Cincinnati Reds at Arizona Diamondbacks Betting Preview
Enjoy some baseball Sunday afternoon as the National League is on display when the Cincinnati Reds take on the Arizona Diamondbacks. Arizona will host this one at Chase Field, with first pitch scheduled for 4:10 pm ET.
Despite playing on the road, the Reds are the favorites in this one. They are -120 to win while the Diamondbacks’ moneyline sits at +100. The runline features Arizona +1.5 while the over/under for total runs is 9.
Pitching Matchup
Both starters in this one left with no decisions in their first outing.
For the Reds, it will be Jose De Leon (0-0, 3.60 ERA) taking the mound. In his first start, a 5-3 win over the Pirates, De Leon went five innings allowing two earned runs and striking out nine. He will look to pick up his first victory Sunday.
Luke Weaver (0-0, 4.76 ERA) will get the start for Arizona. Similar to De Leon, his first start saw his team win, 10-8 over the Rockies, but he was not part of the decision. In the outing, Weaver went 5.2 innings allowing three earned runs (on three home runs) and striking out three.
By The Numbers
Offensively, the Cincinnati Reds have been the hottest team in baseball. They rank atop the majors in runs per game at nine. The Diamondbacks rank 18th, averaging 3.75 runs per game.
Defensively, it is once again Cincinnati with the edge. They rank 16th, allowing opponents 4.43 runs per game. Arizona ranks 26th, allowing 6.12 runs per game.
Cincinnati Looks To Stay “Red” Hot
The Cincinnati Reds have a sense of confidence about them early this season that has not been seen in the club in some time. In their first seven games, that confidence translated into a 6-1 record.
One of the biggest reasons for their success has been their league-leading offense. They have been crushing the ball, led by outfielders Tyler Naquin and Nick Castellanos.
In 22 at bats, Naquin only has seven hits, but the majority have been home runs. In fact, Naquin has a team-leading five home runs and 14 runs batted in.
Castellanos is hitting .429/.467/1.000 with four home runs and seven runs batted in. As a team, the Reds have 15 home runs thus far.
Arizona Trying To Bounce Back From Rough Start
It has been a tough start for the Arizona Diamondbacks this season. Through their first eight games, they were a modest 2-6. In a loaded N.L. West that features the defending champion Dodgers and the up-and-coming Padres, getting off to a bad start is not a recipe for success.
News is even a little worse as they recently put star Ketel Marte on the 10-day injured list with a hamstring strain. Marte is tied for the team lead in home runs (two) and leads the team in runs batted in (five), so this is quite a big loss.
While they lost Marte, they are getting another player back in outfielder Kole Calhoun. He had been out of action after having surgery on a torn meniscus but is ready to go now. Last season, Calhoun hit .226/.338/.526 with 16 home runs and 40 runs batted in.
Taking Cincinnati To Win
Despite not picking up wins, both pitchers in this matchup performed well in their first outing. Still, neither of these arms are dominant, so the offense may play a big factor in this one.
With offense taking front stage, that gives the advantage to the Reds. Especially if Weaver keeps being susceptible to the long ball like his first outing, that could lead to fireworks for Cincinnati. Take the Reds to win at -120.
