The Cardinals took the first game of this NL Central series against the Reds in hopes of getting back on track in the division.
However, St. Louis needs to lean on left hander Steven Matz, who has struggled mightily this season while the Reds counter with Ben Lively, who is off to a strong start in Cincinnati, posting a 2.45 ERA as a long reliever for the Reds.
Lively will get his second straight start after going 5.2 innings of two run baseball against the Yankees, can he limit the Cardinals explosive offense?
Here are the odds for Wednesday's matchup:
Cardinals vs. Reds odds, run line and total
Cardinals vs. Reds prediction and pick
Matz has been in good form of late, allowing four earned runs across his last three starts, but I can't trust the left hander to keep it up. He is walking more batters than he has in his entire career, nearly four per nine innings and is allowing more than 11 hits per nine innings. The Reds are in the midst of a rebuild, but are showing signs of competence with a middle of the pack batting average and a top 10 bullpen ERA.
St. Louis has the hitting edge, but I can't trust Matz's pitching this season to justify this price on the road. The Cards have struggled to limit opposing offenses all year and the Reds have been capable all year at the plate. Lively has been flexible this season out of the pen and on the mound and I'll give him a shot as a home underdog on Wednesday.
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
