Monday night baseball and we will see the Cincinnati Reds take on the Pittsburgh Pirates in game 1 of their 4 game series from PNC Park in Pittsburgh. First pitch is scheduled for a 7:05 PM (Eastern) start time and the game will be televised on ESPN.
Current Odds
Cincinnati +124
Pittsburgh -134
Over/ Under: 7 O -120
Analysis: The Reds are not off to a great start as they currently sit at 8-10 overall and 4-5 on the road, but they have been playing a bit better of late, having won 4 of their last 5 games. The Reds come in 17th in the league in scoring, putting up 4.11 rpg, while ranking 9th in hitting (.258) and 7th in homers (20). Todd Frazier leads the team in Homers (4), while Joey Votto & Brandon Phillips lead the team in hits (20 Each). Pitching has been decent this year as they come in ranked 10th in ERA (3.50) and 10th in WHIP (1.23). On the hill for the Reds tonight is Mike Leake, who comes in with 2-1 mark and a 2.95 ERA on the year so far. Leake is 6-3 with a 3.28 ERA in 16 starts against Pittsburgh but has had tough luck at PNC Park, where he's 1-3 with a 2.94 ERA in eight outings.
The Pirates are also not off to a good start this year as they come in at 8-11 on the year overall, including a mediocre 5-5 mark at PNC Park. The Pirates just played a 4 game series at home vs the Brewers and after taking game 1 11-2, they went on to lose the next 3. The Pirates have now won just 2 of their last 10 games. Offense has been an issue for this team as they come in ranked 26th in hitting (.232) and 13th in scoring (4.21). The power is there, though, as they are 2nd in homers (24). Pedro Alvarez led the team in HRs last year and leads them so far this year with 6. Pitching has been average at best this year as they are 16th in ERA (3.79) and 14th in WHIP (1.26). Getting the ball for Pittsburgh is Francisco Liriano Who is 0-3 with a 3.96 ERA in 4 starts this year, but has always pitched well at home, going 9-2 with a 1.72 ERA in 15 career starts at PNC Park. He is not a fan of pitching vs the Reds, going 0-4 with a 3.73 ERA in 5 career starts vs them.
Pick: I will be going with the Giants in this one. San Fran has struggled on offense of late, but Eric Stultz is not off to a good start and has struggled with his ERA vs the Giants of late, posting a 5.79 ERA in his last 5 starts vs them. The Giants put up just 1 run last night, butt still they score 5.12 rpg away from home and should be able to tag Stultz for some runs in this one. On the other side, we have Tim Hudson who has been excellent vs the Padres, going 6-1 with a 2.80 ERA in his career vs them, including 2-1 with a skinny 1.10 ERA in his last 5 starts vs them. Now he takes on the worst scoring offense in the league and should continue his success vs them. San Francisco gets back on track with a solid win tonight.
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Handicapping Tips: Baseball Correlations
Steve Fezzik from Pregame.com gives some handicapping tips for betting runlines and correlated parlays in major league baseball.