Major League Baseball on Saturday afternoon and I will have a Free Pick in the game between the Cincinnati Reds and the New York Mets, which will be played at Citi Field in New York. First pitch is scheduled for a 4:10 PM (Eastern) start time and the game will be televised locally.
Betting Odds
Reds +158
Mets -168
Over/ Under: 6.5 -110
This is game 2 of a 3 game series between these National League foes. Last night it was the Mets that took game 1 of this series behind a super effort from Syndergaard. The win puts the Mets back to a game over .500, but they are still 3.5 games behind the Nats for first place in the NL East. the Reds also gt a solid game from Cueto in last night's game, but it was their offense that let them down. Cincy is not having a good year at all as they are 14.5 games behind the Cardinals in the NL Central with a 34-38 record. On the road they have been horrible, going 14-24 in those games. The Reds rank 19th in scoring (4.06 rpg), while on the mound they are 16th in ERA (3.89). The Mets rank 27th in scoring (3.56 rpg), while on the mound they are 6th in ERA (3.52).
Trend for this game include: The Reds are 5-1 in their last 6 games vs. a starter with a WHIP less than 1.15, but just 18-41 in their last 59 road games vs. a right-handed starter and 13-44 in their last 57 games as a road underdog. New York is 40-12 in their last 52 games as a home favorite and 24-10 in their last 34 home games vs. a right-handed starter, but just 24-10 in their last 34 home games vs. a right-handed starter.
Getting the ball for Cincinnati tonight will be Mike Lorenzen, who is 3-2 with 3.25 ERA as a starter this year, including going 2-1 with a 3.70 ERA as a starter on the road. This will be his first meeting with the Mets.
Toeing the rubber for the Mets tonight will be Matt Harvey, who is 7-5 with a 3.18 ERA in 14 starts this year, while at home he has gone 4-2 with a 3.38 ERA. Matt is 1-0 with a 3.21 ERA in 2 career starts vs the Reds.
Pick: Last night i had the under and will come right back with it in this game. This Met offense is truly horrible right now as they have averaged less that 2 rpg in their last 11 games. They can't hit and don't really have a major league offense out there right now. They will be taking on Mike Lorenzen, who has a 3.70 ERA in 4 starts this year on the road, but we not that he has allowed just 1 ER in 3 of those games, so he is more than capable of shutting down this Mets offense tonight. The Reds are a team that struggles to score on the road and they will face ace Matt Harvey, who has allowed 2 ERs or less in 3 of his last 4 starts and also has a 2.62 ERA at night, compared to a 4.74 ERA in day starts. Mat's night starts this year have been very low scoring, as just 5.9 rpg have been scored in them, with the under going 7-3 in those games. Once again I just don't see a lot of offense in this game.
-$25 of picks FREE! No Obligation - No Credit Card Required - Becoming a member is Fast and Free!
Stay on top of the latest odds and line moves for MLB Season with our real-time odds from Las Vegas and offshore!
In Defense of Pete Rose
A recent ESPN Outside the Lines piece revealed Pete Rose did more than just bet on baseball--he bet on the Cincinnati Reds aka the Big Red Machine during hist stint as player/manager. Since Rose never bet against his baseball team, pro bettors Teddy Covers and Steve Fezzik come to his defense, pointing out he never fixed games like, say, the Chicago Black Sox did. Comparing to other athletes who bet on sports, his lifetime ban from baseball and the Hall of Fame seems pretty harsh compared to the one-year ban of football player Alex Karas. In short, the sports world is being way too harsh on one of the great players of the game.