Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Washington Nationals Predictions, Picks and MLB Preview – July 15, 2016

Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Washington Nationals Preview

Where: Nationals Park, Washington, D.C.

When: Friday, July 15, 7:05 PM ET

Line: Pittsburgh Pirates (+180) at Washington Nationals (-210); total: 7.5 – view all MLB lines

TV Broadcast: ROOTPIT, MASN, WUSA 9

Writer’s Pick: Washington

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Pitching Edge – Washington Nationals (-210)

A prime pitching matchup is in the cards later tonight as Stephen Strasburg squares off with Francisco Liriano in the opening game of the much-anticipated Bucs-Nats series. Strasburg was superb in his last outing, allowing just one run on two hits in seven innings of action in Washington’s 3-1 win over the New York Mets. With the victory, Strasburg improved his record to a perfect 12-0 slate this season.

Liriano, on the other hand, will hope to deliver a stronger second-half performance for the Bucs. The Pirates’ Opening Day starter struggled to a 5-8 record and 5.15 ERA over 17 first-half starts. He led the National League in free passes with a whopping 58 walks. Liriano hasn’t thrown more than six innings in his last nine starts.

Batting Edge – Pittsburgh Pirates (+180)

The Pittsburgh Pirates are on a roll right now and they have their offense to thank for that. The Bucs have scored a whopping 67 runs over their last 11 games, with Pittsburgh posting an impressive 9-2 record during that stretch. Powering the Bucs’ resurgence is the red-hot David Freese. He is hitting 12-of-36 over his last 11 games with four homers and seven RBIs. The third baseman enters the second half with a triple slash line of .291/.373/.472.

Washington, on the other hand, will rely on the red-hot Daniel Murphy to carry the scoring cudgels tonight. He leads the majors in batting average (.348) this campaign. Murphy also leads the Nats in hits (117) and RBIs (66) this season. In fact, the lefty slugger is on pace to post the following numbers for Washington this year: 211 hits, 31 HR, 119 RBI, 45 doubles, 7 triples. Murphy has already racked up 17 home runs this campaign, a new career high. He is just 1-of-5, however, lifetime against Bucs starter Francisco Liriano.

Writer’s Prediction: Washington (-210) wins, 5-1.

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