The Washington Nationals (48-56) travel to face off against the St. Louis Cardinals (53-50) on Saturday, July 27th. This game will be played at Busch Stadium in St. Louis and televised on BSMW. The Nationals are coming off a win in their previous game, while the Cardinals are looking to get back on track from a loss to the Nationals. First pitch is set for 6:15 CT.

Nationals vs. Cardinals Betting Prediction

• Money Line Prediction: Cardinals (-133)
• Over/Under Prediction: Over 8.5 Runs

• The Cardinals have scored an average of 5.4 runs per game in their last 15 games, compared to the Nationals’ 4.8 runs per game.
• In their last 15 games, the Cardinals have a home record of 5-3, while the Nationals have an away record of 3-7.
• The Cardinals have won 4 out of their last 5 home games against the Nationals.
• The Cardinals have a higher league rank (8th) compared to the Nationals (13th), indicating better overall performance this season.
• The Cardinals have scored 6 or more runs in 6 of their last 15 games, showcasing their offensive capability.

Nationals vs Cardinals

Washington rallied for four runs in the 9th inning in the most recent game of this Nationals vs. Cardinals series. The Nationals scored two runs in the 1st inning but didn’t score another run until putting up four in the top of the 9th, picking up a 10-8 win. Heading into the game, the Nationals were at +142 on the money line.

MacKenzie Gore got the start for the Nationals, going just five innings while giving up six runs and striking out three. Jacob Barnes got the win out of the bullpen, and Ryan Fernandez took the loss for the Cardinals. Sonny Gray only went five innings for the Cardinals, giving up five runs on seven hits.

Juan Yepez and Luis Garcia each had two RBIs for the Nationals, while Jacob Young scored three times and drove in three runs while going 2/5. Nolan Arenado had a three RBI game for the Cardinals, going 1/4.

Washington is 4th in the NL East, 16.5 games behind the Phillies, with an overall record of 48-56. They are 6-4 in their last ten games and have an overall series record of 13-18-2. The Nationals are 25-29 on the road and 23-27 at home.

On the run line, the Nationals have a 49-36 record as underdogs and 9-10 as favorites. Their overall run line record is 58-46, with an average run differential of -0.4 runs per game. The O/U record in games with an 8.5 run total is 15-16 for Washington this season.

Jake Irvin Gets The Start For The Nationals

Jake Irvin is looking to bounce back from his last outing, where he gave up two earned runs in seven innings of work. In that outing, he didn’t give up a homer. Before that outing, he had given up a homer in three straight starts. Irvin’s record for the season is 7-8, and his ERA is 3.44. Looking at his home/road splits, he is 5-3 with a 3.82 ERA on the road compared to 2-5 with a 3.77 ERA at home. Opponents are batting .225 off the right-hander this season. Per nine innings, he has 7.76 strikeouts and just 2.12 walks.

Nationals Offense Breakdown

Washington’s offense comes into the game averaging 4.2 runs per game, which is 20th in the league. They have been one of the worst home run hitting teams in the league, and their team OPS of .675 is 26th in the league. However, they do have a team batting average of .237, which is 14th in the MLB. Over his last eight games, Juan Yepez has gone 12/30 (.400) with two homers and eight RBIs.

CJ Abrams and Luis Garcia Jr. have been the Nationals’ top power hitters this season, with 15 and 11 homers, respectively. Abrams is also leading the team with 50 RBIs, while Garcia Jr. is 2nd on the team with 48 RBIs. Abrams is batting .260 this season, while Garcia Jr. comes into the game with a batting average of .278.

St. Louis has a 52-51 record against the run line this season, with a 19-34 mark as the favorite and 33-17 as the underdog. Their average run total in games this year is 8.6, and their over/under record is 48-52. The over has hit in 22 of 35 games with an 8.5 run total.

In the NL Central, the Cardinals are six games behind the Brewers, and they have a 53-50 overall record. St. Louis is 26-23 at home and has lost two straight games. Their series record is 17-13-3, and they are 5-5 in their last 10 games.

Kyle Gibson Gets The Start For The Cardinals

Right-hander Kyle Gibson gets the start for the Cardinals today as he faces the Nationals at home. He has made 19 starts this season and has a record of 7-3 with a 3.99 ERA. So far, Gibson has turned in nine quality starts and is averaging 8.47 strikeouts per nine innings. In his last outing, Gibson finished with a no-decision, going 6 2/3 innings and giving up one earned run on six hits. Before that, he had won two straight starts. Gibson has been much better on the road, coming in with a 5.17 ERA at home compared to 3.37 on the road.

Cardinals Offense Breakdown

St. Louis comes into today’s game averaging 4.1 runs per game, which is 22nd in the league. They have been slightly better at home, averaging 4.3 runs per game. As a team, the Cardinals are batting .245, which is 10th in the league, and they have the 17th ranked home run total in the MLB. So far, they have been a pretty average team in terms of strikeouts and walks.

Over his last nine games, Nolan Arenado has gone 9/33 (.273) with three homers and seven RBIs. This has pushed his season average up to .207. Arenado also comes into the game on a three-game hitting streak. Alec Burleson has been the Cardinals top power threat this season, with 18 homers (2nd on the team) and a team-leading 60 RBIs. His batting average of .288 is also the best on the team.

Nationals vs Cardinals Prediction

Our prediction for today’s Nationals vs. Cardinals matchup is to take the Cardinals on the money line at -133. We have the Cardinals winning this one by a final score of 5-4, giving us some wiggle room with the over/under line sitting at 8.5 runs.

Looking at the starting pitchers, our projections have Jake Irvin going 8th in terms of innings pitched, and Kyle Gibson finishing 6th. As for their strikeout numbers, we have Irvin finishing with five and Gibson with five as well.

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All odds are courtesy of Action247 Sportsbook. Good luck!!

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* All odds are provided by Action247 Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.**All views expressed are my own. My picks are my own and are not a guarantee, bet at your own risk.Action247 does not warrant the accuracy of completeness of the information, text, graphics, links or other items contained within these post.