The Chicago Cubs and Cincinnati Reds enter Friday both having recorded sweeps in their previous series and are looking to set the tone in Cincinnati on Friday.
Chicago Cubs vs. Cincinnati Reds (-115, 9)
The Cubs turn to Justin Steele for the start, who enters in rough form with at least five runs allowed in four of his past five games but he has had four unearned runs go against him and positive regression seems to be on the horizon.
While Steele has a 4.10 ERA this season with a 4.42 fielding independent, his strikeout numbers are starting to get back to where they were in past seasons with 8.7 strikeouts per nine innings with at least five strikeouts in four straight starts.
Both teams enter this series tied for 14th in the league in run scoring with just under 4.4 runs per game with both having unfavorable splits in this environment.
The Reds are averaging over 4.7 runs per game on the road compared to just four runs per game at home, ranking 21st in the league in runs per game at home
On the other end, the Cubs are registering over 4.4 runs per game at home while their 4.3 runs per game on the road ranks 17th in the league.
Reds starting pitcher Nick Lodolo will look to keep the Cubs in a road funk as he’s registering a 3.11 ERA and 3.18 fielding independent this season with 9.5 strikeouts per nine innings. Additionally, Lodolo is allowing only 0.8 home runs and 1.9 walks per nine innings and has a bullpen behind him with a 3.71 ERA, which is 13th in the league.
The Cubs and Refs enter with the two lowest batting averages in the National League this season and with both teams in an environment where runs have been difficult to come by, Friday’s game in Cincinnati sets up to be a pitcher’s duel.
The Play: Cubs vs. Reds Under 9 Runs
See which team DraftKings bettors are backing.
