Philadelphia at Washington

The National League will get MLB action underway in the nation’s capital when the Phillies invade this afternoon. It is certainly a David vs. Goliath matchup with the NL's reigning champion facing baseball's version of biggest loser, the Washington Nationals and their 103 losses in 2009. This line is set based on 2009, but this is a new season. The hidden factor here is pitcher John Lannon. The Nats may not have won many games last season, but Lannon showed the ability to keep things close as the Nats posted an 11-6 mark when he started at home facing the +1.5 runline. The Phillies are certainly capable of finding their way back to the World Series, but despite the team's success a year ago, they closed at just 6-14 on the road if facing a -1.5 runline. Over the past three seasons, the Phils have gone just 19-38 to the runline at a price of +130 to -255. And, Halladay is 0-8 to the runline in daytime road games the past two seasons. While this one looks easy for Philly on the surface, the runline presents value on the Nats.