Wednesday, March 8, 2017

Roger Dean Stadium

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Probable Pitchers: Stephen Strasburg vs. Michael Wacha

The Washington Nationals visit Roger Dean Stadium on Wednesday to play the St. Louis Cardinals. The probable starters are Stephen Strasburg for the Nationals and Michael Wacha for the Cardinals.

The Nationals are coming off a 95-67 record in 2016, including 45-36 on the road. Starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg had a 15-4 record with an earned run average of 3.60 and a WHIP of 1.10. He had 183 strikeouts over his 147.2 innings pitched and he gave up 119 hits last season. He allowed 7.3 hits per 9 innings and he had a FIP of 2.92. The bullpen last year had an earned run average of 3.37 and they gave up 429 base hits on the year. Teams hit .230 against the bullpen while being struck out 489 times and walking 164 times last season. As a team, Washington allowed 7.84 hits per nine innings while striking out 9.1 batters per nine. They were 2nd in the league in team earned run average at 3.51. The Nationals pitchers collectively gave up 1,272 base hits and 570 earned runs. They allowed 155 home runs last season and they allowed 1.1 homers per nine innings as a staff. Washington as a pitching staff walked 468 batters and struck out 1,476. They walked 2.9 men per 9 innings while striking out 9.1 per 9. They had a team WHIP of 1.19 and their FIP as a unit was 3.58.

As a team Washington batted .256, good for 17th in the league while putting together a .259 average away from home. The Nationals held a .426 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .326 which was good for 10th in baseball. They ranked 20th in baseball with 8.66 hits per game. Daniel Murphy is coming off a 2016 in which he hit .347 with an on-base percentage of .390. He had 184 hits last season along with 88 runs scored and 104 runs batted in. He struck out 57 times and walked 35 times. Bryce Harper hit .243 last year and he had an on-base percentage of .373. He totaled 123 hits while scoring 84 runs and he drove in 86. He walked 108 times and struck out on 117 occasions. The Nationals had 1,403 hits, including 268 doubles and 203 home runs. They stole 121 bases and were thrown out stealing 39 times. Washington walked 536 times last season and they struck out 1,252 times as a unit. They left 1,105 men on base and had a team OPS of .751. They scored 4.71 runs per contest and scored a total of 763 runs last year.

St. Louis had a 38-43 home record and a 86-76 overall mark in 2016. With an earned run average of 5.09, Michael Wacha had a 7-7 record and a 1.48 WHIP last season. He had 114 strikeouts over the 138 innings he pitched during which he gave up 159 hits. He allowed 10.4 hits per nine innings and his FIP stood at 3.91. Last season the bullpen had an earned run average of 3.62 and they gave up 443 base hits on the year. Teams hit .227 against the Cardinals bullpen while being struck out 506 times and walking 190 times last season. As a team, St. Louis allowed 8.9 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.02 batters per nine. They were 12th in the league in team earned run average at 4.08. The Cardinals pitchers as a team surrendered 1,432 base knocks and 656 earned runs last season. They gave up 159 home runs last year and they gave up 1.1 home runs per nine innings as a staff. St. Louis as a staff walked 475 hitters and struck out 1,290. They gave up a walk 3 times per 9 innings while they struck out 8 per 9. Their team WHIP was 1.32 while their FIP as a staff was 3.88.

As a team, they batted .255, good for 18th in the league while putting together a .253 average at home. The Cardinals held a .442 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .325 which was good for 11th in baseball. They ranked 13th in baseball with 8.73 hits per contest. Matt Carpenter comes into this matchup after batting .271 with an OBP of .380. He had 128 hits last year along with 81 runs scored and 68 RBI. He struck out 108 times and walked on 81 occasions. Stephen Piscotty hit .273 in 2016 and he had an OBP of .343. He collected 159 hits while scoring 86 runs and driving in 85. He earned a walk 51 times and punched out 133 times. The Cardinals as a unit had 1,416 base hits, including 300 doubles and 225 homers. They had 35 stolen bases and were thrown out 26 times. St. Louis as a team walked 526 times last year and they struck out 1,318 times. They had 1,113 men left on base and had an OPS of .768. They scored 4.81 runs per game and totaled 779 runs last season.

Washington Nationals Betting Trends

The Washington Nationals were 76-78-8 against the over/under last season

The Washington Nationals were 83-79-0 against the run line last season

St. Louis Cardinals Betting Trends

The St. Louis Cardinals were 83-73-6 against the over/under last season

The St. Louis Cardinals were 75-87-0 against the run line last season

Injuries to Watch

Washington Nationals

No key injuries to report

St. Louis Cardinals

No key injuries to report

Guy's Pick: Take the Nationals

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