Washington Nationals vs Cincinnati Reds Free MLB Prediction, 7–17–2017
Free MLB Pick by Jared Alston of Sports Investor Central
Washington Reds vs Cincinnati Reds FREE Moneyline Pick
Time: July 17, 12:35 PM EST | Current Odds: Nationals -155, 9
Washington Nationals (55–36) at Cincinnati Reds (39–52)
The Washington Nationals look for a rare four game sweep over the Cincinnati Reds on Monday afternoon. The Nationals have slugged their way to wins over the Reds, scoring 29 runs in three games while allowing only 11 runs. Today, Stephen Strasburg takes the mound and he’ll be opposed by Scott Feldman.
The Nationals are one of the top teams in baseball and they currently have a 9.5 game lead over the Braves in the NL East. The rest of the division has shown very little fight and the Nats may just run away with this division by August. Stephen Strasburg (9–3, 3.43 ERA) looks for his 10th win of the season as he comes off of a 13–0 loss to the Atlanta Braves with six runs scoring (three earned) on seven hits in three frames.
The Achilles heel of the Nats has been their bullpen. Washington’s bullpen is ranked last in the league in ERA at 5.34. They are expected to make some moves to bolster their pen before the trade deadline to make a post season run.
The Reds are not expected to make a playoff run and they enter this game in last place in the NL Central. The Reds have one of the worst pitching staffs in the MLB but today’s starter, Scott Feldman has been one of their most consistent this season. Feldman is (3–2) with a 2.92 ERA over his last six starts and (4–2) with a 3.00 ERA in nine starts here at home.
Cincinnati has been a decent offensive team this year so far as they come in ranked 11th in the league in scoring, putting up 4.79 RPG ranking 11th in hitting at .259 and 11th in homers with 126.
Here is why I am taking the Nationals (-155) as road favorites: Washington is 13–3 in Strasburg’s last 16 road starts vs. a team with a losing record, 15–7 in their last 22 road games, 43–12 in Strasburg’s last 55 starts and 20–7 his last 27 road starts. The Nats offense is red hot right now and should back Strasburg on the mound.
Nationals vs Reds FREE Pick:Nationals -155
