Cincinnati Reds vs Baltimore Orioles Prediction 5-4-24 Picks

The Baltimore Orioles and the Cincinnati Reds meet Saturday in MLB action from Great American Ball Park. Here’s a Cincinnati Reds vs Baltimore Orioles prediction. This will be the second installment in a three-game series. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for the game.

Baltimore Orioles Betting Preview

The Orioles took on the New York Yankees in their early-week series. Baltimore did well in that set, winning three of the four games 2-0, 4-2 and 7-2. In the Friday opener versus the Reds, Baltimore posted all of their runs in the seventh inning during a 3-0 shutout win. Cole Irvin went 6.1 innings with two hits, no walks and four Ks in the start.

In the starting pitcher role for the Saturday game, the Orioles will send out John Means. This will be Means’ 2024 season debut. Over his 74 career games (69 starts), Means is 21-26 with a 3.74 ERA. He’s got 318 Ks in 380.1 innings.

Cincinnati Reds Betting Preview

Over on the Reds’ side, they played the San Diego Padres in their last set. Cincinnati was able to win just one of those three games. On Friday the Reds only managed two hits on the night, both by Elly De La Cruz (2-for-4). Hunter Greene lasted 5.2 innings with five hits, four walks, five Ks and no earned runs.

It’ll be Andrew Abbott in the starting pitcher slot for Cincinnati on Saturday. So far this year Abbott is 1-3 with a 3.27 ERA in six starts. He has 27 Ks in 33.0 innings total. Abbott has a 9-9 career record with a 3.73 ERA in 27 starts.

Orioles vs Reds Injury Notes

Orioles LF Austin Hays will work out with Double-A Bowie this weekend. It’s still unspecified when Hays’ (10-day Injured List) rehab assignment will start, though.

Reds SS Matt McLain (shoulder) is roughly a week away from a doctor appointment that will provide a better picture of his timetable for a return. RP Alex Young (back) went to Triple-A Louisville to begin a rehab assignment on Thursday, as did CF TJ Friedl (wrist).

Why the Cincinnati Reds will win

• Probable Starting Pitcher: Andrew Abbott Record this season: 1-3 ERA: 3.27
• The Orioles have lost each of their last four games as favorites following a win.
• The Reds have won five of their last six games as home underdogs following a loss.
• The Reds have covered the run line in each of their last seven games as underdogs following a home loss.
• The Orioles have failed to cover the run line in each of their last five games as favorites against NL Central opponents following a road win.
• The Orioles have trailed after 3 innings in four of their last six games as road favorites against National League opponents.

Why the Baltimore Orioles will win

• Probable Starting Pitcher: John Means Record this season: – ERA: –
• The Orioles have won each of their last 10 Saturday night games.
• The Reds have lost eight of their last nine home games against AL East opponents that held a winning record.
• The Reds have failed to cover the run line in each of their last six home games against AL East opponents following a loss.
• The Orioles have covered the run line in four of their last five games.
• The Orioles have led after 5 innings in each of their last nine Saturday night games as road favorites.

Total Runs Facts

• Each of the Orioles’ last four night games after playing the previous day have gone UNDER the total runs line.
• Five of the last six games between the Orioles and Reds at Great American Ball Park have gone UNDER the total runs line.
• The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Orioles’ last four games.
• The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Reds’ last three night games against AL East opponents.

Cincinnati Reds vs Baltimore Orioles Prediction

I’ll probably lean toward the Orioles. It’ll depend on what Means is able to do in his 2024 debut. As for Abbott, he hasn’t been doing terribly himself. There aren’t any wins lately to show for it, though. Abbott was a little sketchy in a loss to Texas on April 28 (5.1 innings; four earned), but prior to that he had three earned in a 10.1-inning span.

On Friday in the opener, the Orioles had a few very nice offensive performances, and the pitching staff was great. The bullpen came up with 2.2 clean innings with no hits, no walks and four strikeouts. Another performance like that and Baltimore will win again on Saturday.