It’s Wednesday, May 21, and the Braves (24-24) are in Washington to take on the Nationals (22-27). AJ Smith-Shawver is slated to take the mound for Atlanta against Trevor Williams for Washington.
Washington won Game 1 of the series, 5-3, yesterday as seven of the eight runs were scored in the first two innings. Dylan Crews put the Nationals ahead in the second inning for good before leaving the game with an injury. Despite the loss, Atlanta owns the season series over Washington, 3-2.
Let’s dive into the matchup and find a sweat or two. We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on how to catch tipoff, odds, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.
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Game details & how to watch Braves at Nationals
- Date: Wednesday, May 21, 2025
- Time: 6:45 PM EST
- Site: Nationals Park
- City: Washington, DC
- Network/Streaming: FDSNSO, MASN, MLBN
Never miss a second of the action and stay up-to-date with all the latest team stats and player news. Check out our day-by-day MLB schedule page, along with detailed matchup pages that update live in-game with every out.
Odds for the Braves at the Nationals
The latest odds as of Wednesday:
- Moneyline: Braves (-161), Nationals (+135)
- Spread: Braves -1.5
- Total: 8.0 runs
Probable starting pitchers for Braves at Nationals
- Pitching matchup for May 21, 2025: AJ Smith-Shawver vs. Trevor Williams
- Braves: AJ Smith-Shawver, (3-2, 2.33 ERA)
Last outing: 6.0 Innings Pitched, 1 Earned Runs Allowed, 2 Hits Allowed, 2 Walks, and 6 Strikeouts - Nationals: Trevor Williams, (2-5, 5.91 ERA)
Last outing: 4.1 Innings Pitched, 3 Earned Runs Allowed, 5 Hits Allowed, 0 Walks, and 4 Strikeouts
- Braves: AJ Smith-Shawver, (3-2, 2.33 ERA)
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Expert picks & predictions for tonight’s game between the Braves and the Nationals
Rotoworld Best Bet
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Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the MLB calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, ballpark information and weather forecasts.
Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.
Here are the best bets our model is projecting for Wednesday’s game between the Braves and the Nationals:
- Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the Atlanta Braves on the Moneyline.
- Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the Washington Nationals at +1.5.
- Total: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the over on the Game Total of 8.0.
Want even more MLB best bets and predictions from our expert staff & tools? Check out the Expert MLB Predictions page from NBC.
Top betting trends & insights to know ahead of Braves at Nationals
- The Braves have won 13 of 22 games following a defeat
- The Under is 4-0-1 in the Nationals’ last 5 matchups against divisional opponents
- The Braves have covered in 4 of their last 5 games for a profit of 2.17 units
If you’re looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our MLB Top Trends tool on NBC Sports!
Follow our experts on socials to keep up with all the latest content from the staff:
- Jay Croucher (@croucherJD)
- Drew Dinsick (@whale_capper)
- Vaughn Dalzell (@VmoneySports)
- Brad Thomas (@MrBradThomas)
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