Red Sox Favored In Rare Home Series Against Nats
Nationals vs Red Sox Odds Favor Hosts Despite Trends
The Red Sox Look To Snap A Two-Game Losing Streak to the Washington Nationals
The Washington Nationals made themselves right at home on the road. They’ve won 11 of their first 19 road games. They will look to add to their impressive total at Fenway Park. The Nationals vs Red Sox odds have Boston listed as the favorite.
Boston had won six straight games. It has also won nine of its last 10 against the Nationals before getting lit up 16-9 in the final two games of their last series.
The MLB betting lines have Boston priced at -120 to win the series opener as Washington comes to Fenway Park for just the fourth time in the last 15 seasons. There are +100 odds for the Nationals to win the series opener.
Boston is tied for 22nd at +8000 in the odds of winning the World Series with Washington tied for the longest championship odds.
Nationals vs Red Sox 
Records: Washington Nationals (18-17) vs Boston Red Sox (19-17)
Location: Fenway Park, Boston, MA
Day/Time: Streaming: MASN, NESN
Probable Starting Pitchers
- Friday: Patrick Corbin (Nationals) vs Tanner Houck (Red Sox)
- Saturday: Jake Irvin (Nationals) vs Cooper Criswell (Red Sox)
- Sunday: MacKenzie Gore (Nationals) vs TBA (Red Sox)
Some Hope for the Future
Washington joined Colorado as the only National League team with a team ERA over 5.00 a season ago. And the Rockies play in the altitude at Coors Field, which makes it more difficult for pitchers.
The ERA for the Nationals has dropped by more than a run this season. A couple of reasons for the improvement are the continued maturity of 25-year-old MacKenzie Gore and 24-year-old Mitchell Parker.
Parker has allowed two runs or less in four of his five starts this season after limiting the hard-hitting Baltimore Orioles to two runs in 5.2 innings on Wednesday.
Gore, a key piece that the Nationals got in exchange for outfielder Juan Soto, had a 3.19 ERA in his first six starts before a tough outing the last time out versus Toronto. He is set to pitch in the series finale so keep that in mind when looking at the Nationals vs Red Sox odds.
The total has gone over in four of Washington’s last five games.
Wong Continues to Deliver
Boston fans try to avoid looking at the current batting leaders. Former Red Sox star Mookie Betts leads the majors with a .451 on-base percentage and is in the top 10 in several categories. The Red Sox traded away the former MVP in the prime of his career for three players.
Outfielder Alex Verdugo is now with the New York Yankees with Jeter Downs in the Yankees organization. The lone holdover is doing everything he can.
Catcher Connor Wong has at least two hits in eight of his last 16 games with his two hits in a loss to Atlanta on Wednesday raising his batting average of .354. That is more than 100 points higher than he hit last season when he was a full-time player for the first time. That could factor into the Nationals vs Red Sox odds.
Eight of Boston’s last nine games went under the total.
Who’s Hot
- Cooper Criswell, Boston Red Sox P: Criswell has allowed 10 hits and one run with 12 strikeouts over 14.1 innings in his last three games.
- Rafael Devers, Boston Red Sox IF: Devers is 19-for-49 over his last 13 games to raise his batting average to .289.
- Luis Garcia, Washington Nationals IF: Garcia had reached base in 15 consecutive games before going 0-for-4 in Wednesday’s loss to Baltimore. He is batting .339 over those 16 games.
- Hunter Harvey, Washington Nationals P: Harvey has allowed three hits and no runs with five strikeouts in 7.1 innings over his last five appearances.
Who’s Not
- Chase Anderson, Boston Red Sox P: Anderson has given up four hits and five runs in 4.2 innings in his last three outings.
- Garrett Cooper, Boston Red Sox IF: Cooper is 2-for-20 with six strikeouts since joining the Red Sox.
- Patrick Corbin, Washington Nationals P: Corbin has surrendered 14 hits and 10 runs in 10 innings in his last two starts.
- Tyler Lipscomb, Washington Nationals IF: Lipscomb is 2-for-18 with three strikeouts in the six games he played in May.
Nationals vs Red Sox Injury Update
Outfielders Joey Gallo and Lane Thomas are on the MLB injured list for the Nationals as are pitchers Cade Cavalli and Josiah Gray.
First baseman Triston Casas and outfielder Masataka Yoshina are on the injured list while outfielder Rob Refsnyder is questionable for the Red Sox.
Nationals vs Red Sox Betting Preview
Washington is just 21st in the majors with a .231 team batting average but the Nationals are tied for the MLB lead with 62 stolen bases. Will the Nationals get a chance to run much when facing a Boston pitching staff that leads the majors with a 2.72 ERA and six shutouts?
Five of the last six times that the Nationals played in Boston, the game went over the MLB betting odds total.
When looking at today’s MLB games, keep in mind that Boston is 9-6 as a favorite this season while the Nationals are 16-18 when listed as the underdog.
The Nationals have covered in 14 of 19 road games but just nine of those games went over the total. The total is at 4.5 for the series opener. Houck starts as a total of 27 runs have been scored in his last four starts.
The Nationals have won six of their last eight games on the road.
The Red Sox are just 5-11 against the run line at home. Only six home games have gone over the total. Still, it is hard to go against the Red Sox when considering MLB free picks. That is especially true in Friday’s series opener with Houck set to take the mound.
For MLB betting news, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.
