him. Thomas has struck out 11 times in the last week, hitting just .136. If he can get through this cold spell, he should return to being one of the more reliable bats on the Nationals roster.
On the hill, today for the Nationals will be Patrick Corbin. Corbin is 7-11 on the year with a 5.07 ERA. Last time out, it was more struggle for him. Against the Mets, he went 5.2 innings and have up four runs. He also gave up two home runs. In July he gave up six home runs in five starts, with home runs being hit in four of the five. One of those starts is against the Reds. In that game at the start of July, he went five innings and gave up six runs. He also gave up two home runs and took his tenth loss of the year.
Why The Reds Could Cover The Spread
The Reds have to do something about their pitching. It was awful this week and allowed the Cubs to close the gap in the playoff race. For the season they are ranked 26th in team ERA, 26th in WHIP, and 26th in opponent batting average. It will be Graham Ashcraft on the mound today for the Reds. He is 6-7 on the season with a 5.31 ERA. He has been pitching well as of late though. In July, he made five starts going 3-1. He gave up just six runs in 29.1 innings of work, which is good for a 1.84 ERA. Last time out, it was six shutout innings in a victory over the Dodgers.
On the offensive end of things, the Reds can normally get by with sub-par pitching. They are sixth in the majors in runs scored this year, while also sitting sixth in on-base percentage, 13th in batting average, and 11th in slugging. Spencer Steer and Joey Votto have been on fire as of late. Steer has three home runs and seven RBIs in the last week. He is hitting .286 in the last week with three doubles as well. Steer has scored six times in the last week as well. Meanwhile, Votto also has three home runs and seven RBIs in the last week. He is hitting .261 and has scored four times in the last week.
Joining them in scoring a lot of runs is Elly De La Cruz. De La Cruz has scored six times in the last week, while hitting a double, a triple, and two home runs. He is hitting .296 and seems to be coming out of the small slump he was in. Meanwhile, the hottest bat in the lineup may belong to fellow rookie Christian Encarnacion-Strand. He is hitting .333 over the last week with a .407 on-base percentage. He also has three RBIs and three runs scored in the last week.
Final Nationals-Reds Prediction & Pick
This could be a very high scoring affiar. Both pitchers going today have given up plenty of runs this year. The major difference is Patrick Corbin is still doing it, while Graham Ashcraft has turned it around. Even more, the Reds have the offense to take advantage of bad pitching, whereas the Nationals do not. Take the Reds in this one.
Final Nationals-Reds Prediction & Pick: Reds -1.5 (+108)
