Reds vs. Brewers Prediction and Odds for Friday, September 9 (Brewers Still Have No Answers for Lefties)
By Josh Yourish
The Milwaukee Brewers are coming off of two wins over San Francisco that they desperately needed to stay in the Wild Card race. The final two spots are still up for grabs and there are three teams in contention. The Brewers, the furthest back of the three at 71-64 are three games behind San Diego.
Now Milawaukee hosts the Cincinnati Reds for a three-game weekend series with serious implications. The Reds have won two straight series and are 55-80.
Reds vs. Brewers Odds, Run Line and Total
Reds vs. Brewers Prediction and Pick
There are a lot of bad teams in the MLB, but the Reds are actually not one of the worst. They started off as that, but there are quite a few teams that have sunk below them and they have won four of their last six games. Today, Nick Lodolo pitches for Cincinnati which could be a problem for a Milwaukee team that struggles against lefties.
Lodolo has had a really solid rookie season with a 3.95 ERA and 3.81 fielding independent pitching. His last outing he pitched six scoreless innings against Colorado, a team that hits left-handers well this season.
The Brewers are 26th in the league in OPS against lefties. They have a .657 OPS against them, but rely heavily on home runs. They are 12th in homers against left-handers, which means they don’t have the ability to manufacture runs and put guys on base.
Last time Lodolo faced Milwaukee he gave up two longballs, but Cincinnati still won. That was on August 6, and he has only allowed one home run since. Lodolo gives up one home run per nine innings on the season and if he can keep the ball in the park will have an answer for the Brewers.
I like Cincy today and think Lodolo could throw a gem.
Pick: Reds ML +128
Follow all Josh Yourish’s bets HERE