The Nationals are coming off a series victory over St. Louis. Near full strength, Washington figures to keep climbing upward against the struggling Diamondbacks. The fact Nationals LHP Patrick Corbin has not won in his last nine starts is a big concern. Expect the pressure to cause issues the second time through the lineup against his former team. Play the Diamondbacks.

Merrill Kelly is 0-2 on the season allowing nine runs in 10 IP in his first two starts in the season.. Unfortunately he gets another road start tonight and will be facing the Nats who are hitting now that their lineup is healthy. Patrick Corbin didn’t pitch well in his first outing but that was against the Dodgers, coming off the COVID list. He also has been much better at home since he’s been with the Nationals. The Dbacks have a lot of starters out tonight including Ketel Marte, Christian Walker, and David Peralta. This line should be closer to -200. The Dbacks are 2-5 on the road, take the Nats.

I should be WAY up on my MLB picks, but freaking leaky bullpens keep blowing late leads and costing me big time -- three games this week already (nearly four but Braves rallied today after blowing another lead). The Nationals return home after impressively taking two of three in St. Louis. Washington lefty Patrick Corbin (0-1, 12.46) was not good in his season debut in L.A., but the Dodgers will make a lot of pitchers look bad. Corbin had a 3.29 ERA at home last year. Arizona's Merrill Kelly (0-2, 8.10) has been hit hard in both outings and those were both on the road, too. A few Snakes regulars are not starting this game simply for rest, and they are 0-2 vs. lefties in 2021.

This total has fallen to the point where there's value on the Over. The Nationals' Patrick Corbin has a WHIP of 2.08, while the Diamondbacks' Merrill Kelly has a WHIP of 1.70. There should be plenty of baserunners tonight when they meet in Washington. The Nationals offense is waking up now that they're closer to full strength. Go Over.