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The Chicago Cubs welcome their NL Central rival, the Cincinnati Reds, to the Friendly Confines for a three-game series this weekend which is slated to start at 2:20 p.m. ET this afternoon.
We’ve got the low down on who we think is going to take this game on the moneyline as well as a player prop bet that has a solid chance of hitting.
Reds vs. Cubs, 2:20 p.m. ET, ESPN+
Moneyline pick: Cubs -180
These two teams are headed in very opposite directions at the moment. The Cubbies are winners of eight of their last 10 games, while the Reds have won just three in that same span. In the first meetings between the two clubs, Cincy took two of three. However, that was back at the beginning of the season when the Reds were shocking everybody, they’ve come back down to Earth in a big way since then.
To make matters worse for the Reds, projected starting pitcher Vladimir Gutiérrez will be making his MLB debut this afternoon. That could be a good thing, as the Cubs don’t have a ton of scouting or information on him yet, but the Chicago offense has been great lately, averaging nearly five runs per contest. So after one time through the lineup their crew of hitters will probably pick up on Gutierrez’s stuff.
Player Prop: Nick Castellanos OVER 0.5 hits (-182)
Castellanos has been one of the more consistent players in baseball over the last month or so. He enters this game boasting a 13-game hit streak and has gotten multiple hits in nine of those games. Cubs pitching is giving up over four runs per game and in the previous three games, these teams have played Castellanos notched seven total hits. One hit for him seems like easy money.
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