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Struggling Giants host Nats on Friday
By: Zach Cohen - StatFox
Published: 7/29/2016  at  11:19:00 AM
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WASHINGTON NATIONALS (60-42)

at SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS (59-43)

First pitch: Friday, 10:15 p.m. ET
Line: Washington -145, San Francisco +135, Total: 7.0

The Nationals will be looking to win their third straight game when they face the Giants in San Francisco on Friday.

Washington had struggled heading into this week, but the team has now won two straight games and three of its past five. The common theme in the Nationals’ victories has been good starting pitching, as they have allowed two or less earned runs in all three of those wins and combined to allow 17 in the two losses. Washington should be expecting a good outing from its starter on Friday, as RHP Max Scherzer (10-6, 2.92 ERA, 181 K) will be on the mound for the team. He is, however, going up against RHP Jeff Samardzija (9-6, 4.22 ERA, 97 K), who is more than capable of holding his own for the Giants. If one thing is certain, it’s that San Francisco could really use a good performance from its righty. The Giants have won just two of their past 10 games and can really use a victory to stop the skidding on Friday. One trend worth pointing out in this game is that San Francisco is a miserable 4-15 against the money line after two straight losses by two runs or less over the past two seasons.

Max Scherzer will be toeing the rubber for the Nationals on Friday and that should be good news for the team. The righty has been on a tear recently, allowing two or less earned runs in nine of his past 10 starts. He has also struck out 10 or more batters in six of his past 10 starts. Scherzer has truly been throwing some unhittable stuff lately and will be hoping to miss a ton of bats on Friday. Offensively, Washington will be hoping for some big performances from both 2B Daniel Murphy (.351, 20 HR, 75 RBI) and OF Trea Turner (.333, 0 HR, 7 RBI). Murphy has been one of the best hitters in baseball this season and also happens to have dominated Jeff Samardzija in his career. Murphy is 5-for-9 with a double, a homer and three RBI against the righty. He’ll be hoping to provide a big boost at the plate in this one. Turner is a guy that must be watched closely for the Nationals as well. Over the past four games, Turner is 8-for-17 with two doubles and four RBI. He has consistently gotten on base for Washington and is providing a huge spark for the team.

Jeff Samardzija is taking the mound for the struggling Giants and he will need to get his act together coming into this one. Over his past two starts, the righty has allowed nine earned runs in just 10.2 innings of work. His main issue has been the long-ball, as he has allowed four homers over his past two starts. He’ll need to keep his pitches down in this one, as he can’t afford to make too many mistakes against a dangerous Nationals lineup on Friday. Offensively, the Giants could use some production from SS Brandon Crawford (.272, 9 HR, 63 RBI) and OF Gregor Blanco (.236, 1 HR, 17 RBI). Both guys have had some success against Scherzer in their careers, going a combined 6-for-10 with three doubles, a homer and five RBI against the righty. It’d also be nice for San Francisco if C Buster Posey (.285, 12 HR, 47 RBI) can get it going in this one. He is just 0-for-2 against Scherzer in his career, but he is the Giants’ best hitter and will need to step it up for them in this one. If he doesn’t then it’s hard to imagine this team getting back into the win column.


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