A series opener between the St. Louis Cardinals (19-19) and Washington Nationals (17-21) is on deck Friday at 6:45 p.m. ET, at Nationals Park.
The Nationals (-113 on the moneyline) and the Cardinals (-106) will meet in an expected close contest. The Washington Nationals will give the start to Mitchell Parker (3-2, 3.48 ERA), who is looking for win No. 4 on the season, and the Cardinals will turn to Erick Fedde (2-3, 4.78 ERA).
The Nationals lost their most recent game against the Guardians by an 8-6 score Wednesday. German Rosario went 3 for 5 with a double and two RBIs to lead them offensively. Michael Soroka picked up the loss after throwing five innings, giving up four earned runs on five hits while striking out eight.
Wednesday, the Cardinals took down the Pirates 5-0. Sonny Gray was the winning pitcher after he went seven innings without giving up an earned run on two hits, while striking out eight. Lars Nootbaar paced the Cardinals’ offense, going 3 for 4 with a double and an RBI.
Prepare for the Nationals vs. Cardinals with what you need to know before Friday’s baseball action, including viewing options.
Washington Nationals vs. St. Louis Cardinals odds, line and spread
MLB odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook. Odds updated Thursday at 3:16 p.m. ET. For a full list of sports betting odds, access USA TODAY Sports Betting Scores Odds Hub.
Favorite: Nationals (-113, bet $113 to win $100)Underdog: Cardinals (-106, bet $106 to win $100)Over/under: 8.5Nationals vs. Cardinals: Game time and live stream infoGame day: Friday, May 9, 2025Game time: 6:45 p.m. ETLocation: Washington D.C.Stadium: Nationals ParkTV channel: Apple TV+Live stream: Watch LIVE with Fubo! (Regional restrictions may apply)
Watch Nationals vs. Cardinals on Fubo!
Nationals stats and trendsNationals betting recordsThe Nationals have entered the game as favorites six times this season and won twice.Washington has a record of 2-3 when favored by -113 or more by bookmakers this season.The implied probability of a win from the Nationals, based on the moneyline, is 53.1%.Washington and its opponents have hit the over in 19 of its 37 games with a total this season.The Nationals are 20-17-0 against the spread this season.Mitchell Parker (Nationals probable starter)Parker makes the start for the Nationals, his eighth of the season. He is 3-2 with a 3.48 ERA and 21 strikeouts in 41 1/3 innings pitched.In his last appearance on Friday, the left-hander threw four innings against the Cincinnati Reds, allowing five earned runs while surrendering four hits.The 25-year-old has put up an ERA of 3.48, with 4.6 strikeouts per nine innings, in seven games this season. Opponents have a .201 batting average against him.Parker enters the matchup with five quality starts under his belt this year.Parker enters this matchup with six outings of five or more innings pitched this year.He has had two appearances this season in which he did not allow an earned run.He will take the hill against a Cardinals offense that ranks second in MLB with 337 total hits (on a .260 batting average). The team also slugs a collective .401 (11th in MLB) with 35 total home runs (18th in MLB).The 25-year-old’s 3.48 ERA ranks 42nd, 1.210 WHIP ranks 49th, and 4.6 K/9 ranks 84th among qualifying pitchers this season.Nationals batting statsThe Nationals’ 38 home runs rank 16th in Major League Baseball.Hitters for Washington have combined for a team rank of 15th in the majors with a .386 team slugging percentage.The Nationals have a team batting average of .242 this season, which ranks 14th among MLB teams.Washington has scored 168 runs (4.4 per game) this season, which ranks 14th in MLB.The Nationals have the 15th-ranked on-base percentage in MLB this season (.314).Washington ranks 14th in strikeouts per game (8.0) among MLB offenses.Cardinals stats and trendsCardinals betting recordsThe Cardinals have come away with 13 wins in the 26 contests they have been listed as the underdogs in this season.This year, St. Louis has won 10 of 23 games when listed as at least -106 or worse on the moneyline.The moneyline set for this matchup implies the Cardinals have a 51.5% chance of walking away with the win.St. Louis and its opponents have gone over in 21 of its 38 games with a total set by sportsbooks this season.The Cardinals have an against the spread record of 20-18-0 in 38 games with a line this season.Erick Fedde (Cardinals probable starter)Fedde (2-3 with a 4.78 ERA and 21 strikeouts in 37 2/3 innings pitched) makes the start for the Cardinals, his eighth of the season.In his last time out on Sunday against the New York Mets, the righty tossed five innings, giving up three earned runs while surrendering six hits.In seven games this season, the 32-year-old has amassed an ERA of 4.78, with 5.0 strikeouts per nine innings. Opponents are batting .245 against him.Fedde is looking to record his fifth quality start of the season.Fedde will look to build upon a six-game streak of lasting five or more innings (he’s averaging 5.3 innings per outing).He has held his opponents without an earned run in one of his seven outings this season.The opposing Nationals offense has a collective .242 batting average, and is 12th in the league with 307 total hits and 14th in MLB play with 168 runs scored. They have the 15th-ranked slugging percentage (.386) and are 16th in all of MLB with 38 home runs.Cardinals batting statsThe Cardinals rank 18th in MLB action with 35 home runs. They average 0.9 per game.This season, St. Louis ranks 11th in baseball, slugging .401.The Cardinals lead the majors with a .260 batting average.St. Louis scores the 12th-most runs in baseball (174 total, 4.6 per game).The Cardinals’ .334 on-base percentage ranks sixth-best in MLB.