At 8:10 p.m. EST, the Houston Astros once again host the Washington Nationals for the second outing of this three-game interleague series. The Nats took last night’s contest and left the ‘Stros spiraling, but can the visitors upset the home team once more at Daikin Park on Tuesday?
Here’s an Astros vs. Nationals prediction and pick on DraftKings Sportsbook for tonight’s game.
Astros vs. Nationals prediction, preview
The Astros fell to 60-4 on the campaign with last night’s 2-1 loss. With a 4-7 record since the All-Star Game, Houston’s now lost five straight contests as they continue a downward spiral while dealing with a long list of injuries. Meanwhile, the Nationals improved to 44-62 on the year as well as 6-4 since the season resumed, so they’re beginning to capture a little bit of momentum riding a three-game winning streak.
Neither of these squads put forth their best effort at the plate last night with just four hits apiece and three runs between the two. Washington’s Riley Adams delivered two of those hits, one of which was the eventual game-winning solo home run in the top of the seventh inning. CJ Abrams did notably have a hitless outing while James Wood didn’t play, but should return tonight. In similar fashion, Jose Altuve went hitless and should have a better outing on Tuesday, while Houston’s Cam Smith makes his return in tonight’s lineup after taking yesterday’s game off.
The pitching matchup sets at least one team up for a big night on the scoreboard. Right-hander Jason Alexander (8.14 ERA, 1.90 WHIP, 14 SO) suits up for the Astros against the Nationals righty Michael Soroka (4.85 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 83 SO).
Astros vs. Nationals pick, best bet
DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Astros as -123 favorites on the Moneyline tonight while the Nationals come in as slight +101 underdogs. The run total sits at 8.5.
There are a couple of avenues to take for betting cards tonight but both revolve around targeting Alexander to put forth a poor showing. While the pitcher’s sample size remains small and his numbers with the Astros look better than his six innings with the Athletics to start the season, he clearly hasn’t performed well overall and may have another shaky outing here.
On one hand, I like the Nationals to record over 2.5 runs in the first five innings at +114 odds, and I feel similarly about taking over 1.5 runs in the first three innings for Washington. With a 1.51 WHIP and 4.20 ERA since joining Houston, Alexander remains vulnerable for a Nats lineup that plays better than the teams’ record suggests. However, I understand that some people may prefer taking the over on the run total of 8.5, so that’s just as valid of a pick tonight. Personally, I lean towards either of the first two options since the goal is to target weak pitching and I don’t entirely trust this banged-up Houston lineup right now.
Best bet: WAS Nationals over 1.5 runs in first three innings (+130)
Click the odds on this bet to tail!
