Philadelphia Phillies (23-24) vs Washington Nationals (24-23)
The Philadelphia Phillies have a chance to leapfrog the Washington Nationals into second place over the weekend – not bad considering there is maybe one or two players in the lineup and a couple of pitchers that are living up to or exceeding expectations so far.
Friday May 24
Nationals Park – Washington, D.C.
7:05PM
Probable Starters:
PHI: Kyle Kendrick
WAS: Jordan Zimmerman
Moneyline: Washington -167, Philadelphia +157
O/U: 7
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Philadelphia
Not a single regular is hitting even .290 and the Phils are -31 in run differential yet they are still in the thick of things. If they can figure out a way to get just one of their veteran bats on some sort of a roll they just might be able to considered a real contender…especially if that bat is slugger Ryan Howard.
Starter Kyle Kendrick is one of those pleasant surprises challenging Cliff Lee in most of the key pitching performance metrics. The key has been reducing his walks and homers so the real question is whether it is a sustainable change or just the result of a small sample size.
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Kendrick has not fared well in the past against the Nationals with a 4-5 record and not so nice E.R.A.
If he really has improved this might be a game in which he demonstrates it…and there would be a good payoff too at +157.
Washington
Washington is a huge disappointment right now. Not only are they barely above .500 but they have a significantly negative run differential. They are just 4-6 in their last 10 heading into the weekend losing more ground to the Braves in the National League East. [dfads params=’groups=10&limit=1&return_javascript=0′]
Surprisingly this is their first series against Philadelphia this season. It is critical that they at least maintain their lead over the Phils as I think this team might be lacking for confidence right now and that might plunge them even deeper.
Righty Jordan Zimmerman has had flashes before but on a staff featuring Stephen Strasburg and Gio Gonzalez he was usually considered the third best option, and maybe even 4th with the acquisition of Dan Haren in the offseason.
Right now he is the best thing the Nats have going with a 7-2 record and the third best E.R.A and WHIP in the National League.
He doesn’t miss as many bats as those big arms but he has been so consistent this year.
I like Washington as a pretty sure bet Wednesday night but there is not a ton of value there, especially when you consider that Kendrick has been ace like for the Phils this season. This game has a lot of importance for both teams and there should be a good atmosphere.
Maybe that will wake up the home team and start them on a good roll.
O/U Pick: Under Score
Prediction: Washington 4 – Philadelphia 1
