St. Louis Cardinals vs Washington Nationals Prediction 9/18/26 MLB Picks Today

The Washington Nationals and the St. Louis Cardinals meet Friday in MLB action from Busch Stadium. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Washington Nationals vs. St. Louis Cardinals prediction.

Starting Pitching Matchup

The Washington Nationals will send out Cade Cavalli for the start here and Cavalli is 12-5 with a 3.12 ERA and 194 strikeouts this season. Kyle Leahy will start for St. Louis and is 10-4 with a 3.33 ERA and 128 strikeouts this season.

Washington Nationals Recap

The Washington Nationals come into this game looking to rebound from a 3-0 loss at the hands of Philadelphia last time out to sit at 71-82 this season. After this series, Washington wil head on the road for a game against Detroit.

Nationals Have Four-Game Win Streak Snapped

James Wood has 127 hits with 29 doubles, a triple, 30 home runs and 75 RBIs while CJ Abrams has 144 hits with 30 doubles, 3 triples, 30 home runs and 96 RBIs. Daylen Lile has 143 hits with 27 doubles, 8 triples, 21 home runs and 85 RBIs. Jacob Young has 99 hits with 20 doubles, 3 triples, 10 home runs and 47 RBIs while Nasim Nunez has 87 hits with 5 doubles, 3 triples, 1 home run and 35 RBIs.

St. Louis Cardinals Recap

The St. Louis Cardinals come into this game looking to bounce back from a 6-5 loss at the hands of San Francisco last time out to sit at 75-78 this season. After this series, St. Louis will head on the road for a series against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Cardinals Drop Back-To-Back Games

Jordan Walker has 160 hits with 33 doubles, 28 home runs and 100 RBIs while Alec Burleson has 164 hits with 37 doubles, a triple, 23 home runs and 111 RBIs. JJ Wetherholt has 122 hits with 14 doubles, 17 home runs and 48 RBIs while Ivan Herrera has 138 hits with 25 doubles, a triple, 16 home runs and 65 RBIs. Masyn Winn’s added 107 hits with 20 doubles, 2 triples, 5 home runs and 54 RBIs and Nathan Church has 102 hits with 14 doubles, 2 triples, 10 home runs and 50 RBIs this season.

Washington Nationals @ St. Louis Cardinals Betting Trends: September 18, 2026

• Probable Starting Pitcher: Kyle Leahy      Record this season: 10-4      ERA: 3.33
• Home Record: 5-3
• Last 5 against Nationals: 0-0

Why the St. Louis Cardinals will win

• The Nationals have lost each of their last 13 road games against NL opponents.
• The home team has won 10 of the Nationals’ last 11 games.
• The Cardinals have covered the run line in seven of their last eight games following a home loss.
• The Nationals have failed to cover the run line in five of their last six games.
• The Nationals have trailed after 5 innings in six of their last seven road games against NL Central opponents that held a losing record.
• The Nationals have trailed after 3 innings in seven of their last eight road games.

• Probable Starting Pitcher: Cade Cavalli      Record this season: 12-5      ERA: 3.12
• Road Record: 6-3
• Last 5 against Cardinals: 0-0

Why the Washington Nationals will win

• The Nationals have won each of their last seven games as road underdogs against NL Central opponents following a loss.
• The Cardinals have lost each of their last seven Friday games as home favorites against NL East opponents.
• The underdogs have covered the run line in 14 of the Cardinals’ last 15 games at Busch Stadium.
• The Cardinals have failed to cover the run line in 13 of their last 14 games as home favorites against NL opponents.
• The Nationals have led after 3 innings in four of their last five games against NL Central opponents.
• The Cardinals have lost the first inning in three of their last four night games against opponents that held a losing record.
• The Cardinals have trailed after 5 innings in four of their last five home games against opponents that held a losing record.

Total Runs Facts

• Seven of the Cardinals’ last eight games as favorites against NL East opponents have gone UNDER the total runs line.
• Each of the Nationals’ last four road games against NL Central opponents have gone OVER the total runs line.
• There has been no run scored during the first inning in seven of Kyle Leahy’s last eight home appearances as a starter.
• There has been no run scored during the first inning in 12 of the Nationals’ last 15 night games against NL opponents.

St. Louis Cardinals Player Prop Facts

• Jordan Walker has hit a home run in each of the Cardinals’ last three games against the Nationals.
• Kyle Leahy has recorded three or more strikeouts in each of his last 10 appearances.
• Thomas Saggese has recorded at least one hit in each of his last 12 appearances in night games.
• Alec Burleson ranks 8th in the league in Hits (164) this season.

Washington Nationals Player Prop Facts

• Abimelec Ortiz has hit a home run in three of the Nationals’ last four games against NL Central opponents.
• Cade Cavalli has recorded a win in seven of his last eight appearances against opponents that held a losing record.
• Cade Cavalli has recorded seven or more strikeouts in each of his last seven appearances.
• CJ Abrams has recorded two or more hits in each of his six previous appearances against the Cardinals after not playing the previous day.
• James Wood ranks 4th amongst qualified players for On Base Percentage (.391) this season.

Matchup/League Facts

• The Cardinals rank 27th in the league for slugging percentage this season (.382).
• The Cardinals rank 4th in the league for home runs allowed this season (152).
• The Nationals rank 1st in the league for steals this season (166).
• The Nationals rank 2nd in the league for slugging percentage this season (.426).

Washington Nationals vs. St. Louis Cardinals Prediction

I’m on the Nationals in this one. The Nationals are just playing the better baseball right now, and between two struggling bullpens this month, I trust Cavalli to go deeper into this game and put less pressure on his bullpen as Leahy has been getting a quick hook in a lot of his recent outings. I think the Nationals take care of business here so give me Washington in this one.