Philadelphia Phillies vs Washington Nationals Pick – 8/16/2025
The Philadelphia Phillies and Washington Nationals will meet in the third game of their weekend series on Saturday. Philadelphia won the second game of the series behind solid pitching and a display of power from one of the league’s top sluggers. Will Philadelphia do the same in this game? Continue reading to get my Phillies vs Nationals prediction for this afternoon.
Our Phillies vs Nationals Pick
- Pick: Philadelphia Phillies to win
- Confidence: 4/5
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Game Snapshot
- Matchup: Philadelphia Phillies vs Washington Nationals
- Date & Time: Saturday, August 16, 2025, 4:05 PM ET
- Starting Pitchers:
- Phillies – Taijuan Walker (4‑5, 3.39 ERA)
- Nationals – Cade Cavalli (0–0, 3.86 ERA)
- Stadium: Nationals Park, Washington, D.C.
- Broadcast: MASN, NBC Sports Philadelphia
Key Storylines
Pitching Matchup
Taijuan Walker brings more experience to the mound in today’s pitching matchup. He holds a 3.39 ERA and has struck out 62 batters over a much larger sample size than Cavalli has seen this year. Cavalli is still finding his footing with just 9.1 innings pitched in 2025. He has been good so far but will need to prove himself over a larger sample size. This is a great test for him against a dangerous Phillies lineup.
Key Players
- Kyle Schwarber: The Phillies’ power threat hit his 43rd home run of the season in last night’s Phillies win.
- Bryce Harper: Harper had two extra-base hits on Friday night. One of those was a home run in the seventh inning.
- CJ Abrams: Abrams had an RBI double for Washington last night and will look to make an impact again today.
Recent Team Streaks
- The Phillies snapped a three‑game losing streak with a 6‑2 win over Washington on Friday.
- The Nationals saw a two-game winning streak come to an end with Friday’s loss at home.
Best Player Props
| Player | Prop |
|---|---|
| Kyle Schwarber | Over 0.5 Home Runs |
| James Wood | Over 1.5 Total Bases |
| Taijuan Walker | Under 4.5 Strikeouts |
| Cade Cavalli | Under 4.5 Strikeouts |
Betting Trends & H2H
- The Phillies lead the season series against the Nationals by a score of 5-3.
- Washington is 17-35 in day games this season.
- Philadelphia is 24-22 in their day games on the year.
- The Phillies improved to 33-31 with Friday’s win.
- Washington is 23-37 at Nationals Park.
Phillies vs Nationals Model Projection
Score Projection: Phillies 5 – Nationals 3
Win Probability: Phillies 56%, Nationals 44%
Final Thoughts
The Phillies should be able to get a win on the road against the Nationals on Saturday afternoon. Washington has one of the worst bullpens in baseball and they may have to go to that bullpen often against a Phillies lineup that can light up opposing pitching. I’ll go with the Phillies to win their second straight game here and to take a 2-1 lead into Sunday’s series finale.
