They’ve finally done it. The Cincinnati Reds, against all odds, have climbed all the way back to take control of the third National League Wild Card spot. Over the weekend, the Reds moved into a tie with the New York Mets at 80-76. Since Cincinnati holds the tiebreaker, it now controls its own destiny with six games left to play. Now they kick off a series with the Pittsburgh Pirates where everything is on the line.
The Reds come in as -157 Moneyline favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook. The total is set at 8.5 runs. Let’s dig into a preview, prediction, and best bet for this Pirates vs. Reds matchup.
Pirates at Reds prediction, preview
The Reds sure are riding high going into this one. Sunday’s 1-0 win over the Cubs secured a four-game series sweep over a playoff-bound Chicago team. At a time when they need every win, it was an impressive feat to see the Reds enter a position to sneak into the playoffs. But first, they need to take care of business against the Pirates.
They’ll turn to a dependable arm in Brady Singer for this game. Though not one of the stars in their rotation, Singer has proven himself to be consistent and is heating up at the right time. In his last 10 starts, Singer is pitching to a 2.15 ERA with 62 strikeouts in 58.2 innings. The innings he provides have been of the utmost importance, going at least six innings deep in eight of those 10 starts. Cincinnati has won eight of those 10 as well.
His opposite hurler, Johan Oviedo, is having success of a different kind. He’s been knocked out of the game with injuries for nearly two full seasons and is finally building back up. In seven starts this season, Oviedo has a 3.52 ERA over 30.2 innings. Being able to give the Pirates five reliable innings per night is a great comeback story as he heads into his first arbitration-eligible offseason.
Even if Oviedo can be solid, Pittsburgh is up a creek trying to stop the Reds in this game. With Singer cooking and the team sniffing playoff baseball, they’ll continue this excellent homestand with another win.
