The New York Yankees and Washington Nationals play the rubber match of their three-game series in D.C. on Wednesday at Nationals Park. First pitch is scheduled for 6:45 p.m. ET on Amazon Prime Video and MASN.
After the Yankees rolled to a win in the series opener, the Nationals rebounded as heavy underdogs to top the Bronx Bombers on Tuesday, 4-2.
New York remains one game ahead of the Baltimore Orioles for the top spot in the AL East entering Wednesday after the Orioles beat the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday. The Yankees continue a 15-game stretch of facing teams likely not heading to the playoffs.
Yankees vs Nationals Prediction
- Yankees vs Nationals pick: Yankees -1.5 (-115; FanDuel)
Yankees vs Nationals Odds
| New York Yankees Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Moneyline | Over/Under | Run Line |
-210 | 9 -115o / -105u | -1.5 -135 |
| Washington Nationals Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Moneyline | Over/Under | Run Line |
+175 | 9 -115o / -105u | +1.5 +115 |
- Yankees vs Nationals Moneyline: Yankees -210 | Nationals +175
- Yankees vs Nationals Total: Over/Under 9 runs scored
- Yankees vs Nationals Run Line: Yankees -1.5 (-135) | Nationals +1.5 (+115)
Yankees at Nationals Probable Pitchers
| LHP Carlos Rodon (NYY) | Stat | LHP MacKenzie Gore (WAS) |
|---|---|---|
| 14-8 | W-L | 7-11 |
| 1.5 | fWAR (FanGraphs) | 2.4 |
| 4.16/4.17 | ERA /xERA | 4.51/4.56 |
| 4.36/4.25 | FIP / xFIP | 3.64/4.03 |
| 1.23 | WHIP | 1.56 |
| 18.1% | K-BB% | 14.5% |
| 32.0% | GB% | 36.4% |
| 123 | Stuff+ | 112 |
| 97 | Location+ | 98 |
Kevin Rogers’s Yankees vs Nationals Preview
Yankees Betting Preview: Can Yankees Win AL East?
The Yankees will be headed to the postseason; it's just a matter of whether they will earn the AL East crown or go as a wild-card squad.
There are not many excuses for losing to Patrick Corbin as a nearly -250 favorite, but that was the case on Tuesday night as Gerrit Cole allowed a pair of home runs, and New York fell into a 4-0 hole before losing 4-2.
The Yankees committed four errors, while Corbin was Cy Young material last night by tossing six scoreless innings and allowing two hits.
Aaron Boone's team turns the page to Wednesday as the Yanks seek their fifth series victory in the last six tries.
As mentioned above, the Yankees are in a stretch where they need to take care of business to maintain first place in the AL East as they face the Cardinals, Rangers, and Cubs in the next three series.
Carlos Rodon heads to the mound for the Bombers tonight, looking to solve his road woes. The left-hander has been terrific in the Bronx by compiling an 8-2 mark with a 3.08 ERA and 1.03 WHIP.
However, Rodon's numbers are much worse when he leaves the Big Apple. This season, he posted a 6-6 record, a bloated 5.07 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP on the road.
His last time out, he rolled past the Rockies in a 3-0 home shutout by holding Colorado to four hits in six innings of work. In three of his past four road outings, Rodon has not lasted past the fourth inning, capped off by a 4-0 defeat at Detroit on August 17 as a hefty -230 favorite.
Rodon has also stayed under his strikeout prop in four of his past five starts, with tonight's K prop set at 6.5 and heavily juiced to the Under.
Nationals Betting Preview: Can Nats Keep Backing MacKenzie Gore?
The Nationals are two games behind their pace through 133 games from a season ago, as Washington sits at 60-73 after last night's win.
Washington owns 20 victories this season as an underdog of +150 or higher, as the Nats are in that range again tonight, seeking a fourth consecutive victory in a series finale.
MacKenzie Gore overcame a leadoff home run from Atlanta's Michael Harris II last Friday night to toss six strong innings, but the Braves rallied for a walk-off win in extra innings, 3-2. Gore is winless in three straight outings but turned the corner against the Braves following a three-start stretch in which he yielded five runs apiece.
The Nationals possess a 5-2 mark in Gore's seven home starts in the underdog role despite a 4.35 ERA and 1.70 WHIP when pitching at Nationals Park.
From a first-five innings perspective, Washington has cashed the under in six straight games, while the Nats have put together an incredible 15-3 first five-innings run to the Under in the last 18 series finales.
Washington is amidst a 1-7 slump in its past eight games against left-handed starting pitchers. The only win in this stretch came against Trevor Rogers of Baltimore, who is 2-11 this season.
Yankees-Nationals Prediction, Betting Analysis: Run Line Trend
The Nationals have pulled off plenty of upsets this season, but Gore hasn't been able to post consecutive strong outings consistently.
New York will be a public play, but too many things point toward the Yankees' grabbing a convincing win tonight.
Pick: Yankees -1.5 (-115, FanDuel) | Play to -1.5 (-120)
Moneyline
Rodon has struggled on the road this season but faces a Washington team with issues against left-handed pitching. After getting to Cole early on Tuesday, it will be hard to see a duplicate effort against Rodon, as the Yankees have lost consecutive road games once since July.
Run Line (Spread)
Since the start of August, 11 of Washington's 13 losses have come by two runs or more. In this same stretch, the Yankees are 11-2 on the run line in their wins, and New York is worth a look in that respect at -1.5 to cut down on the juice from taking them on the money line.
Over/Under
Washington is riding a five-game under streak and has hit the under in nine of the past 11 games overall. The Yankees have finished under the total in seven of the last 11 games, including five straight games away from the Bronx.
