The Nationals (54-67, 26-35 home) will host the Red Sox (63-57, 28-29 away) in game three of this interleague series. Starting for the Nationals is Patrick Corbin, while the Red Sox are giving the ball to Chris Sale. Read on to see my pick for this showdown between Washington Nationals and Boston Red Sox.

BOSTON RED SOX VS WASHINGTON NATIONALS BETTING PICK

The Pick: Washington Nationals +1.5 Runs

This game will be played at Nationals Park at 4:05 ET on Thursday, August 17th.

WHY BET THE WASHINGTON NATIONALS:

  • In their previous three games, the Nationals are 2-1 vs. the runline.
  • Boston have failed to cover the runline in three straight road games.
  • Over his last two starts, Patrick Corbin has an ERA of just 2.13.

BOSTON RED SOX SEEK TO IMPROVE THEIR ROAD RECORD

Heading into today’s game, the Red Sox are 4th in the AL East with an overall record of 63-57. When looking at their performance in their 39 series, Boston is 21-15-3. Against below .500 teams, the Red Sox are 30-30 while going 28-29 on the road and 35-28 at home.

Chris Sale is set to take the mound for the Red Sox, boasting a 5-2 record. In 12 appearances this season, he has an ERA of 4.52 and a batting average allowed of .226. Opponents have walked 15 times against Sale, while he has struck out 78 batters. His WHIP stands at 1.11 with a SLG allowed of .411.

Chris Sale’s most recent outing saw him surrender one hit over 4 2/3 innings of work, resulting in two earned runs. Fortunately for the Red Sox, they were able to come away with a 5-2 victory over the Tigers despite Sale not factoring into the decision.

This season, the Red Sox are 10th in the league at 4.8 runs per game. Over their last ten games, they have a combined batting average of .233 (16th) leading to 3.6 runs per contest. Overall, they are generating 3.0 walks per game compared to 8 strikeouts. Boston’s on-base percentage of .327 has them 8th in the MLB.

The Red Sox’s offensive leader, Masataka Yoshida, has been a consistent force this season. He currently boasts a .298 batting average and has compiled an impressive .466 SLG% and .355 OBP.

WILL THE WASHINGTON NATIONALS TAKE CARE OF BUSINESS AT HOME?

The Nationals’ record of 54-67 has them ranked 5th in the NL East. So far, they have a below .500 series record of 15-22-2. This season, they have gone 26-35 at home and 28-32 on the road.

The Washington Nationals will look to Patrick Corbin for a spark, as the veteran starter has posted a 7-11 record in 24 appearances this season. His ERA stands at 4.85, while his K/9 is 5.96 and his FIP is 5.24. Additionally, Corbin’s opponents have an OBP of .328 against him.

Patrick Corbin’s most recent outing for the Nationals resulted in a no-decision, despite his five innings of work. The lefty allowed one run on one hit, but the team ultimately fell 6-2 to the Phillies.

Offensively, Washington is ranked 18th in the league with an average of 4.4 runs per game. When looking over their last ten matchups, the Nationals averaged 5.8 runs per contest, which is 8th best in that span. In terms of their power numbers, Washington is 22nd in all of baseball, with a total of 112 home runs.

Over the Nationals’ last ten contests, Keibert Ruiz has been a major contributor to the offense, leading the team with four home runs. The backstop’s season-long total now stands at 15 dingers, and his overall batting average is .255.