Nats target second straight win over Cubs
Now that Max Scherzer’s out of the way, the Cubs want to resume their usual business of throttling the opposition.
Chicago aims to rebound from Monday’s 4-1 defeat to Washington tonight, with a 7:05 p.m. ET first pitch on the East Coast. Oddsmakers at online sports book Bovada.lv have few qualms about going right back to the majors’ top team, listing Joe Maddon’s bunch as a 1.5-run favorite. The host Nationals, meanwhile, enter as +128 underdogs.
Scherzer absolutely stymied the Cubbies (43-19) roughly 16 hours ago, taking a perfect game into the sixth. The visitors hope to experience considerably more success vs. the up-and-down Gio Gonzalez (3-5, 3.93 ERA). Dusty Baker’s lefty is 0-4 with an 8.34 ERA since May 23. He also absorbed an 8-5 loss to the North Siders five-plus weeks ago.
John Lackey (7-2, 2.63), on the other hand, can seemingly do no wrong in 2016. Most recently, the 37-year-old blanked Philadelphia for seven frames. Situated comfortably behind Jake Arrieta and Jon Lester, Lackey just continues to feast on middle-of-the-rotation options elsewhere.
MLB Quick Links: Free Matchup Reports | Injuries | Odds Comparison | Scoreboard | Betting Trends
Gonzalez shouldn’t be an exception, but the Nats (40-24) are playing extremely well at the moment. If Daniel Murphy and Bryce Harper manage to put a little pressure on Lackey in the early innings, perhaps Washington seizes control of the series. Even though conspiring against Chicago’s veteran hurler could raise a few eyebrows, we expect a relatively mortal showing this evening.
TUESDAY MLB FREE PICK: NATIONALS +1.5
Want More Picks, Predictions & Odds From The Spread.com? Follow on Twitter and Facebook or Subscribe to Our News Feeds!