Braves at Nationals 8/7/18 - Game 2 - MLB Picks & Predictions

A delightful pitching matchup will take place on Tuesday night, when the Atlanta Braves and Washington Nationals play the second game of their doubleheader from Nationals Park. The Braves come into play at 12 games above .500 overall and trail Philadelphia by 1.5 games for the NL East Division lead. All-Star Freddie Freeman is hitting .318 to go along with 18 home runs and 69 RBIs.

Twenty-five year old southpaw Sean Newcomb (10-5 3.23 ERA) has had a couple of extra days or rest after nearly pitching a no-hitter in his last start. Newcomb has struck out 110 batters through 119 plus innings of work. The Washington Nationals were expected to cruise to a division title, but have underachieved for most of this season. Washington took three out of four from Cincinnati over the weekend and is three games above .500 overall. All-Star OF Bryce Harper leads the Nationals with 26 home runs and 68 RBIs. With 51 games remaining, Washington is six games behind Philadelphia for the division lead.

Two-time CY Young Award winner Max Scherzer (15-5 2.33 ERA) will head to the hill on Tuesday night. Scherzer started the All-Star Game and ranks first in the National League with a sparkling 0.91 WHIP.