Oakland Athletics at Washington Nationals Betting Preview
The two worst teams in all of baseball will square off Monday in interleague play as the Oakland A’s (48-81, .372 winning percentage) take on the Washington Nationals (43-85, .336 winning percentage). Washington will host this game at Nationals Park, with the first pitch scheduled for 7:05 pm ET.
The A’s performed admirably over the weekend as they split a four-game series with the New York Yankees. After dropping the first two games, they won the last two 3-2 and 4-1.
In Sunday’s finale, Adrian Martinez picked up the win after going 5.1 innings, allowing one run on three hits. The offense scored four runs on eight hits. Both Seth Brown and Dermis Garcia had two hits apiece in the victory.
The Nationals lost two out of three to the Cincinnati Reds over the weekend, but they were able to salvage the finale on Sunday, 3-2. Patrick Corbin picked up a rare victory as his six innings of two-run ball (one earned) gave him his fifth win versus 17 losses.
Washington had three runs on six hits, including third baseman Ildemaro Vargas’ fourth home run of the season. Both of these teams enjoyed the day off on Monday.
This truly comes in as a pick’em game as both teams’ moneyline sit at -108. The runline features Washington +1.5 (-182), and the over/under for total runs is eight.
A’s Looking For Their Identity
Between a horrific year on the field and the uncertainty of whether they will remain in Oakland off the field, this has certainly not been the year that A’s fans had hoped for. The idea of moving to Las Vegas continues to be a distinct possibility, as MLB has even said they wouldn’t charge the organization a relocation fee.
Still, while the organization’s future remains cloudy, the team on the field continues to try to win despite a lackluster roster. At 48-81, they sit in last in the AL West, 34 games behind the Houston Astros.
Looking for the win on Tuesday will be arguably Oakland’s best starter in lefty Cole Irvin. Despite being just 6-11 in 23 games, he has a 3.16 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and has struck out 98 in 142.1 innings.
Irvin took a no-decision in his last start against the Marlins. He was brilliant as he gave up three hits in seven scoreless innings while striking out 11.
Offensively, the team is led by first baseman Seth Brown. In 388 at bats, he is hitting just .222/.289/.418, but he leads the team with 17 home runs. Sean Murphy has also hit well with 16 home runs, 53 runs batted in, and 53 runs scored.
Nationals Playing For Top Draft Pick
With a 43-85 record, the Washington Nationals have a comfortable lead for the worst record in all of baseball. While the hope for the Nationals, especially after trading young superstar Juan Soto this season, is to get a high draft pick, that isn’t necessarily a sure thing anymore.
Starting in 2023, the draft will feature a lottery which will award the top six picks. While the worst record would give the Nationals the best odds of getting that first overall pick, the only guarantee is that they would pick no later than seventh.
While the postseason is unrealistic, the Nationals’ players will still be playing with pride to end the season, and the club will look to 29-year-old right Erick Fedde to try to take the first game of the series.
In 20 games this season, Fedde is 5-8 with a 4.88 ERA, 1.51 WHIP, and he has 76 strikeouts in 97.2 innings. In his last three starts, he has given up a combined seven runs in 15 innings.
Lane Thomas has been the Nationals’ best hitter this season, at least after the departure of Soto and Josh Bell. He is hitting .239/.286/.402 with 13 home runs, 40 runs batted in, and 43 runs scored.
Take A’s To Win On The Road
Neither team’s trends look good coming into this one. Oakland is 7-13 in their last 20 games and 4-8 in their last 12 road games. The Nationals are 2-5 in their last seven games overall and 1-4 in their last five at Nationals Park.
The one trend that is positive lies on the A’s side as they are 4-2 in their last six games when playing Washington. Between that and the fact that Cole Irvin has had a really good season on a really bad team, the A’s may be the pick to click in this one.
Take Oakland to win at -108.
