An NL Central showdown is on tap for this Friday as the Cincinnati Reds take on the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium. Join us for our MLB odds series where our Reds-Cardinals prediction and pick will be revealed.
Taking the national headlines by storm over the last several days thanks to some electrifying youthful play, the outlook of the 29-34 Cincinnati Reds all of a sudden looks quite bright. Whether it is Elly De La Cruz blasting 458-foot home runs or Will Benson hitting his first-ever home run in dramatic fashion against the Dodgers, it is becoming quite evident that the Reds have some pieces to build around in the coming years. On the mound in this one for the Reds will be Ben Lively who is 3-3 with a 3.03 ERA.
As for the Cardinals, their 26-37 start to the season has certainly been far from ideal. In fact, St. Louis currently sit dead last in the NL Central as they trail the first-place Brewers by eight games in the standings. Nevertheless, this Cardinals squad certainly doesn't lack any talent when on the diamond. Getting the starting nod for this divisional duel will be the struggling southpaw in Jordan Montgomery who is a rough 2-7 to go along with a 4.23 ERA in his 12 starts.
Here are the Reds-Cardinals MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Reds-Cardinals Odds
Cincinnati Reds: +1.5 (-137)
St. Louis Cardinals: -1.5 (+114)
Over: 8 (-112)
Under: 8 (-108)
How To Watch Reds vs. Cardinals
TV: Bally Sports Midwest
Stream: MLB.TV
Time: 8:15 ET/5:15 PT
*Watch MLB games LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Reds Could Cover The Spread
After winning 8 of their last 12 games, the Cincinnati Reds took one on the chin their last time out by falling on the short end of the stick against the Dodgers in a 6-0 loss. Regardless, the Reds were able to take two of three from the Dodgers thanks to some balanced play and their ability to hit the cover off the baseball despite getting shutout in Game 3.
In order to cover the spread on the road versus their rivals, Cincinnati needs their starter in Ben Lively to come alive after a shaky start in his last time out in which he surrendered five runs on six hits in seven innings pitched. Luckily, before that, Lively was on an absolute roll as he only gave up four runs in his previous 17 innings pitched. If the Reds are going to cover later this evening, it will be because of Lively's sharpness on the mound.
Not to mention, the Reds need to jump out to a strong start with the bats which is something they failed to do against the Dodgers on Thursday. Of course, the Reds did happen to score 17 runs in the first two games versus Los Angeles. In fact, the Reds happen to excel in getting men to reach base with the sixth-best on-base percentage at .332. If the Reds are generating havoc on the base paths throughout, then they will be in pretty good shape.
Why The Cardinals Could Cover The Spread
Last season, the Cardinals clinched their birth as a wild card team after going 93-69 in the regular season. However, this year has been a nightmare start, to say the least as St. Louis' playoff chances seemingly appear to get farther and farther away from happening with each passing day. Whether it's having their bats be silenced or poor pitching overall, the Cardinals need to put things into high gear before it is way too late.
The biggest reason for the ‘Cards' more than concerning start to the 2023 MLB regular season has been their inability to close the door in one-run games. Believe it or not, but St. Louis is 7-14 overall in games decided by one run or less. Clearly, this is not a sustainable recipe for success as St. Louis' clutch factor has been missing all year long. Without a doubt, if the Cardinals found themselves up or down by a run at any point in this game, then they will need to make the necessary little plays that will result in a spread-covering victory.
More specifically, the Cardinals were finally able to snap a five-game losing streak by putting together an incredible pitching performance. On paper, St. Louis' issues haven't necessarily been from their offense but instead their throwing arms. With that being said, opposing hitters are hitting .270 off of Cardinals pitching which is the third-highest mark in the league. Combine Jordan Montgomery's scuffling ways and the urgency that St. Louis must have on the mound in this one will be at an all-time high if they have plans to cover the spread and ultimately come out victorious.
Final Reds-Cardinals Prediction & Pick
Both teams enter this one with losing records, but even a single win could catapult the season in a positive way. In this first contest of this three-game series, side with the Reds and their tremendous play of late to carry them to a covering of the spread.
Final Reds-Cardinals Prediction & Pick: Reds +1.5 (-137)
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