Washington Nationals (39-80) vs. San Diego Padres (66-54)
The Washington Nationals and San Diego Padres open a four-game series starting on Thursday. Washington lost to the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday, dropping the team to 3-7 in their last 10. They are in last place in the NL East, all but eliminated at this point, as they are destined for a 100+ loss season. San Diego is 5-5 in their last 10 after they defeated Miami on Wednesday, holding the final wildcard spot in the National League.
San Diego enters as the prohibitive favorite at -375 with the odds for the Nationals at +285. Even when giving up 1.5 runs, they still come in as the favorite at -165 with Washington at +140 when receiving 1.5 runs. The total is set at 7.5 (over: -115, under: -105).
The Nationals dropped two of the three games to the Chicago Cubs, moving the club to 4-12 in August. Washington was already last in terms of runs allowed per game (5.72), but they have really bottomed out this month, posting a 6.02 ERA. The pitching staff has yielded 31 home runs in 136.0 innings and has an opponent batting average of .293. It is not surprising they are being shelled on a regular basis.
42-year-old Nelson Cruz legging it out to tie the game.
The hustle from the veteran with 458 HRs is admirable.@ncboomstick23 // #NATITUDE pic.twitter.com/5mOaTHfxjn
— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) August 17, 2022
Washington will be hoping that right-hander Anibal Sanchez can do better, but his numbers have not been pretty this season. Sanchez is 0-5 with a 7.20 ERA in six starts. After allowing 13 earned runs in 15.2 innings in July, he has given up 11 earned runs in 14.1 innings this month. That includes giving up three runs in five innings in his last start against San Diego (August 13).
No offense is going to be able to cover for those kinds of pitching numbers, so the 3.89 runs per game produced by Washington is clearly not doing the job. The team is having some success at the plate, hitting .262 with 19 home runs, but just 57 runs scored in 16 games, a 3.56 runs per game average.