Cincinnati Reds (52-49) vs. Chicago Cubs (50-52)
July 29, 2021 2:20 pm EDT
The Line: Chicago Cubs +105 / Cincinnati Reds -115; Over/Under: 7.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Cincinnati Reds and the Chicago Cubs meet in an NL Central division matchup in MLB action from Wrigley Field on Thursday.
The Cincinnati Reds will look to build on their 8-2 win over the Cubs from Wednesday night. Joey Votto led the charge with a pair of home runs and three RBIs while Shogo Akiyama had two RBIs as did Tyler Stephenson. Jesse Winker had a pair of doubles and an RBI to round out the scoring for the Reds in the win. Kyle Farmer went 2 for 4 with a double and Eugenio Suarez had a double as well while Jonathan India and Tyler Mahle each had a base hit to finish off the offense for Cincy in the winning effort. Mahle got the win to improve to 8-3 on the year after tossing six shutout innings, allowing just five hits while striking out a pair. Luis Castillo will start here and is 4-10 with a 4.20 ERA and 113 strikeouts this season.
The Chicago Cubs will look to rebound from their loss at the hands of the Reds last time out. David Bote had an RBI while Patrick Wisdom and Nico Hoerner each had two hits and a double. Matt Duffy, Anthony Rizzo and Ian HApp each had an RBI as well to finish off the offense for Chicago in the loss. Zach Davies ended up with the loss, falling to 6-7 on the year after allowing four earned runs on seven hits while striking out eight over six innings of work. Alec Mills will start here and is 4-3 with a 4.55 ERA and 47 strikeouts this season.
Cincinnati is 4-1 in their last 5 road games and 18-8 in their last 26 division games while the over is 7-3 in their last 10 games against a right-handed starter. Chicago is 8-3 in their last 11 games as a home underdog and 8-19 in their last 27 games overall while the over is 5-1 in their last 6 home games against a right-handed starter.
I get why a home dog or a home team like the Cubs with a cheap price would be worth a look However, the Reds have simply been playing the better baseball lately and Castillo has really turned it on as of late, looking like a completely pitcher from the one that struggled through the first two months of the season. Give me the Reds here.
