Giants vs. Nationals Betting Preview: San Francisco looks to build off strong road trip

MATCHUP NOTES

Time is running out on the San Francisco Giants (58-57) and their hopes for a playoff berth in the National League. Granted, there are 47 games remaining in the regular season, but the Giants are headed home on a positive note.

The #SFGiants jump out in front in the 9th! pic.twitter.com/aLuT8crcFm
— SFGiants (@SFGiants) August 6, 2025

After splitting the first two games at PNC Park, the Giants rallied for two runs in the ninth inning on Wednesday to capture a 4-2 victory. San Francisco picked up a bit of revenge after Pittsburgh went into Oracle Park and swept the Giants in late July.

The Giants rebounded from the 0-6 homestand against the Mets and Pirates to win four of six against those two teams out east. However, Bob Melvin's squad sits five games out for the final Wild Card spot in the National League and eight games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers for first place in the NL West.

The Washington Nationals (45-69) own the second-worst record in the National League and sit at the bottom of the NL East standings.

The Nats venture out west for three games in San Francisco before traveling back east to Kansas City on Monday.

Washington finished off a dreadful 1-5 homestand, finished off by a 6-0 defeat to the Athletics on Thursday afternoon. The only highlight from the past week was a 2-1 walk-off victory on Wednesday over the A's, as the Nats are 1-7 in the last eight games.

PITCHER BREAKDOWN

The Giants send out Matt Gage (0-0, 0.00 ERA), who will be the opener on the mound. The left-hander has made one start this season, tossing one scoreless inning on July 27 against the Mets.

Gage began the season with the Tigers before getting released in July. The Giants picked him up and he has made seven appearances and has yet to allow a run in 9.1 innings of work.

Washington counters with right-hander Jake Irvin (8-6, 4.89 ERA), who is also coming off a rough start. Irvin allowed eight hits and five runs in four innings of an 8-2 home loss to the red-hot Milwaukee Brewers last Saturday.

Irvin's best start of the season came at home against San Francisco on May 24 as he posted eight scoreless innings and struck out seven in a 3-0 victory. The Nationals cashed as +145 underdogs, while Irvin avenged a 7-4 home loss to the Giants from 2024 when he allowed three home runs.

HEAD-TO-HEAD HISTORY

The gem pitched by Irvin in late May marked the only victory for the Nationals in a three-game home set with the Giants. San Francisco captured the opener, 4-0 behind four runs in the seventh and eighth innings, as right-hander Landen Roupp tossed six scoreless innings.

Following Irvin's outstanding performance in Game 2, the Giants edged the Nationals in the rubber match, 3-2. San Francisco scored three early runs for a 3-0 advantage and held off the Nats to improve to 6-2 in the last eight matchups with Washington since 2024.

BATTER vs. PITCHER STATS

Only one Giants' batter has seen sustained success against Irvin in his career. SS Willy Adames is 6-of-13 in his career against the Washington hurler, including two doubles, but he has also struck out three times. DH Rafael Devers is 1-of-3 with two strikeouts, while C Patrick Bailey is 0-of-9 with four strikeouts.

PITCHER PROPS

Irvin has recorded two or fewer strikeouts in three starts since the All-Star break. In his past six outings, Irvin has stayed Under his strikeout prop five times. Tonight, Irvin's strikeout prop sits at 3.5 according to DraftKings.

In 14 of the last 15 games, opposing starting pitchers facing the Giants have finished Under their strikeout prop. Eleven of the last 12 starting pitchers have struck out four batters or fewer against San Francisco's lineup.

BETTING OUTLOOK

The Giants have lost eight consecutive home games with their last victory at Oracle Park coming on July 11 against the Dodgers. Since the start of July, the Nationals are 4-8 in their last 12 road contests, so the home/road splits for these teams aren't exactly positive of late.

Washington hasn't led through five innings in nine consecutive games, while scoring four runs in the last four games inside the first five innings.

DraftKings has opened the Giants as a -164 favorite, while the Nationals sit at +135. The total opened at 8.5, as San Francisco has gone Over the total in four of the last five contests.

Although San Francisco is relying on a bullpen game tonight, Washington's offense has not performed well early in games.

Let's back the Giants in the first five innings to turn around their home woes and get to Irvin early.

BEST BETS: Giants F5, Jake Irvin Under 3.5 Strikeouts