The Cincinnati Reds take on the San Diego Padres. Check out our MLB odds series for our Reds Padres prediction and pick. Find how to watch Reds Padres.

The San Diego Padres keep sliding. They were swept at home by the Philadelphia Phillies over the weekend. The Phillies are a really good team and a frontline contender for the National League pennant. Philadelphia is getting high-level pitching and has the clutch hitters needed to become a 100-win team in the 2024 regular season. One can accept, to a certain degree, getting swept by a really good team, especially if that team is on a roll. However, when a struggling team gets swept by a top-tier opponent, the next series needs to provide a change of course. The Padres had a chance to hit the reset button on their 2024 campaign and regroup on Monday night against the Cincinnati Reds.

The Phillies are a juggernaut, but the Reds are an average team — at the very least, an uproven one — and have to work to establish themselves as a contender in a National League Central Division which is currently being led by the Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs. The Reds, moreover, had just flown into San Diego from Arlington, where they played a hard-fought three-game series against the World Series champion Texas Rangers. San Diego had stayed home and got to sleep in its own beds Sunday night. Teams that are serious about making the playoffs pounce on tired opponents who aren't heavyweights. The Padres needed to regroup and spank the Reds with an energized and crisp performance.

Instead, they lost 5-2. The Padres were dominated by Cincinnati starter Nick Lodolo, who mowed them down for most of the evening. San Diego managed just four hits and didn't have a lot to offer. The Padres are now 14-18 and are facing a very urgent situation. With the other talented teams in the National League West and, for that matter, the National League as a whole, the Padres' path to the postseason is already narrowing. If the Padres can't change direction soon, they are going to be in major trouble when Memorial Day arrives. They'll have to win 20 of 30 games in July or August and go on an extended winning binge just to remain competitive in the push for a playoff berth. This game and this series, right now against Cincinnati, are really important for the Padres.

Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Reds-Padres MLB odds.

MLB Odds: Reds-Padres Odds

Cincinnati Reds: +1.5 (-200)

San Diego Padres: -1.5 (+164)

Over: 7.5 (-110)

Under: 7.5 (-110)

How To Watch Reds vs. Padres

TV: Bally Sports Ohio (Reds) / MLB (Padres) / MLB Extra Innings

Stream: MLB.tv

Time: 9:40 p.m. ET/6:40 p.m. PT

*Watch Reds-Padres LIVE on fuboTV (click for a free trial)*

Why The Reds Could Cover the Spread

The Padres are underachieving again. San Diego did this throughout last season and never really found its way or got into a groove. In 2024, the Padres are once again scuffling on offense and are failing to put the pieces of their roster together. Why trust the Padres right now? There's no good reason to do so.

Why The Padres Could Cover the Spread

After losing yet again to the Reds on Monday night, the Padres are bound to bounce back with Yu Darvish on the mound. This team just can't keep losing — can it? The Padres have to pick up a win sooner rather than later.

Final Reds-Padres Prediction & Pick

The Padres are still a team you just don't want to bet on. When you think they'll snap out of a bad patch, they don't. Just stay away from this game.

Final Reds-Padres Prediction & Pick: Padres -1.5