Last Updated on May 1, 2016 11:14 am by Brad Burns
Nationals’ Scherzer to finally conquer Cards?
Max Scherzer doesn’t usually delight in facing his hometown team. Now that Washington’s back to driving the baseball, though, the time seems ripe for a breakthrough at Busch Stadium.
The Nationals enter today’s matchup vs. St. Louis in search of their first three-game sweep in the Gateway City since 1986 – when the franchise was based in Montreal. It’s an intriguing mound battle beginning at 2:15 p.m. ET, with the host squad still currying favor with oddsmakers at online sports book Bovada.lv. The over/under, meanwhile, rests at seven runs.
In the midst of a mechanical funk, Scherzer (2-1, 4.35 ERA) will nonetheless shoot to reverse a troubling track record against the organization for which he grew up rooting. The righty is 0-2 with a 3.52 ERA in four turns vs. the Cardinals (12-12). Scherzer surrendered two runs and 11 hits over six frames while fanning 10 in his lone start in the Lou, a 4-3 Washington win back on Sept. 2.
His comrades, though, yearn to finally put the 31-year-old in the W column. After nipping the Cards in the series opener, 5-4, the Nats notched a fairly easy 6-1 victory last night. Outfielder Jayson Werth homered in the first to set the tone and ultimately drove in four runs.
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It’s hard to quibble with anything that Dusty Baker’s squad is doing, particularly since that brief offensive lull vs. Philadelphia now seems like a distant memory. But can this 16-7 group flummox St. Louis righty Carlos Martinez (4-0, 1.93)? He’s coming off a start in which he twirled eight scoreless frames in Arizona. We expect runs to once again be at a premium in a riveting matinee affair.
SUNDAY MLB FREE PICK: NATIONALS/CARDINALS UNDER 7 RUNS
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