CLICK HERE TO GRAB OUR BEST Expert MLB Picks for 2010 MLB Betting! \u2014\u2013><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Washington Nationals @ Philadelphia Phillies \u2013 Friday August 20, 7:05 p.m.<\/strong> Baseball Gambling Lines:<\/strong><\/p>\n Line:<\/strong> Washington +285, Philadelphia -360 The Washington Nationals travel north on I 95 to Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia for a three game weekend series with the Phillies. Game 1 is tonight starting at 7:05 p.m.<\/p>\n Washington has been out of contention for the majority of the season and appears to be riding out the string, going 3-7 in its last 10 games. The Nationals are 52-69 overall and are 21-42 straight up on the road. As an underdog they are 33-54 against the spread and are 53-62-5 against the \u2018over\/under` line. The total has gone \u2018over` in their last five games with Philadelphia.<\/p>\n Jason Marquis will get the start tonight for Washington. In five previous starts this season he is 0-5 with an ERA of 14.33. In his last start he only lasted four innings, giving up seven hits and five earned runs in a loss to Arizona. In his career against the Phillies he is 5-5 with a 5.21 ERA. The Nationals are ranked 10th in the NL in hitting with a team batting average of .255 They are ranked 14th in runs scored with 487. Adam Dunn and Ryan Zimmerman are the Nats two most productive players in their lineup. Dunn leads the team with 78 RBI and 31 HR\u2019s and Zimmerman leads in hits with 123.<\/p>\n Philadelphia remains hot; winning seven out of its last 10 games, but still trails Atlanta in the NL East by 2 \u00bd games. The Phillies are currently 68-52 overall and 40-21 SU at home. As the favorite they are 50-36 against the spread and are 58-59-2 against the \u2018over\/under\u2019 line.<\/p>\n It is Philadelphia\u2019s ace Roy Halladay\u2019s turn in the rotation tonight. In 25 previous starts this season, he is 15-8 with a 2.24 ERA. In his last outing he pitched eight innings of scoreless baseball, giving up just four hits in a win over the Mets. Halladay has now won his last five starts. Lifetime against the Nationals he is 6-1 with an ERA of 2.43.<\/p>\n Despite having some of their biggest hitters out of the lineup over the past couple of weeks, the Phillies still has a team batting average of .260; fifth best in the NL and 571 runs scored; second best in the league. Ryan Howard, who hopes to return to the lineup next week, still leads the team with 81 RBI and 23 HR\u2019s.<\/p>\n Washington has actually won four out of its last 10 games against the Philadelphia but only one out of the last nine on the road. With Halladay on the mound at Citizens Bank Park, this is as close as you can come to a guaranteed victory against a team that is playing with little or no motivation, especially on the road.<\/p>\n Gambling Trends:<\/strong><\/p>\n Washington is 3-8 SU in its last 11 games
\nWashington: 52-69 SU
\nPhiladelphia: 68-52 SU<\/p>\n
\nTotal<\/strong>: Over\/Under 8<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/media.partners.betus.com\/BANNERS\/baseball\/sportsbook_baseball_250x250_mybanner.gif\")
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\nWashington is 5-17 SU in its last 22 games when playing Philadelphia
\nWashington is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games on the road
\nThe total has gone OVER in 5 of Philadelphia’s last 5 games when playing Washington
\nPhiladelphia is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games when playing at home against Washington
\nPhiladelphia is 17-3 SU in its last 20 games at home
\nPhiladelphia is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
\nThe total has gone OVER in 5 of Washington’s last 5 games when playing Philadelphia<\/p>\n