The Washington Nationals and the Philadelphia Phillies square off Sunday in MLB action from Citizens Bank Park. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Philadelphia Phillies vs Washington Nationals Prediction.

Starting Pitching Matchup

The Washington Nationals will start Jake Irvin here and is 9-10 with a 3.72 ERA and 122 strikeouts this season. In his career, Irvin is 0-2 with a 4.24 ERA and 14 strikeouts against Philadelphia. Taijuan Walker will get the start for the Phillies here and is 3-4 with a 5.68 ERA and 48 strikeouts this season. In his last five starts against the Nationals, Walker is 2-1 with a 3.10 ERA and 26 strikeouts.

Washington Nationals Recap

The Washington Nationals come into this one looking to avoid the sweep after dropping the third game of this series by a final score of 5-1 on Saturday. The series loss meant that the Nationals wouldn’t be able to build on their series split with the Baltimore Orioles from earlier in the week.

Nationals Trying To Salvage Something From Series

CJ Abrams has 111 hits along with 17 home runs and 59 RBIs to go along with 25 doubles, 6 triples and 22 stolen bases. Luis Garcia Jr. has a team-high 114 hits including 21 doubles with 59 RBIs and 19 stolen bases. Jacob Young has 28 stolen bases as well this season.

Why the Washington Nationals will win

• The Phillies have lost eight of their last nine day games following a win.
• The Nationals have won six of their last seven day games against NL East opponents.
• The Phillies have failed to cover the run line in eight of their last nine day games following a win.
• The Nationals have covered the run line each of their last four day games against teams that held a winning record.

Philadelphia Phillies Recap

The Philadelphia Phillies come into this one hoping to complete the four-game sweep after picking up their victory in Saturday’s matchup. The series win for the Phils helps them follow up their series split with the Miami Marlins from earlier in the week.

Phillies Trying To Lock Up NL East

Alec Bohm leads the Phillies with 139 hits including 43 doubles, a .296 batting average and a team-high 85 RBIs while Bryce Harper has 26 home runs with 73 RBIs and Bryson Stott has a team-high 25 stolen bases. Kyle Schwarber has 28 home runs, 78 RBIs and a team-high 143 strikeouts as well this season. Johan Rojas also has 21 stolen bases as well this season.

Why the Philadelphia Phillies will win

• The Nationals have lost each of their last eight games at Citizens Bank Park.
• The home team has won each of the last seven games between the Nationals and Phillies.
• The Nationals have failed to cover the run line in five of their last six games as underdogs against NL East opponents.
• The Phillies have covered the run line in four of their last five home games against National League opponents after playing the previous day.

Philadelphia Phillies vs Washington Nationals Prediction

I’m on the Nationals here. I get the reasoning for the Phillies being favored as they’ve owned the Nats for much of the year and have had a ton of success against them. However, Taijuan Walker’s had no luck this season with the Phils losing his last six starts, including his return from the IL last time out. Washington still has a decent lineup and even though it feels like they’re just playing out the string, I have a hard time thinking that they’ll let themselves get swept by a division rival. Give me the Nationals.