In the first of a three-game series between the Washington Nationals (43-36) and the San Francisco Giants (43-36) at Nationals Park, Gio Gonzalez (5-4, 4.41 ERA) and Jake Peavy (0-2, 9.39 ERA) get the ball. The game gets underway at 6:05 p.m. ET on Friday, Jul. 3 and will air on ESPN, CSN-BAY and MASN.
Gonzalez has a 2.59 ERA and a 2-2 record in his career against the Giants, but faces a strong San Francisco offense that’s hitting .271 on the year. Bryce Harper (.339, 54 Rs, 24 HRs, 58 RBIs, 3 SBs) went 1 for 4 yesterday with one run. In his pitching opportunities against the Nationals, Peavy is 3-3 with a 2.73 ERA. He gets a solid Washington offense that’s batting .258. Buster Posey (.304, 42 Rs, 13 HRs, 56 RBIs, 1 SB) went 1 for 3 yesterday with one run, one home run, and two RBIs.
Washington is a -150 favorite in this game and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at seven runs. When playing as the favorite, the Nationals have a 35-24 record and overall money line at +33. They are 8-2 as the favorite over their last 10 games. Washington’s pitching staff has put it all together in the past 10 games. Its average runs allowed per game dropped to 2.1 during that span, compared to its 4.0 season average. The Nationals don’t give up many walks to opposing batters, leading the NL with only 2.2 walks allowed per game.
On the other side, the Giants have a record of 22-15 when they are the underdog and are +one overall with the money line. Over the past 10 matchups, they are 4-6 SU and have a poor 0-3 record when they were an underdog to win. During the last 10 games, they averaged 5.4 runs per game, above their 4.3 season average. The top hitting team in the NL are the Giants, who average 9.3 hits per game. The Giants average just 7.2 strikeouts per road game, one of the lowest marks in the NL. The last 10 games have really brought the worst out of the San Francisco pitchers. They allowed 5.3 runs per game during that span, which is higher than their season average of 4.0.
The Nationals will take on a right-hander (Peavy) in this game and have a 32-31 record against right-handed starting pitchers this season. Taking the hill against the Giants will be the left-hander Gonzalez. Southpaw starters haven’t been a big issue for them as they sport an 11-6 record.
Predictions: SU Winner – WSH, O/U – Over
Notes
San Francisco recorded at least two errors for the fifth time this season.
The Nationals are 5-1 in games that go into extra innings. Meanwhile, the Giants are 3-2 in such matchups.
The Giants managed to give up five walks in their last game. They’ll have to pick it up against the Nationals who are heading in with a 12-6 record against opponents who give up that many walks or more.
When they outhit their opponents, the Giants are 37-7. The Nationals have a 33-2 record when outhitting opponents.
Washington and San Francisco both rank in the top 10 of the league in runs. Washington sits at eighth with 344 runs this season and San Francisco ranks 10th with 341.
Ranking 15th, San Francisco is in the top half of the league in walks, notching 227 this season. Washington ranks in the top 10 at ninth with 244.
The Nationals are 30-15 when they hit at least one home run. The Giants perform similarly when they hit one or more homers with a 29-15 record.
