New York Yankees at Washington Nationals Betting Odds for July 23rd
Thursday, July 23, Washington, D.C., Nationals Park; 7:08 p.m. ET
New York Yankees Odds
The first of 60 regular-season games is one of 12 likely starts for $324 million man Gerrit Cole, the new ace of the Yankees’ pitching staff who signed a whopper contract to bolt the Houston Astros in free agency. Before baseball was paused at spring training on March 12, the Yankees were ticketed for a March 26 visit to Baltimore.
Instead, map-minded schedule makers have the Yankees on an interleague date in Washington to limit travel. Cole felt at home almost everywhere last season with the Astros. He went 20-5, led the American League with 326 strikeouts and won his final 16 regular-season decisions before splitting a pair of World Series starts against Washington.
New York’s offense is banging with Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton expected at full strength. One unknown for the Yankees is the status of closer Aroldis Chapman, who tested positive for coronavirus on July 11 and is not expected to be active Thursday. DJ LeMahieu also contracted the virus but returned to the Yankees late last week and is expected to be in the starting lineup.
Washington Nationals odds
Max Scherzer froths at the mouth for this type of stage – the only game on the radar Opening Day until the Dodgers and Giants meet in the nightcap. When we last saw Scherzer, he was going five innings in Game 7 of the Nationals’ World Series-clinching victory. He had a 2.92 ERA in the 2019 regular season.
Washington kept its championship team intact save for one monumental subtraction — Anthony Rendon, who signed with the Los Angeles Angels in free agency. Budding superstar Juan Soto created some nerves with the Nationals, but he returned last week after a two-week absence due to undisclosed reasons.
