The Arizona Diamondbacks (45-30) and the Washington Nationals (28-45) play a make-up game Thursday at Nationals Park. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. ET. Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the Diamondbacks vs. Nationals odds and make our expert MLB picks and predictions for the best bets.
Season series: Diamondbacks lead 4-1
This is a make-up game from a contest postponed June 8 due to hazardous air quality conditions in the nation’s capital due to wildfires in Eastern Canada.
The Diamondbacks will gladly return to D.C., as Arizona had won the first 2 games in the series by a combined score of 16-7. Overall, the Snakes have won 4 of 5 games against the Nats this season, and Arizona has scored 6 or more runs in each of the last 4 outings.
The Nationals salvaged the final game of the 3-game set with the visiting St. Louis Cardinals, winning 3-0 on Wednesday afternoon as the Under (9) cashed. The win snapped a 5-game skid, and the Under is now 6-4 across the past 10 games, while going 3-2 in the past 5 contests at home.
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Diamondbacks at Nationals projected starters
LHP Tommy Henry vs. RHP Jake Irvin
Henry (3-1, 4.66 ERA) makes his 11th start and 12th overall appearance. He has a 1.39 WHIP, 3.5 BB/9 and 5.8 K/9 in 56 innings.
- Last start: No-decision, 6 IP, 2 ER, 7 H, 2 BB, 3 K in a 6-3 home win vs. the Cleveland Guardians Saturday
- 2023 road splits: 2-0, 6.75 ERA (20 IP, 15 ER – 6 HR) with a .275 opponent batting average (OBA) in 4 starts
Irvin (1-3, 5.25 ERA) makes his 9th start. He has a 1.61 WHIP, 5.5 BB/9 and 6.8 K/9 in 36 innings.
- Last start: No-decision, 5 IP, 1 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 4 K in a 5-2 home loss vs. the Miami Marlins Saturday
- 2023 home splits: 0-2, 6.20 ERA (11 1/3 IP, 4 ER) with a .286 OBA in 2 starts
Diamondbacks at Nationals odds
Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 12:15 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Diamondbacks -150 (bet $150 to win $100) | Nationals +125 (bet $100 to win $125)
- Run line (RL)/Against the spread (ATS): Diamondbacks -1.5 (+105) | Nationals +1.5 (-125)
- Over/Under (O/U): 9.5 (O: -115 | U: -105)
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Diamondbacks at Nationals picks and predictions
Prediction
Diamondbacks 5, Nationals 4
Moneyline
The DIAMONDBACKS (-150) are a decent play in this make-up contest, although the Nationals (+125) should be able to cobble together a little bit of offense against the southpaw Henry.
Arizona is 5-2 in the past 7 in Game 3 of a series, while going 19-7 in the past 26 against losing teams.
Washington is just 5-16 in the past 21 tries overall, and 1-4 in 5 meetings with Arizona this season. The Nats haven’t handled the twig well against southpaws, either, going 14-48 in the past 62 tries vs. LHP.
Run line/Against the spread
The NATIONALS +1.5 (-125) isn’t terribly expensive if you’re feeling the home side in this matinee affair.
There aren’t a lot of positive trends in Washington’s favor, but it is 5-2 in the past 7 tries when dropping the 1st 2 games in a series, and even though this is a make-up game, that sort of applies here. I still prefer Arizona straight up much better.
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Over/Under
The UNDER 9.5 (-105) is in play here, but not because of a great pitching matchup.
Both of these hurlers can give up runs, so do not expect to see a bunch of donuts on the board. However, like Wednesday’s game in D.C. between the Cards and Nats which had just 3 total runs, the wind will be blowing in from 9-12 mph into the face of the batters from center field. That will aid these shaky pitchers, at least keeping the ball in the yard for the most part.
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For more sports betting picks and tips, check out SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW.
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