Free Daily Lock Pick: MLB: White Sox vs Nationals- September 19th - Max Confidence Comp
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The Chicago White Sox (57-93, 4th AL Central) play the middle game of a three-game interleague series in the nation's capital on Tuesday when visiting Nationals Park to play the Washington Nationals (66-84, 5th NL East). Chicago was defeated by the Minnesota Twins 4-0 on Sunday and has lost five of the last six. Chicago has been eliminated from postseason contention. Washington defeated the Milwaukee Brewers 2-1 on Sunday snapping a five-game losing streak. Washington is on the verge of being eliminated from postseason contention as they trail the third and final NL wild card spot by 12 games and have only 12 games remaining in their regular season schedule. By the time this game is played, Washington could have been eliminated as they play the White Sox on Monday.
Chicago needs help at the plate and on the mound
The Chicago White Sox have struggled at the plate all season with a team batting average of .239 that is just 24th. The White Sox drop to 26th in slugging percentage at. 367, 28th in runs scored with 612 and 30th or last in on base percentage with .293. Luis Robert Jr is the team leader in home runs with 35 and RBI was 75, while Andrew Vaughn is second in home runs with 20 and tied for the lead in RBI with 75. Chicago traded away Jake Burger, who had 25 home runs through just 88 games.
Chicago struggles on the mound as well. The White Sox are 20th or worse in four major pitching categories. Chicago is 20th in batting average allowed at .250, while dropping to 22nd in Quality Starts with 45, and is 26th in both team ERA at 4.93 and WHIP at 1.42. Dylan Cease is leading Chicago in victories with seven and in strikeouts with 196. Chicago will hand the ball to Jose Urena on Tuesday. This season the right-hander is a disappointing 0-6 with an ERA of 8.48 and 20 Ks.
Free Daily Lock Pick: MLB: White Sox vs Nationals- September 19th - Max Confidence Comp Click to see the pick now
Washington's troubles start on the mound but don't end there
The Washington Nationals are 18th in Quality Starts with 48, drop to 27th in ERA at 4.97 and 28th in both WHIP at 1.46 and in batting average allowed at .270. Only two teams in baseball allow hitters a higher batting average than does the Washington pitching staff. Patrick Corbin has a team high 10 victories and MacKenzie Gore is the leader in strikeouts with 151. Jackson Rutledge gets the nod on the mound for Washington on Tuesday. The 24-year-old right-hander is 0-1 with an ERA of 17.18 and two strikeouts.
At the plate, Washington is 22nd in runs scored at 641 and in on base percentage with .313. The Nationals are 12th in team batting average at .253 and 23rd in slugging percentage with .392. Lane Thomas is the team leader in home runs with 25 and is second in RBI with 79. Joey Meneses is the team leader in RBI with 81. Just five players, of which only four are currently on the Washington roster, have double digits in home runs.
Best Bets for this Game
Full-Game Side Bet
Insiders Status:
This is a very difficult matchup to handicap as Chicago has already been eliminated from postseason contention and Washington could likely be eliminated before this game is even played, which means both are looking to next season and the players have one foot out of the clubhouse looking to the offseason. Chicago has lost five of its last six and the White Sox have lost nine of the last 11 when playing against Washington. The Nationals have won each of the last five played at home against the White Sox. Chicago starting pitcher Jose Urena has had a poor season with no wins and six losses and an 8.48 ERA. Since being acquired from Colorado, Urena has given up seven runs in 10 ⅓ innings across two starts, with each of the two games resulting in losses for the White Sox. In early April, Urena gave up four runs in 2 ⅔ innings, including two home runs in a 10-5 loss to Washington while with the Rockies. Washington starter Jackson Rutledge will be making his second career start and gave up seven runs in 3 ⅔ innings in his MLB debut last Wednesday versus Pittsburgh. Wow this matchup could go either way in all likelihood it will be high scoring as both starters and bullpen have very little to be desired.
Full-Game Total Pick
Insiders Status:
Both starting pitchers have astronomical ERAs as Chicago's Jose Urena is over 8 (8.48) and Washington rookie Jackson Rutledge has an ERA that is in excess of 17 (17.18). The total has finished over in six of the last eight games played between Chicago and Washington and in seven of the last 10 games that Chicago has played against the team from the National League. Chicago's team ERA is 26th and Washington is one behind at 27th. Do the math, take the over.