Looks to be the biggest pitching mismatch of Thursday in the majors as three-time Cy Young winner Max Scherzer of Washington is a mammoth MLB betting favorite over struggling young Cincinnati’s right-hander Tyler Mahle. Reds vs Nationals is set to start at 7:05 PM ET, so let’s check which team is offering the best MLB lines value.
Anthony Rendon hit his 16th homer Wednesday. Rendon stretched Washington’s lead to 3-0 by ripping a two-run shot off Noah Syndergaard in the third inning. That was his only hit of the afternoon. Rendon has hit .312 with eight RBI across 32 second half at-bats. Trea Turner scored three of the Nats’ five runs Wednesday. He also added a pair of stolen bases, bringing his season total to 28. That leads the major leagues.
With 13 home runs as a teenager, Juan Soto is tied with H.O.F Mickey Mantle (1951) for the sixth-most home runs by a teenager in Major League history. Next on the list is H.O.F. Ken Griffey Jr. who hit 16 during the 1989 season.
It’s ace Max Scherzer (14-5, 2.30) here, facing the Reds for the first time since Opening Day when he struck out 10 in six shutout innings. Scherzer tossed eight shutout innings, surrendering three hits and one walk while striking out 11 Friday as he notched the win over Miami. Scherzer continued his dominance against a struggling Marlins’ lineup, as he improved his ERA to 2.30 with a 0.90 WHIP and a 200:36 K: BB over 148.2 frames this season. Following Friday’s outing, he’s collected a win in each of his last four outings, allowing nine runs across 28 innings of work.
Reds vs Nationals MLB Lines & Pick
Bryce Harper is hitting .333 (12-for-36) with 6 XBH and 11 RBIs in 11 games since winning the #HRDerby. pic.twitter.com/jIMTKaSuaL
— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) 1 de agosto de 2018
- When: Thursday, 7:05 PM ET
- Where: Nationals Park, Washington, DC
- Probable pitchers (away/home): Tyler Mahle/Max Scherzer
- TV: MLB Extra Innings
- Stream: MLB.tv
- Radio: TuneIn
- MLB Lines: Washington Nationals -275 / Cincinnati Reds +250 (Total 7.5)
Giants vs Diamondbacks MLB Odds & Expert Prediction – August 2nd
Why Bet on Cincinnati?
The Reds have followed a three-game winning streak with back-to-back losses in Detroit to open this week and were off Wednesday. Eugenio Suarez plated the Reds’ lone run in Tuesday’s loss. Suarez saved the Reds from being shut out by his former team when he delivered a sacrifice fly off of Shane Greene in the ninth inning. Suarez finished the night 1-for-3 with a strikeout. He has been extremely impressive this season, slashing a mighty .298/.382/.575 with a National League-leading 81 RBI. The Reds’ infield includes 3 National League All-Stars and collectively leads the Major Leagues in hits (480), batting average (.285) and on-base percentage (.366). Outfielder Jesse Winker underwent season-ending surgery Tuesday on his right shoulder. It was a labrum repair, which will require several months of rehabilitation, but the hope is Winker will be 100 percent for the start of the 2019 campaign. The 24-year-old showed well in 2018, slashing .299/.405/.431 with seven home runs and 43 RBI in 89 games. The Reds were surprisingly quiet at Tuesday’s trade deadline. They were absolutely expected to trade starting pitcher Matt Harvey and engaged in negotiations with a number of teams but ultimately decided not to move the 29-year-old impending free agent hander ahead of the non-waiver trade deadline. He could still go by the Aug. 31 waiver deadline. It’s young right-hander Tyler Mahle (7-8, 4.53) for Cincinnati. Mahle took a no-decision last Thursday despite allowing three runs on six hits and a walk in just one inning in the loss to Philadelphia. He struck out three and allowed a pair of home runs. Mahle needed 53 pitches and faced 10 batters while recording just three outs in the forgettable outing. The 23-year-old raised his ERA from 3.83 to 4.53 after a few ugly starts in July, allowing 11 runs in just eight innings over his two previous starts. The righty has lasted less than six innings in five of his last six starts. The Reds are 45-45 since 4/19 when they replaced manager Bryan Price and pitching coach Mack Jenkins. Bench coach Jim Riggleman became interim manager.Why Bet on Washington?
The Nats completed a two-game sweep of the Mets on Wednesday, 5-3, after winning Tuesday’s game in historic fashion, 25-4. Tuesday was the most runs the Nats have ever scored. It was the Mets’ most-lopsided loss in their 57-season history, worse than a 26-7 pounding by Philadelphia in 1985. The 25 runs were the most by a team without a DH since Aug. 18, 1995, when the Chicago Cubs scored 26 at Colorado. Washington also became the first non-DH team to have all starters score multiple runs since the New York Yankees on May 24, 1936, against the Philadelphia Athletics. On Wednesday, Kelvin Herrera escaped a difficult ninth inning to record his 16th save in the win over New York. The right-hander had a rough go of it, allowing two hits and a run in his lone inning of work. Herrera served up a one-out solo homer to Wilmer Flores before yielding a double to Michael Conforto and walking Jose Bautista. That brought the go-ahead run to the plate, though Brandon Nimmo ended the threat by grounding into an inning-ending double play.
Anthony Rendon hit his 16th homer Wednesday. Rendon stretched Washington’s lead to 3-0 by ripping a two-run shot off Noah Syndergaard in the third inning. That was his only hit of the afternoon. Rendon has hit .312 with eight RBI across 32 second half at-bats. Trea Turner scored three of the Nats’ five runs Wednesday. He also added a pair of stolen bases, bringing his season total to 28. That leads the major leagues.
With 13 home runs as a teenager, Juan Soto is tied with H.O.F Mickey Mantle (1951) for the sixth-most home runs by a teenager in Major League history. Next on the list is H.O.F. Ken Griffey Jr. who hit 16 during the 1989 season.
It’s ace Max Scherzer (14-5, 2.30) here, facing the Reds for the first time since Opening Day when he struck out 10 in six shutout innings. Scherzer tossed eight shutout innings, surrendering three hits and one walk while striking out 11 Friday as he notched the win over Miami. Scherzer continued his dominance against a struggling Marlins’ lineup, as he improved his ERA to 2.30 with a 0.90 WHIP and a 200:36 K: BB over 148.2 frames this season. Following Friday’s outing, he’s collected a win in each of his last four outings, allowing nine runs across 28 innings of work.
Latest MLB Betting Trends
- Nationals are 14-6 in Scherzer’s last 20 home starts vs. a team with a losing record
- Nationals are 9-1 in Scherzer’s last 10 starts during game 1 of a series
- Reds are 4-9 in their last 13 Thursday games
- Reds are 1-4 in Mahle’s last 5 starts vs. National League East
- Cincinnati is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
- Cincinnati is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games on the road
- The total has gone OVER in 14 of Cincinnati’s last 20 games
- Washington is 6-2 ATS in its last 8 games
- Washington is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games
- The total has gone OVER in 5 of Washington’s last 6 games at home
