The Cincinnati Reds and Milwaukee Brewers will get together on Friday for the first of a three-game series in Milwaukee. Both teams are coming off wins in their afternoon affairs on Thursday. The Reds have won 5 straight games and lead the National League Central with their 49-39 record. Milwaukee beat the Cubs to split the four-game series. The Brewers are now 47-41 on the season.
The Milwaukee Brewers are favorites in this game at home. Despite the Reds being in first place and one of the hottest teams in baseball, they are favorites at -125. You can grab the total for this game at 8 runs.
Reds Send Rookie Lefthander to the Mound
Andrew Abbott will get the start for the Reds in this one. The 24-year-old lefthander is 4-0 on the season, with a 1.21 earned run average. Abbott has struck out 42 batters in 37.1 innings this season. The youngster is coming off going 7.2 innings in a win over the Padres on July 2nd. Over his last four starts, Abbott has struck out 32 batters and allowed just 5 earned runs over 25.2 innings.
Elly De La Cruz has been the talk of the town in Major League Baseball since he was called up. After getting his bat checked on Wednesday, he hit a long home run to beat the Nationals. The slugging shortstop is hitting .318, with 4 home runs and 14 runs batted in, within the first 26 games of his career.
Jonathan India is having a strong season for the Reds, with 13 home runs, but Spencer Steer leads the team with 14.
Milwaukee Trots out Ace
On the other side, the Milwaukee Brewers will send Corbin Burnes to the mound. The 28-year-old is 6-5 on the season, with a 4.00 earned run average. The former Cy Young winner has struck out 96 batters over 101.1 innings. Burnes is also coming off a strong outing. Burnes struck out 7 batters in 7 innings in a win at Pittsburgh on July 1st.
Milwaukee is staying close in the division by just doing enough. Milwaukee is not great on the offensive side or has been great at pitching. But here they are, within striking distance as the All-Star Break approaches. In fact, the Brewers are -15 in run differential coming into this game.
Milwaukee is hitting .230 as a team, which is 28th in all of Major League Baseball. Christian Yelich, who has been a staple in the Milwaukee offense, leads the team with a.287 batting average.
Brewers Top Reds to Start Series
Look for Corbin Burnes to grab a win in this game. He knows this is a big game, and would love to shut the Reds down and move a game closer to first place. Look for a big outing from Burnes, and the Brewers’ offense gives Abbott his first loss of the season. Bet the Brewers -125 over the Reds.
