Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Washington Nationals: Prediction, Betting Odds For 2019 MLB Playoff Series

The Washington Nationals won the 2019 National League Wild-Card Game Tuesday night, defeating the Milwaukee Brewers with a comeback victory. The team now advances to the NLDS, where they’ve had disappointment after disappointment over the last decade.

Expect the Nationals to have another postseason exit just before the NLCS.

The Los Angeles Dodgers are odds-on favorites in their best-of-five series with Washington. After leading the NL with 106 regular-season wins, the Dodgers have -250 betting odds to defeat the Nationals, per OddsShark. The Nationals are +185 underdogs.

Washington seemingly has all the momentum in the world after their wild win over Milwaukee. The Nationals were as good as anyone in the final two-thirds of the season, going on a 107-win pace over their last 112 games. With three stud starting pitchers, Washington might end up being the most popular underdog pick of any division series.

Los Angeles is the heavy favorite for a reason. They are the better overall team with home-field advantage. While the Nationals come up short every year, the Dodgers have proven that they know what it takes to win the pennant. After two straight trips to the World Series, Los Angeles has its best team of the decade, during which the Dodgers have won seven consecutive NL West championships.

Both teams boast deep lineups, but the Dodgers are slightly better. Los Angeles finished just ahead of Washington to lead the NL in runs scored. Cody Bellinger will finish ahead of Anthony Rendon in the NL MVP race. Four Dodgers hit more than 25 home runs with an OPS north of .875. Rendon and Juan Soto were the only Nationals that put up such numbers.

Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg and Patrick Corbin give Washington the NL’s second-best rotation. Los Angeles has the league’s top starting staff. The Nationals’ three pitchers all finished in the top 10 in ERA among NL starters. The Dodgers’ trio was in the top nine with Hyun Jin-Ryu leading the way at 2.38.

Much has been made about Clayton Kershaw’s postseason struggles, but Scherzer isn’t pitching his best. Washington’s ace gave up three runs in five innings to Milwaukee, elevating his ERA close to 5.00 since returning from the injured list in August.

There is no comparison when it comes to the bullpen. Los Angeles led the NL with a 3.78 ERA from their relievers. Washington ranked dead last in MLB with a 5.66 bullpen ERA.

Daniel Hudson had a 1.44 ERA after joining the Nationals in August. He closed out the wild-card game with Strasburg also coming out of the bullpen. Washington won’t be able to use that recipe throughout the NLDS. They’ll need big outs from pitchers like Wander Suero, Sean Doolittle and Javy Guerra, who led the team in innings out of the bullpen and all posted an ERA above 4.00.

The Nationals will give the Dodgers a fight, but it’s going to be another first-round defeat for Washington.

Series Prediction: Los Angeles in four