by Chuck Sommers
Friday, May 13, 2022
Time: 7:05 p.m. ET
Venue: Nationals Park, Washington, DC
Where to watch: AT&T SportsNet-Southwest, MASN
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
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Caesars: Check back later
Season record
Astros: 21-11
Nationals: 11-22
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Astros - Nationals preview and analysis
The Houston Astros have won 10 in a row. Yes, you read that right. Carlos Correa is quivering in his boots missing for what could’ve been. What a time to be alive. But that 10th straight win came against the Minnesota Twins, but Correa did not get the chance to rebuke his former group.
But now the Astros have a pretty good chance to push that streak to 11 when they face the Washington Nationals, who had the most horrendous base running this side of the Mississippi. The three-game series begins on Friday.
The Astros took care of a doubleheader against the Twins, winning 11-3 in the first game, followed by 5-0 in the second. Yordan Alvarez crushed two homers and the Astros somehow have looked more dangerous than they have in years past.
“That was outstanding. It’s hard to win an almost doubleheader -- a game and two-thirds -- especially on the road, in their house,” manager Dusty Baker said. “Our guys are dragging a little bit, but we got pretty good pitching and got some very timely hitting, especially from Yordan. We hope he’s getting hot like only he can. It feels good to start the road trip 3-0.”
The biggest contributing factor in all of this is the complete play in the lineup, as well as the starting rotation from their ace. Justin Verlander is already a strong contender for Cy Young with his dominant start. He’s taken a no-hitter deep twice this season and looks like he’s continuing to turn back the clock.
Houston has five shutouts during their 10-game winning streak. It’s just insane.
“Usually, when you have a winning streak, you’re either hitting the ball a ton or pitching a ton, or both usually,” Baker said. “I can’t take anything away from our pitching. They’re pitching great. … Everybody knows we’ve got good pitching, and we’ve really been playing good baseball.”
And when you’re facing a team that has been about as bad as one could possibly be, like the Nationals, you have as easy a chance to keep the winning streak going. Washington is coming off a 4-1 loss to the New York Mets, but that’s besides the point.
Josh Bell and Juan Soto – the two you don’t want involved in a base-running mishap – were involved in the greatest baserunning mishap in arguably the history of baseball. It was bad, very bad. I don’t know if I would have the strength to describe what exactly happened, so please feel free to YouTube it and get back to me on it.
“It wasn’t good,” manager Dave Martinez said following the 4-1 loss. “You’ve got to see the ball. You’ve got to run with your head up.”
“I think at one point, Juan thought he had an obstruction call because their pitcher had the whole base blocked,” Martinez said. “At that particular moment when that happens, I think you have to either run him over or try to go around him. He’s got the right to catch the ball.”
It’s been that bad with the Nationals. But seriously, go Google what in the world happened. You’ll never pick the Nationals at the books ever again.
“Honestly, from my vantage point, I was thinking I was going to score because I didn’t think Marte was going to be right there,” Bell said. “I thought there were going to be outfielders chasing that ball. So I was looking at Lindor, and I thought he was trying to deke me with holding his glove up.”
Sure, buddy.
Prediction
God help the Nationals. It could be a long weekend. Astros win 8-2
Betting trends
Astros are 10-7 on the road this season.
Astros are 6-3 this season on the road when line is between +125 and -125.
Nationals are 39-68 the past three seasons when the line is between +125 and -125.
Projected lineup
Astros:
Jose Altuve (R) 2B
Michael Brantley (L) DH
Alex Bregman (R) 3B
Yordan Alvarez (L) LF
Yuli Gurriel (R) 1B
Kyle Tucker (L) RF
Jeremy Pena (R) SS
Jose Siri (R) CF
Martin Maldonado (R) C
SP - Framber Valdez
Jose Altuve (R) 2B
Michael Brantley (L) DH
Alex Bregman (R) 3B
Yordan Alvarez (L) LF
Yuli Gurriel (R) 1B
Kyle Tucker (L) RF
Jeremy Pena (R) SS
Jose Siri (R) CF
Martin Maldonado (R) C
SP - Framber Valdez
Nationals:
Cesar Hernandez (S) 2B
Juan Soto (L) RF
Josh Bell (S) 1B
Nelson Cruz (R) DH
Yadiel Hernandez (L) LF
Keibert Ruiz (S) C
Maikel Franco (R) 3B
Dee Strange-Gordon (L) SS
Lane Thomas (R) CF
SP - Josiah Gray
Cesar Hernandez (S) 2B
Juan Soto (L) RF
Josh Bell (S) 1B
Nelson Cruz (R) DH
Yadiel Hernandez (L) LF
Keibert Ruiz (S) C
Maikel Franco (R) 3B
Dee Strange-Gordon (L) SS
Lane Thomas (R) CF
SP - Josiah Gray
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Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
