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The Cincinnati Reds aim to sweep the Washington Nationals this afternoon. It is now time to continue our MLB odds series with a Reds-Nationals prediction, pick, and how-to-watch.
The Reds enter the match-up as winners of four straight games and seven of their last eight. In game one, it was a two-run shot by Joey Votto in the fourth inning that made the difference, as the Reds won 3-2. Game two saw Brett Kennedy get his first win since 2018, while Elly De La Cruz went 4-4 at the dish, and stole a base. It was one of six bases the Reds stole the win. Yesterday was more about De La Cruz. His bat was checked in the second inning, and he was forced to remove a knob on his bat. He then continued the at-bat and launched a 455-foot home run. It was one of three hits for him on the night, as Joey Votto added a home run as well for the 9-2 victory.
Here are the Reds-Nationals MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Reds-Nationals Odds
Cincinnati Reds: +1.5 (-184)
Washington Nationals: -1.5 (+152)
Over: 10 (-105)
Under: 10 (-115)
How To Watch Reds vs. Nationals
TV: BSOH/MASN
Stream: MLB.TV
Time: 1:05 PM ET/ 10:05 AM PT
*Watch MLB games LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Reds Could Cover The Spread
The Reds may be the hottest team in all of baseball, winning 19 of their last 23 games. That has placed them in first place in the NL Central with a 48-39 record on the season and a two-game lead in the NL Central. In the series, the offense has been solid. They have scored 20 runs in the last three games, and 50 in their last seven. They are fifth in runs scored, 10th in batting average, and 10th in slugging while sitting third in on-base percentage. Rookie sensation Elly De La Cruz continues to be a major part of that, crushing home runs and stealing bases.
Since getting the call-up on June 6th, De La Cruz has hit .318 with four home runs and 14 RBIs. He has also stolen 11 bases and scored 25 runs. He has struck out a fair amount, 35 times so far, but that is to be expected. De La Cruz is not walking a lot though and is striking out a fair amount. It was two more strikeouts yesterday, and 37 since getting the call-up. Meanwhile, he has walked just seven times.
Joey Votto has also been a small spark to the offense. He rejoined the lineup on June 19th and has hit five home runs and driven in 11. His batting average is just .205, but he has a .340 OBP and has scored eight times. Meanwhile, Spencer Steer has been hot. In the last six games, he is batting .438 with two home runs, five RBIs, and four runs scored He has also walked five times to give him a .536 OBP in that time. Tyler Stephenson is joining him in the hot hitting, with a .438 batting average in his last six games. He has driven in five runs and scored seven times while also drawing six walks.
Brandon Williamson will be on the mound for the Reds today. He is 1-2 on the year with a 5.56 ERA. His last time out he gave up two runs in five innings with three hits and a walk. He did take the loss though, and has not won since June 13th. This year he has given up two or more runs in all but one outing. He also has given up eight home runs in nine starts.
Why The Nationals Could Cover The Spread
The Nationals offense was stunted again yesterday. They scored just two runs and that gives them just eight runs in the series. Considering the Reds have scored eight or more twice in the series, it's clear why they are on the verge of being swept. The offense has struggled to score runs all year, sitting 26th in runs scored while being 20th in OBP and 23rd in slugging. They are seventh in batting average but do not get enough runs across the plate.
Lane Thomas is also continuing to hit well. He is hitting .375 in the last week with two doubles. He has also scored twice in that period and driven in two runs. Stone Garrett has not been playing a ton as of late, but when he is, he is producing. He has just ten at-bats in his last five games, but he has five hits in those at-bats. He also has two home runs and a double in there, resulting in six RBIs. The same is true for Corey Dickerson. He has .357 in four games in the past week. He only has one RBI though and has not scored a run.
Overall, only Stone Garrett has had a lot of RBIs in the last week. In the last week, ten of 14 guys to take an at-bat have an RBI, while ten have also scored a run. the issue has been getting on base. The team is hitting just .250 with an OBP of .300. They have stopped stealing bases too, with none in the last week. Meanwhile, strikeouts have gone up as they have struck out 41 times in the last week.
While the offense has not been good, pitching has let them down a lot this year. They are 26th in terms of team ERA, 20th in quality starts, 28th in WHIP, and 28th in opponent batting average. MacKenzie Gore will take the mound today in hopes of getting a win for the Nationals. Gore is 4-7 on the year with a 4.48 ERA. The last five starts perfectly show the up-and-down nature of Gore. Last time out he went just 2.2 innings giving up seven runs. He gave up five runs in two of the other previous five starts. Yet, in two of the starts he gave up one or fewer runs.
Final Reds-Nationals Prediction & Pick
Even with how bad Gore has been at times this year, the Nationals have a slight pitching edge. They had that yesterday though, and the Reds still managed to score eight runs. Six of them were against the bullpen though. Gore has not gone late into games much this year, so the bullpen will be back at it today. That will be bad news for the Nationals. Elly De La Cruz may be celebrating again today, as he has had an amazing series that will continue. The Reds will score plenty of runs today, while the Nationals will not. Take the Reds in this one.
Final Reds-Nationals Prediction & Pick: Reds +1.5 (-184)
