SteemSports Presenter:
SteemSports Editor:
The Milwaukee Brewers and Washington Nationals are set to do battle Monday night from Miller Park as the Brewers start the second half of a 6-game homestead. Both clubs have been reeling a bit as of late with the Brew Crew coming in at just 1-8 overall in their last 9 games dating back to before the All-Star break, and they were blown out 11-2 by the Dodgers on Sunday.
While the Brewers have had their struggles as of late, it hasn't been much better for the Nats who are 4-6 in their last 10 games while being caught up in an extended period of lackluster play at just 13-24 in their past 37 games overall. Washington will look to narrow the gap in what continues to be a surprisingly competitive NL East. The Nationals find themselves at 6.0 games back of the Phillies and 5.0 back of the second-place Braves.
The Brew Crew will send Jhoulys Chacin to the mound as they look to get a much-needed victory and end their recent struggles. The right-hander came over in the off-season and has been terrific - leading the team in starts, wins, and innings pitched. On the season Chacin is 8-3 with a 3.68 ERA. The Brewers are a solid 14-7 overall in games in which Chacin has started.
The Nationals will counter with lefty Gio Gonzalez who is having another solid season himself, posting a 6-6 record with 3.72 ERA thus far. His numbers dip a bit when stepping outside the confines of Nationals Park as he's posted a 4.25 ERA in 10 road starts on the season. He sits at almost an exact 2:1 strikeout to walk ratio with 94 k's against 48 walks. Gonzalez has yet to face the Brew Crew this season.
The Nats will be hoping that Bryce Harper finds his old form and can start to improve on a surprisingly low batting average of just .218 to this point. Despite the low average, he's still provided team-bests with 24 HRs and 56 RBI. Third baseman Anthony Rendon is another hitter to be aware of as he's hitting a team-best .287 with 15 HRs himself.
While the Nats try to battle their way back from another bout of inconsistency, the Brewers will be looking to extinguish their recent woes behind their trio of All-Stars starting with Christian Yelich (.303/12HR/47RBI), Jesus Aguilar (.293/25HR/71RBI), and lastly, Lorenzo Cain (.293/8HR/27RBI). It should be a good one from Miller Park as both clubs need a victory badly to keep pace in their respective division races.
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