Astros vs. Nationals: Picks, predictions, how to watch Saturday’s game

The Houston Astros and Washington Nationals square off on Saturday with first pitch set for 7:05 p.m. ET. The game takes place at Nationals Park in Washington D.C. and will only be available on local TV or through an MLB.tv subscription. Cristian Javier (2-0, 0.83 ERA) will get the nod for the Astros and will go head-to-head with Nationals starter Erick Fedde (2-2, 3.90 ERA).

Houston (22-11) is the hottest team in the majors at the moment and extended its winning streak to 11 last night with a 6-1 victory over the Nationals in the series opener. The bulk of the work in the victory was done in the first inning when a two-run home run by Yuli Gurriel gave them a quick 5-0 lead. Yordan Álvarez would proceed to bomb his 11th homer of the season in the third and he currently trails Aaron Judge for the league lead by one.

Meanwhile, Washington (11-23) has dropped seven of its last 10 games and has plummeted to last place in the NL East standings. The Nationals’ lone run last night came in the bottom of the seventh when Alcides Escobar drove Keibert Ruiz home on a fielder’s choice. The Nats have been held to two runs or less in three of its last four outings.

Astros vs. Nationals

Pitchers: Cristian Javier vs. Erick Fedde
First pitch: 7:05 p.m. ET
Astros local broadcast: AT&T SportsNet Southwest
TEAM local broadcast: MASN
Live stream: MLB.tv (subscription)
Moneyline odds: Astros -160, Nationals +140

Picks & predictions

Moneyline pick: Astros -160

This is an easy choice as the Astros are on fire while the Nationals are ice cold at the plate. Expect a similar result from yesterday as Javier holds down the fort and delivers another gem on the mound this evening.

Player prop pick: Yordan Álvarez over 0.5 home runs (+285)

Álvarez has homered three times in his last two games so why not another one this evening? Aaron Judge re-took the league lead with a home run last night so we’ll predict that the young lefty will even things up tonight.

If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537) (IL/IN/MI/NJ/PA/WV/WY), 1-800-NEXT STEP (AZ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO/NH), 888-789-7777/visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-BETS OFF (IA), 1-877-770-STOP (7867) (LA), 877-8-HOPENY/text HOPENY (467369) (NY), visit OPGR.org (OR), call/text TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN), or 1-888-532-3500 (VA).21+ (18+ NH/WY). Physically present in AZ/CO/CT/IL/IN/IA/LA/MI/NH/NJ/NY/OR/PA/TN/VA/WV/WY only. Eligibility restrictions apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for full terms and conditions.