Article courtesy OddsShark (@OddsShark)
The Washington Nationals (93-69) proved they did not need Bryce Harper this year in making the postseason as the top Wild Card team in the National League.
Now the Nationals will look to advance to NL Division Series and a matchup with the Los Angeles Dodgers (106-56) when they host the Milwaukee Brewers (89-73) as -186 home favorites (bet $186 to win $100) on the MLB odds at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Washington will meet Milwaukee on Tuesday at Nationals Park and send ace Max Scherzer (11-7, 2.92 ERA) to the mound in search of earning consecutive wins for the first time since July 6. Scherzer has not been at his best over the past month for the Nationals, going just 2-2 with a 5.16 ERA in five September starts.
He is coming off a victory last time out despite giving up four runs and five hits in six innings. All four runs came on two home runs, and he also had one walk and 10 strikeouts on 101 pitches.
Meanwhile, the Brewers are +161 road underdogs (bet $100 to win $161) at online betting sites and have decided to go with Brandon Woodruff (11-3, 3.62 ERA) even though he has not gone more than three innings since July 16. Woodruff suffered an oblique injury in his very next outing on July 21 and did not return to action until September 17.
In a pair of two-inning September starts, he did not allow a hit or run and walked only one batter while striking out seven as Milwaukee won each time at home.
In addition, the Brewers will have another challenge facing the Nationals without their best player Christian Yelich, who led them in every major offensive category. To Milwaukee’s credit, the team went on a 13-2 run in 15 games without Yelich before getting swept in the last three by the Colorado Rockies to close out the regular season.
On a positive note, Washington has struggled versus Milwaukee dating back to 2017, according to the OddsShark MLB Database, going 5-11 in the past 16 meetings. It is worth noting that 10 of those games were played at Miller Park, and the Nationals are 3-3 in the previous six played on their home field. The OVER is 6-2 in the last eight overall.
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