Same old Song for Washington – Nationals at Phillies

MLB Baseball Betting Odds
Washington Nationals (4-13) at Philadelphia Phillies (9-8)
Monday, April 27

BetOnline MLB betting odds: Phillies -170, Nationals +150, Total 10.5

Right-handers take the mound on Monday, as Shairon Martis of the Nationals (2-0, 4.11 ERA) takes on Joe Blanton of the Phillies (0-2, 7.31 ERA).

Here are some of the MLB Baseball betting trends as they relate to this matchup:
(Numbers go back to last season)

• WASH has lost 17 of its last 21 games
• WASH has played five of its last six games UNDER the total
• WASH has lost 16 of its last 17 road games
• PHIL has won five of its last seven games
• PHIL has played 11 of its last 15 games OVER the total
• PHIL has lost four of its last six home games

In the HEAD-TO-HEAD sports betting trends:

• PHIL has won four of the last five meetings
• Four of the last six meetings have gone OVER the total
• PHIL has won four of the last five meetings as the home team

On Sunday, the Nationals won their first road game in the last 17 when they beat the Mets behind Jesus Flores’ three-run homer. Jordan Zimmerman gave Washington a pretty good effort on the mound, allowing just one run, and Washington got off the schneid by banging around a beleaguered Oliver Perez, who might find himself demoted as a result.

Philadelphia put on its hitting shoes over the weekend to climb over the .500 mark, sweeping the Florida Marlins with 26 runs in three games. On Sunday it was a 13-2 laugher, with four RBI’s by Shane Victorino and six innings of solid work from Jamie Moyer. The Phillies have drawn within a game and a half of the Marlins in the National League East.

Before this season, Shairon Martis was perhaps best known as the pitcher who tossed a no-hitter in the World Baseball Classic for Curacao against Panama. That was in 2006. Since then, Martis has been trying to climb the ladder to the big leagues. He got a "cup of coffee" last September and this year has demonstrated some signs of being a solid member of Washington’s starting rotation, with two pretty good outings in a row, including a stint of 6-1/3 innings against the Phillies eleven days ago, where he gave up two runs and five hits.

In each of his last two starts, Joe Blanton has surrendered three runs in six innings, but has not gotten much offensive support, with the Phillies scoring three total runs in those games. He was bombed by the Atlanta Braves in his first outing, giving up seven runs in four innings. The University of Kentucky product went 4-0 in 13 starts for the Phillies last season, after a 5-12 stretch with the A’s, for whom he had won 32 games over the previous three seasons. His career record against the Washington franchise is 1-2 with a 5.33 ERA.

The Nats don’t win too many games on the road, as we have explored. Blanton has a 1.81 WHIP ratio, so we’re kind of uneasy about laying this big a price. Martis doesn’t overpower hitters, and his 1.5 WHIP ratio is not enough for us to make the stretch to support him against a hot-hitting team. Our best shot here is to move OVER 10.5 runs, as it is posted in the BetOnline Sportsbook.

JAY’S PLAY:  OVER 10.5 (-120) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)