Two woefully mediocre seasons culminate in Washington, D.C. this weekend. The Washington Nationals (65-94) welcome the Chicago White Sox (58-101) to Nationals Park for the final series of the regular season on Friday night at 6:45 p.m. ET.
The Nationals enter with some momentum on their side after putting an end to the Atlanta Braves’ ten-game winning streak on Wednesday night. The White Sox, however, have dropped 11 of their last 12 games — including five straight — and enter on a six-game road skid.
Washington is a slim -132 moneyline favorite on DraftKings Sportsbook, and the total is set at 8.5 runs.
White Sox at Nationals prediction, preview
Yoendrys Gómez will get the action started for Chicago. The 25-year-old righty served as a reliever for the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers this season, before being claimed off waivers by Chicago in May and converted into a starter. In eight starts (20 appearances) this year, Gómez owns a 4.92 ERA and 1.39 WHIP with 53 strikeouts in 56.2 innings.
He limits solid contact in general with a sound 37.1% hard-hit rate. But when he goes get hit hard — he gets hit extremely well. Gómez’s barrel rate is a whopping 12.6%, ranking in the bottom first percentile of the majors.
In his last start, Gómez allowed three earned runs across 5.1 innings on six hits and a home run with four strikeouts against the San Diego Padres on Sept. 20.
For the home team, Cade Cavalli makes his 10th and final start of the season. The 27-year-old right-hander made his MLB debut in 2022, but a series of injuries and setbacks delayed his return to a major league mound until August 2025. He has since posted a 4.23 ERA and 1.43 WHIP with 34 strikeouts across 44.2 innings.
Cavalli is armed with one of the best fastballs in the sport, a four-seamer that averages out at a scorching 97.1 mph. He limits hard contact with a 3.5% barrel rate and an average exit velocity of just 87.4 mph. The righty might not strike out many batters, but he generates a ton of chases and induces ground balls at an impressive 54.9% clip.
He’s also gotten better in the last month of the season, carrying a respectable 3.15 ERA across four September starts. He enters Friday on the heels of a shutdown performance against the New York Mets on Sept. 20, where he went five scoreless on five hits and a walk with three strikeouts.
White Sox at Nationals pick, best bet
Though neither starter’s name will be mentioned during award season, they each have an opportunity to embody Cy Young candidates for a night, as Chicago and Washington have two of the worst offenses in the league.
The Sox are responsible for a .671 OPS this season — the third-worst mark in baseball — with a brutal .181 team batting average over their last 10 games.
Shortstop Colson Montgomery is Chicago’s only player with an OPS over .800 this season (.813). Kyle Teel has been hot this month, but the team lost another streaking hitter, Andrew Benintendi, to the IL on Sept. 23 with left achilles tendinitis.
Washington’s offense isn’t much better. Their .692 OPS is MLB’s sixth-worst mark and the club is hitting just .219 over their last 10 contests. However, the Nats’ bats are bolstered by a blossoming young core that has flashed its potential throughout the season.
Their lineup is headlined by 23-year-old outfielder James Wood, who’s hitting .256 with an .827 OPS, 128 wRC+, and 30 home runs in 2025. Meanwhile, 22-year-old outfielder Daylen Lile has erupted in September, carrying a .390 average, 1.170 OPS and 219 wRC+ with four homers.
