Arizona Diamondbacks vs Washington Nationals Prediction, Preview and Odds - 07/24/2026

Game Time: 6:45 pm ET, Friday, July 24, 2026

Venue:  Nationals Park, Washington, DC

Where to Watch:  MLB TV

DraftKings:  Moneyline odds:  Diamondbacks -119, Nationals -101; Over/Under:  9.5 runs

Bet365:  Moneyline odds:  Diamondbacks -120, Nationals +100; Over/Under:  9.5 runs

BetMGM:  Moneyline odds:  Diamondbacks -120, Nationals +100; Over/Under:  9.5 runs

Arizona Diamondbacks:  53-49 (2nd place, NL West)

Washington Nationals:  52-51 (4th place, NL East)

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Arizona Diamondbacks:  8-2 last 10

Washington Nationals:  5-5 last 10

The Diamondbacks are entering this series off a win and won their 3-game series against the Athletics 2-1 in their last series. They enter this game with a 53-49 record overall and have a road record of 22-27. This is the series opener of a 3-game series with the Nationals on Friday with a 1-off game against the St Louis Cardinals still to be played on Thursday. Their offense ranks 23rd in the MLB with a .704 OPS. Brandon Pfaadt is their starting pitcher on Thursday while Eduardo Rodríguez is making his start in this game on Friday. He is 8-3 with a 2.62 ERA this season. His team won their last 2 straight games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season appearance, he allowed 5 ER, 0 HR, and 2 BB with 3 SO on 7 hits through 2.2 IP against the St Louis Cardinals.

The Nationals are entering this series off a win and won their 3-game series against the Colorado Rockies 2-1 in their last series. They enter this game with a 52-51 record overall and have a home record of 20-31. This is the 1st game of a 3-game series with the Diamondbacks on Friday and they have Thursday off as a day of rest. Their offense ranks 2nd in the MLB with a .771 OPS. Cade Cavalli was their starting pitcher on Wednesday while Zack Littell is making his start in this game on Friday. He is 7-7 with a 5.34 ERA this season. His team lost their last 3 straight games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season start, he allowed 8 earned runs, 2 homers, and 4 walks with 4 strikeouts on 8 hits through 6 innings pitched against the Athletics.

The current betting odds have the Diamondbacks listed as a slight favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Diamondbacks have looked good in their games this season with their 53-49 record overall which has them right near the top of the NL West. They haven't been a good road team though with their 22-27 road record this year. Meanwhile, the Nationals have looked good in their games this season with their 52-51 record overall, but that record has them right near the bottom of the NL East. They have looked terrible in their own ballpark too with their 20-31 home record this season. The Nationals have one of the best offenses in MLB this season, but they don't have a great pitching staff and lately they haven't looked great, now 5-5 in their last 10 games. The Diamondbacks have been rolling in their games lately though, now 8-2 in their last 10 games, and they are going to have the better pitching matchup here. The Diamondbacks are going with Rodriguez in this one and he has looked great this season. He is 8-3 with a 2.62 ERA and he has been their ace this season. He did give up 5 earned runs in his last start, but that hasn't been a common theme for him this year. The team has also won 2 games in a row now with him starting and they have had a ton of success with him all year. The Nationals are going with Littell in this one and he hasn't looked good this season. He is 7-7 with a 5.34 ERA and he has been giving up a ton of runs all season. He is coming off another terrible start in which he gave up 8 earned runs which has been a common theme for him this year and the team has lost 3 games in a row now with him starting too. The Nationals don't have a great bullpen to help him out either, so look for the Diamondbacks to take advantage of this pitching matchup and continue to roll here. The best way to place a bet here is on the Diamondbacks to win this game. 

Diamondbacks Nationals Prediction:  Our MLB Pick for Friday, July 24, 2026 (6:45 pm ET start time) is Diamondbacks 5 Nationals 1.

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Arizona Diamondbacks: 103-107 (+8.8 units) on the moneyline in road games. 127-105 (+8.8 units) on the moneyline vs. an NL team with a team batting average of .255 or worse. 107-108 (+11.1 units) on the moneyline when playing against a team with a winning record. 14-6 UNDER vs. good power teams - averaging 1.25 or more HR's/game.

Washington Nationals: 91-124 (-21 units) on the moneyline in home games. 5-12 (-6.3 units) on the moneyline after shutting out their opponent. 3-11 (-5.2 units) on the moneyline vs. a starting pitcher whose winning percentage is better than 70%. 10-6 UNDER after shutting out their opponent.

Arizona Diamondbacks:  D. Jameson (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Hip. L. Gurriel Jr. (LF) Ten Day IL - Adductor. T. Troy (LF) Ten Day IL - Shoulder. Z. Gallen (SP) Fifteen Day IL - Elbow. J. Lawlar (LF) Ten Day IL - Hamstring. M. Soroka (SP) Fifteen Day IL - Lower-Body. R. Nelson (SP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. J. McCann (C) Ten Day IL - Quad. B. Walston (SP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. C. Mena (SP) Sixty Day IL - Shoulder. A. Puk (RP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. C. Burnes (SP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. J. Martinez (RP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. A. Saalfrank (RP) Sixty Day IL - Shoulder.

Washington Nationals:  P. Poulin (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Flexor. D. Millas (C) Ten Day IL - Finger. J. Irvin (SP) Sixty Day IL - Shoulder. B. Lord (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Side. M. Parker (RP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. R. Lovelady (RP) Sixty Day IL - Triceps. K. Waldichuk (SP) Sixty Day IL - Forearm. J. Gray (SP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. D. Herz (SP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. T. Williams (SP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow.

"It's obviously a big one. It definitely has some big implications on it. Hopefully, we can take the momentum of the baseball we've been playing at home and take it on the road and squeak out some wins. That way we can put ourselves in a good place to be on the right side of the ball for the Deadline." - Merrill Kelly after their win against the A’s in their game on Wednesday.

“For whatever reason, this one felt like it was extremely important for us to come out with a win. We leaned on [Cavalli], and he answered for us.” - Blake Butera after his team’s win against the Rockies in their game on Wednesday.

Ketel Marte (S) 2B

Geraldo Perdomo (S) SS

Corbin Carroll (L) RF

Gabriel Moreno (R) DH

Nolan Arenado (R) 3B

Ildemaro Vargas (S) 1B

James McCann (R) C

Tim Tawa (R) CF

Ryan Waldschmidt (R) LF

James Wood (L) RF

Luis García Jr. (L) 1B

José Tena (L) DH

CJ Abrams (L) SS

Dylan Crews (R) CF

Daylen Lile (L) LF

Keibert Ruiz (S) C

Jorbit Vivas (L) 3B

Nasim Nuñez (S) 2B

Batting Average:  Jordan Lawlar (.316)

Hits:  Ketel Marte (102)

Home Runs:  Ketel Marte (18)

RBI:  Ketel Marte (59)

Stolen Bases:  Geraldo Perdomo (16)

Wins:  Michael Soroka (8)

Saves:  Paul Sewald (23)

ERA:  Brandyn Garcia (1.75)

Batting Average:  Abimelec Ortiz (.500)

Hits:  James Wood (107)

Home Runs:  James Wood (28)

RBI:  CJ Abrams (76)

Stolen Bases:  Nasim Nuñez (37)

Wins:  Foster Griffin (11)

Saves:  Clayton Beeter (8)

ERA:  Eddy Yean (0.00)

Managers:

Arizona Diamondbacks: Torey Lovullo (10th season)

Washington Nationals: Blake Butera (1st season)