Nationals vs Brewers May 21 Preview, Stream, Odds, Picks & Predictions

Milwaukee Sitting Atop NL Central

The Milwaukee Brewers go for a third straight win when they play host to the Washington Nationals in the second of a three-game weekend series on Saturday night. Milwaukee took the opener on Friday, 7-0, and is four games ahead of the second-place St. Louis Cardinals in the NL Central. Washington has lost six of its last eight games and is at the bottom of the NL East. Check out our in-depth preview of the contest to help you decide how to bet online on Saturday’s affair.

Let’s check the latest MLB picks, stats, injury reports, and MLB odds for Nationals vs Brewers. We’ve plenty of MLB predictions.

Nationals Offense Goes Silent in Opener

The Washington Nationals rank fifth in batting average at .248 and are tied for 18th in the majors with 158 runs, but they could not push a single run across the plate in dropping Friday’s opener. It was the second time in five games that the Nationals were shut out and the fifth time in eight contests that they managed one run or less.

First baseman Josh Bell is 14th with a .309 batting average, but he’s gone 0-for-10 over his last three games. Bell has seven doubles, four home runs, 22 RBIs and 23 runs scored.

Outfielder Juan Soto had a double in Friday’s setback. Soto is batting .250 with eight doubles, eight home runs, 11 RBIs and 26 runs scored, which is tied for sixth in the National League.

Left-hander Patrick Corbin will try to keep the Nationals in the game until the offense comes around when he makes his ninth start on Saturday. Corbin is 0-6 with a 6.28 ERA, striking out 36 in 38⅔ innings. He’s coming off a rough start against the Houston Astros on Sunday, going six innings and allowing five runs on six hits, including three home runs, while striking out five and walking two.

Brewers Shine in All Phases in Opener

The Milwaukee Brewers showed off all of their solid attributes in Friday’s win, hitting a pair of home runs, getting solid pitching and showing some great defense, especially on a triple. In the seventh inning, holding onto a 2-0 lead, Milwaukee got possibly the play of the game, as the Washington Nationals’ Lane Thomas hit a deep shot into center that got away from outfielder Tyrone Taylor.

But Hunter Renfroe came over from right field and threw a strike to second baseman Kolten Wong, who fired to home to catch Thomas trying to stretch it into an inside-the-park home run. It was a major momentum shift to shut down the Nationals’ hopes of rallying.

A different kind of home run robbery 😏@KoltenWong | #ThisIsMyCrew pic.twitter.com/BDIWvQ3Z3C

— Milwaukee Brewers (@Brewers) May 21, 2022

Right-hander Brandon Woodruff hopes he doesn’t need to rely on that kind of defense when he gets the start on Sunday. Woodruff is 4-2 with a 5.35 ERA in seven starts, striking out 43 in 33⅔ innings. He earned a win in his last start, facing the Miami Marlins on Sunday, by going five innings and allowing three runs (one earned) on five hits while striking out six and walking two.

First baseman Rowdy Tellez had his ninth home run Friday night, tying Renfroe for the team lead. Tellez has 32 RBIs to rank fourth in the National League in the category, adding 10 doubles and 19 runs scored while batting .244.

Nationals vs Giants Head-to-Head

The Milwaukee Brewers have had the upper hand on the Washington Nationals in head-to-head matchups over the last six seasons they’ve played each other (they didn’t square off in 2020). Milwaukee now has a 22-11 record against Washington dating back to the beginning of the 2016 campaign.

Playing at home, Milwaukee has won the last five series it has played against Washington. The MLB lines for Saturday’s game have that trend continuing, as the host Brewers are favored to get the win.

Nationals vs Giants Game Information

Game: Washington Nationals (13-27) at Milwaukee Brewers (25-14)
Location: American Family Field
Day/Time: Saturday, 7:10 p.m. ET
Live Stream: MLB TV