The Washington Nationals and Philadelphia Phillies clash Wednesday in game 3 of an MLB series at Citizens Bank Park. Let’s preview this game and give out a pick and prediction.

Washington Nationals Betting Preview

The Nationals look to play spoiler after winning 5 of their last 6 games. The Nationals are still 9 games back in the wild card race. The Nationals pitching staff is 27th in ERA (4.88), 28th in WHIP (1.46) and 23rd in quality starts (34). The Nationals’ offense is 20th in runs per game (4.35), 6th in batting average (.259) and 28th in homers (104). Lane Thomas leads the Nationals with 129 hits and 67 RBI, while Joey Meneses and Dominic Smith have combined for 222 hits and 90 RBI. MacKenzie Gore gets the ball, and he is 6-8 with a 4.34 ERA and 129 strikeouts this season. Gore is 0-2 with a 5.40 ERA and 17 strikeouts in his career against the Phillies.

Washington Nationals Team Facts

• The Nationals have won five of their last six games as underdogs.
• The Nationals have covered the run line in each of their last eight night games against NL East opponents following a win.

Washington Nationals Player Prop Facts

• CJ Abrams ranks T8th in the league in Steals (27) this season.

Philadelphia Phillies Betting Preview

The Phillies look for a win after winning 6 of their last 9 games. The Phillies are currently holding onto the second wild card spot in the NL. The Phillies pitching staff is 11th in ERA (4.02), 8th in WHIP (1.24) and 7th in quality starts (50). The Phillies’ offense is 14th in runs per game (4.59), 9th in batting average (.256) and 17th in homers (128). Bryson Stott leads the Phillies with 127 hits and 44 RBI, while Nick Castellanos and Trea Turner have combined for 234 hits and 107 RBI. Michael Lorenzen gets the ball, and he is 6-7 with a 3.48 ERA and 88 strikeouts this season. Lorenzen is 0-1 with a 5.87 ERA and 18 strikeouts in his career against the Nationals.

Philadelphia Phillies Team Facts

• The Phillies have won each of their last seven night games against NL East opponents following a home loss.
• The Phillies have covered the run line in each of their last seven night games against NL East opponents following a home loss.
• The Phillies have won the first inning in each of their last three night games.
• The Phillies have led after 5 innings in each of their last four games against National League opponents.
• The Phillies have trailed after 3 innings in each of their last three Wednesday games as home favourites.

Philadelphia Phillies Player Prop Facts

• Kyle Schwarber ranks 6th in the league in Home Runs (30) this season.

Matchup/League Facts

• The Philadelphia Phillies are one of only 3 teams in the league to rank top 10 in both steals and batting average this season.
• The Philadelphia Phillies ranks 5th in the league for triples this season (21).
• The Washington Nationals ranks 30th in the league for home runs allowed this season (165).
• The Washington Nationals ranks 2nd in the league for strikeouts against this season (813).

Randy’s Pick

The Phillies should be favorites for obvious reasons, and they have the pitching edge with Michael Lorenzen on the bump. However, the Nationals have quietly played good ball over the last couple of weeks, and they’re actually one of the top earners over the last 30 days. MacKenzie Gore has also been a serviceable pitcher this season with his 4.34 ERA and 1.42 WHIP while averaging 10.4 strikeouts per 9 innings. We’re getting 1.5 times our money. I’ll take a shot with the Nats on the road at this price.