In the first of a three-game series between the Philadelphia Phillies (1-2) and the Washington Nationals (1-2) at Citizens Bank Park, Jerome Williams (6-7, 4.77 ERA) and Gio Gonzalez (10-10, 3.57 ERA) get the ball. The game gets underway at 7:05 p.m. ET on Friday, Apr. 10 and will air on MASN2 and CSN-PHI.
Williams takes the hill after pitching 115.0 innings last year, wrapping up the season with a 6-7 record, 4.77 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, and 82 strikeouts. In his career against the Phillies, Gonzalez is 6-4 with a 3.05 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, and 72 strikeouts. Michael Taylor (.308 ) has been hitting the ball well to start the season, going 2 for 5 yesterday with two RBIs.
Philadelphia, a +149 underdog, will look to capitalize at home against Washington. The teams combine to set the Over/Under (O/U) at seven runs. The Phillies don’t give up many hits to opposing batters, ranking fifth in the NL with only 6.0 hits allowed per game.
Switching to the opposing bench, the Nationals come into this game with a win percentage of .333 when playing as the favorite (1-2) and an overall money line of -174. They have the lowest ERA in the NL at 0.50. They also allow just 5.5 hits per game, good for fourth in the NL.
Predictions: SU Winner – WSH, O/U – Over
Notes
When leading after 7 innings, Philadelphia is 1-0, while Washington is 0-2.
When outhit, the Phillies and the Nationals both have records of 0-2.
Ranking 22nd in home runs, Philadelphia has hit one this season. Washington ranks 16th with two home runs.
Philadelphia and Washington both rank in the top half of the league in hits. Philadelphia sits at 14th with 4.50 hits per game and Washington ranks 12th with 5.00.
Philadelphia and Washington both rank near the bottom of the league for their on-base plus slugging percentage. Philadelphia sits at 27th with an OPS of .397 and Washington ranks 23rd with an OPS of .535.
