The first half of the regular season comes to a close on Sunday with the series rubber match between the Milwaukee Brewers (48-42, 25-21 home) and the Cincinnati Reds (50-40, 27-19 away). Milwaukee won the opener on Friday, defeating Cincinnati 7-3, but the Reds bounced back on Saturday with an 8-5 triumph.
The first pitch of the contest is at 2:10 p.m. EST inside American Family Field in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Milwaukee is the betting favorite (-130 moneyline), and the over/under total is 9.5 runs.
What to Know – Cincinnati Reds
The Reds look to close out the first half as one of the hottest teams in major league baseball. Cincinnati has lost only seven games since June 5th and have taken over the top spot in the NL Central.
Right-hander Ben Lively (4-4, 4.11 ERA, 1.26 WHIP) is the expected starter for the Reds. Lively was activated from the injured list prior to Sunday’s contest after spending over two weeks on the shelf with a pectoral injury.
The 31-year-old logged nine appearances this season, pitching 46.0 innings, allowing 21 earned runs on 45 hits, and 13 walks, while striking out 45 batters.
Cincinnati’s offense has jumped to tenth in the majors hitting .258 as a team while scoring 5.0 runs per game. The Reds pitching staff is 27th amongst league teams with a 4.91 team earned run average.
Rookie Elly De La Cruz has given the Reds a huge offensive boost since joining the team. De La Cruz is hitting .328 with four home runs and 16 stolen bases in 29 games. Jake Fraley leads the Reds with 52 runs batted in, while Spencer Steer adds 51 RBIs.
What to Know – Milwaukee Brewers
With a win, Milwaukee can take the series and pull within a game of the Reds in the NL Central. The Brewers held the top spot in the division through most of the year, but it is shaking out to be a two-horse race between these two opponents.
The Brewers hand the ball over to Wade Miley (5-2, 3.36 ERA, 1.15 WHIP) on the mound. The veteran lefty has had a good start to the year and hasn’t taken a loss on the hill since May 10th. Through 61.2 innings, Wiley has allowed 23 earned runs, 55 hits, 16 walks, and struck out 38 batters.
Offensively, the Brewers rank 26th in the league with a .232 team batting average and score 4.3 runs per contest. Milwaukee’s pitching staff is 15th in the MLB, featuring a 4.14 team ERA.
Willy Adames has an underwhelming batting average (.213 avg) but leads the Brewers with 16 home runs and 46 RBIs. Christian Yelich is putting together a solid season at the dish, hitting .285 with 11 home runs, 21 stolen bases, and 66 runs scored.
The Pick is In
The top two teams in the NL Central take the field one more time on Sunday. Winner gets to take momentum into the All-Star break. Cincinnati, the most entertaining team in baseball, gets it done on the road heading into the pause in play.
The Pick: Cincinnati Reds ML
