Saturday, April 23, 2016

Nationals Park

For Updated Odds on This Game Click Here

Probable Pitchers: Phil Hughes vs. Tanner Roark

The Minnesota Twins visit Nationals Park on Saturday to play the Washington Nationals. The probable starters are Phil Hughes for the Twins and Tanner Roark for the Nationals. The opening line for this matchup has Minnesota at +136 and Washington at -146. The over/under was set at 8. The Twins have a 5-10-1 over/under record and a 8-8-0 run line mark, meaning they cover 50% of the time. The Nationals are 9-6-0 against the run line and have a 5-9-1 over/under record. They cover the spread 60% of the time.

The Twins head into this matchup with a 5-11 record, including 1-7 on the road. Starting pitcher Phil Hughes has a 1-2 record with an earned run average of 4.42 and a WHIP of 1.15. He has 17 strikeouts over his 18.1 innings pitched and he has given up 19 hits so far this season. He has allowed 9.3 hits per 9 innings and he has a FIP of 2.92. The bullpen this year has an earned run average of 3.40 and they have given up 45 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .243 against the bullpen while being struck out 53 times and walking 25 times this season. As a team, Minnesota has allowed 8.72 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.07 batters per nine. They are 13th in the league in team earned run average at 3.68. The Twins pitchers have collectively given up 135 base hits and 57 earned runs. They have allowed 15 home runs this season and they allow 1 homers per nine innings as a staff. Minnesota as a pitching staff has walked 52 batters and struck out 125. They walk 3.4 men per 9 innings while striking out 8.1 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.34 and their FIP as a unit is 3.78.

As a team, Minnesota is batting .251, good for 12th in the league while putting together a .250 average away from home. The Twins hold a .408 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .329 which is good for 8th in baseball. They rank 12th in baseball with 8.44 hits per game. Joe Mauer comes into this game hitting .339 and his on-base percentage is at .472. He has 19 hits this season along with 6 runs scored and 5 runs batted in. He's struck out 5 times and has walked 14 times. Eduardo Escobar is hitting .283 and he has an on-base percentage of .333. He has totaled 15 hits so far while scoring 5 runs and he's driven in 4. He has walked 4 times and has struck out 16 times. The Twins have 135 hits, including 31 doubles and 15 home runs. They've stolen 10 bases while they've been thrown out stealing 4 times. Minnesota has walked 57 times this season and they've struck out 136 times as a unit. They've left 129 men on base and have a team OPS of .737. They score 3.31 runs per contest and have scored a total of 53 runs so far this year.

Washington comes into this matchup with a 5-1 home record and a 11-4 overall mark. With an earned run average of 3.71, Tanner Roark has a 1-2 record and a 1.65 WHIP. He has 9 strikeouts over the 17 innings he's pitched during which he has given up 20 hits. He has allowed 10.6 hits per nine innings and his FIP stands at 4.33. So far this season the bullpen has an earned run average of 2.18 and they have given up 32 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .215 against the Nationals bullpen while being struck out 39 times and walking 10 times this season. As a team, Washington has allowed 6.88 hits per nine innings while striking out 7.62 batters per nine. They are 2nd in the league in team earned run average at 2.27. The Nationals pitchers as a team have surrendered 103 base knocks and 34 earned runs so far this season. They have given up 9 home runs this year and they give up 0.6 home runs per nine innings as a staff. Washington as a staff has walked 41 hitters and struck out 114. They give up a walk 2.7 times per 9 innings while they strike out 7.6 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.07 while their FIP as a staff is 3.21.

As a team, they are batting .241, good for 15th in the league while putting together a .249 average at home. The Nationals hold a .419 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .314 which is good for 15th in baseball. They rank 18th in baseball with 7.93 hits per contest. Bryce Harper comes into this matchup batting .321 and he has an OBP of .406. He has 17 hits this year along with 12 runs scored and 22 RBI. He's struck out 7 times and has walked on 9 occasions. Yunel Escobar is hitting .258 and he has an OBP of .329. He has collected 17 hits so far while he's scored 7 runs and drove in 5. He has earned a walk 7 times and has punched out 6 times. The Nationals as a unit have 119 base hits, including 27 doubles and 19 homers. They have 6 stolen bases while they've been thrown out 3 times. Washington as a team has walked 52 times this year and they have struck out 128 times. They've had 98 men left on base and have an OPS of .733. They score 4.2 runs per game and have totaled 63 runs so far this season.

Minnesota Twins Betting Trends

The Minnesota Twins are 5-10-1 against the over/under so far this season

The Minnesota Twins are 8-8-0 against the run line so far this season

Washington Nationals Betting Trends

The Washington Nationals are 5-9-1 against the over/under so far this season

The Washington Nationals are 9-6-0 against the run line so far this season

Injuries to Watch

Minnesota Twins

04/21/16 C Kurt Suzuki Head "?" Friday vs. Washington Nationals
04/18/16 3B Trevor Plouffe Side 15-day DL (4/18)
04/13/16 P Glen Perkins Shoulder 15-day DL (4/11)
04/10/16 CF Danny Santana Hamstring 15-day DL (4/10)

Washington Nationals

04/21/16 LF Jayson Werth Hamstring "?" Friday vs. Minnesota Twins
04/20/16 P Joe Ross Finger left last game, "?" next start
04/07/16 LF Ben Revere Oblique 15-day DL (4/5)
03/31/16 P Aaron Barrett Elbow 60-day DL (4/1)

Tony's Pick: Take the Twins

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