Washington Nationals: Stephen Strasburg Set Up to Dominate Marlins

The Washington Nationals will send starter Stephen Strasburg to the hill Wednesday night.  In his career, Strasburg has been lights out against Miami.

The Washington Nationals look to win their third consecutive series against the Miami Marlins on Wednesday night.  Their projected starter, Stephen Strasburg, has dominated the Fish over his career.

Strasburg has started 33 games against the Marlins, more than any other team (the Braves are the next closest with 32 starts).

Over those 33 starts, encapsulating more than 185 innings pitched, Strasburg has a sub-3.00 ERA and a tiny 1.09 WHIP.

Since the start of 2018, Strasburg has made five starts against the Marlins, posting a 2.10 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, and a 31.7 strikeout percentage.

In those starts, Strasburg has allowed 20 hits, with only five of them going for extra bases (four doubles and one home run).

It is not particularly surprising that Strasburg is beating up on a Quadruple-A team that plays in the Major Leagues.  However, these are great opportunities for Strasburg to find a rhythm on the mound, and he takes advantage of each.

Tonight should be no different as Strasburg should shove once again.

Strasburg gets a home date with Miami, and Strasburg is great at home.  Over his career, Strasburg has a 3.19 ERA at Nationals Park with a .223 opponent batting average allowed.

At home, his strikeout percentage is ever so slightly higher than on the road, but his walk rate drops two percentage points to 5.5 from 7.5 on the road.

The Marlins offense is putrid, to begin with, and it will suffer another hit since Brian Anderson, their starting right fielder, left last night’s game due to injury and is out of the lineup tonight.

Here are some of the Marlins’ offensive team rankings:

• Batting Average: 5th worst
• On-Base Percentage: 2nd worst
• Slugging Percentage: Worst in MLB by 18 points
• Strikeout Rate: 11th highest
• Walk Rate: Worst in MLB

Without Anderson, who is their best position player regarding WAR (1.7) it leaves a terrible lineup even more vulnerable.

This leaves Strasburg, who will pitch on a full five days rest, in an incredible position to pad his stats and give the Nats a chance at a sweep on Independence Day.