by Chuck Sommers
Wednesday, May 18, 2022
Time: 6:40 p.m. ET
Venue: loanDepot park, Miami, FL
Where to watch: MASN 2, Bally Sports Florida
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Odds not available at time of publishing. Check back later.
BetMGM: Odds not available at time of publishing. Check back later.
Caesars: Odds not available at time of publishing. Check back later.
Season record
Nationals: 12-26
Marlins: 17-19
We're fresh into this baseball season and of course it's AAA Sports jumping out to an 34-19-0 run in Major League Baseball over the course of the last 30 days. An incredible start to the season. We've seen some exciting games and some awesome moments, but what will happen as we keep rolling through the month of May? Catch AAA's plays available right now at the Shop Picks page, where you can find all of the Best Bets from our champion sports handicappers.
Nationals - Marlins preview and analysis
Nationals analysis
Once again, the Washington Nationals' bats went quiet at a horribly timed game, and it's clear that maybe these Nats aren't going to be good this season. Just seven hits and the lone run came in the top of the eighth inning when Josh Bell drove in the Washington baseball team's lone run in the game.
Joan Adon, the Nationals' No. 8 prospect in the pipeline, allowed just one run in 4.2 innings and struck out two, but the rookie fell to 1-7 on the season.
“He was aggressive with the fastball,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said of Adon. “He was getting after our guys, and it seems like he's got really good stuff. … He was throwing a lot of fastballs -- he was on the attack. He used his breaking ball enough to make you think about it, but I thought he was aggressive today. … He was on the hunt today with the fastball, and he pitched really well.”
The Nationals have nothing serviceable on the mound and that abysmal pitching rotation has made it harder for the likes of Juan Soto and Josh Bell to actually dominate worlds. Sure, Bell is a .300-plus hitter, but when you don't have Stephen Strasburg around, it's just a disappointing time for all involved that no one wants to be a part of.
Marlins analysis
The Miami Marlins keep finding ways to win games and I'm not sure that ballpark has ever seen this such success in a long time. A combination of dominant pitching and timely hitting at the plate can do wonders for a group.
And now after Jesus Sanchez went yard in the win on Tuesday, the Marlins can keep the good vibes rolling against their division rivals with a win on Wednesday, sending their top pitcher Pablo Lopez to the mound. Mattingly continues to have these guys hitting the ball so well and it's been a constant grind to get near .500. And there's still plenty of baseball left to go.
“I think that's part of it, but you rely on your staff, too,” said Mattingly. “The guys in the cage, [bench coach James Rowson], we talk about those types of things. [Pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre Jr.] possibly if it's on the pitching side. And then you rely on some experience of seeing guys go through things. You see the faces, and you see the looks, and the body language, and sometimes you want to let them fight through it. And then other times it's like, ‘OK, let's give this guy a couple of days.’”
The emergence of Jazz Chisholm and the timely power hitting of Sanchez can get the Marlins back on track after what's been an abysmal May. Wins like this to close out the month, especially when there's no clear-cut second-place team to challenge the New York Mets in the National League East, this is a great time for the Marlins to do something dangerous.
Give it time for those bats to wake up and you'll see the full potential of this team in Mattingly's team.
Prediction
Lopez might be the hottest pitcher in the National League right now and I for one am not going to bet against a hot arm like that. His ERA is heading toward below 1.00. How, if you have someone on the Marlins doing that, can you even beat him? Right now, I don't believe you can. Marlins win 7-0
Betting trends
Nationals are 7-10 on the road this season.
Nationals are 5-15 this season as an underdog with a line between +125 and +175.
Marlins are 9-2 against division opponents this season.
Projected lineup
Nationals:
Cesar Hernandez (S) 2B
Juan Soto (L) RF
Josh Bell (S) 1B
Nelson Cruz (R) DH
Yadiel Hernandez (L) LF
Maikel Franco (R) 3B
Lane Thomas (R) CF
Riley Adams (R) C
Alcides Escobar (R) SS
SP - Josiah Gray
Marlins:
Jesus Sanchez (L) CF
Jesus Aguilar (R) 1B
Jorge Soler (R) LF
Avisail Garcia (R) DH
Brian Anderson (R) 3B
Miguel Rojas (R) SS
Bryan De La Cruz (R) RF
Erik Gonzalez (R) 2B
Payton Henry (R) C
SP - Pablo Lopez
Statistical leaders
Nationals:
Batting average: Josh Bell -- .328
Hits: Josh Bell -- 43
Home runs: Juan Soto -- 8
RBI: Josh Bell -- 22
Wins: Josiah Gray -- 4
Saves: Tanner Rainey -- 3
ERA: Josiah Gray -- 4.34
Marlins:
Batting average: Jazz Chisholm -- .292
Hits: Jesus Aguilar -- 35
Home runs: Jorge Soler -- 7
RBI: Jazz Chisholm -- 25
Wins: Pablo Lopez -- 4
Saves: Anthony Bender -- 6
ERA: Pablo Lopez -- 1.05
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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.
