Cincinnati Reds vs Chicago Cubs Predictions, Odds & Picks (September 9)

• Yu Darvish and Trevor Bauer face off in matchup of aces
• Reds hanging onto playoff hope
• Cubs trying to put losing streak in rearview mirror

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Reds vs Cubs Odds

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Reds vs Cubs Predictions and Picks

There’s a lot of juice to pick the Reds at 140% of your bet. It’s just difficult to take it knowing how good the Cubs have been behind Darvish. We like the Cubs money line and if the under becomes available at 7.5 or better, we like the under.

Pick:

Cubs to win at -154

Betting record through 9/8/20 (28-21-1)

Trends (Entering Tuesday)

Reds are 4-1 in last five road games

Reds are 6-13 in last 19 as road underdog

Reds are 4-11 in last 15 as an underdog

Under is 6-1 in Reds last seven as road underdog

Under is 4-1 in Reds last five overall

Under is 22-8 in Reds last 30 road games

Under is 7-3 in Reds last 10 road games vs. team with a winning record

Cubs are 5-2 in last seven as a favorite

Cubs are 4-9 in last 13 home games

Cubs are 10-4 in last 14 games as home favorite

Under is 5-0-1 in Cubs last six overall

Under is 4-0-1 in Cubs last five home games

Under is 5-1 in last six meetings in Chicago

How to Watch Reds vs Cubs

A Pitching Matchup to Behold

This is the best pitching matchup of the day, probably of the week and quite possibly of the year. Yu Darvish, one of the National League Cy Young front runners will face off against Trevor Bauer, someone who is not far outside of that same conversation.

Let’s just go over their raw numbers for starters. Darvish, 7-1, is tied for the MLB lead in wins, his 1.44 ERA is second and his 0.88 WHIP is in the top five. Since picking up the loss on Opening Day, Darvish has thrown seven consecutive games of going six or seven innings and giving up one run or fewer and the Cubs are a perfect 7-0 in those games.

In the 34 games, Darvish hasn’t started, the Cubs are 17-17. He is almost single-handedly the reason they sit atop the NL Central.

On the other side, Trevor Bauer’s 3-3 record is underwhelming and doesn’t tell the story of just how good baseball’s most outspoken player has been. Bauer’s 2.05 ERA is fifth in baseball, his 0.86 WHIP is better than Darvish and he has 61 strikeouts in 44 innings pitched.

That said, he’s struggled a bit in his last three outings, picking up three losses while giving up eight runs and going more than six innings just once after going beyond six innings in three of his first four starts.

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Reds Scratching and Clawing for Position

One step forward, two steps back. That’s been the story of the Reds season in 2020 and they’re desperately trying to fix that after dropping three of four and six of their last nine.

The National League is wide open as far as the wild card race, with four teams within four games of the final Wild Card spot – including the Reds.

The Reds pitching staff hasn’t been the issue. The team 1.30 WHIP is the best in baseball, the .224 batting average against ranks fourth and the 18 quality starts by the staff ranks fifth in the majors.

But what seemed like a potent offense on paper led by Nick Castellanos, Joey Votto, Eugenio Suarez, and Mike Moustakas in the middle of the order hasn’t been anywhere near expectations. The team’s .211 batting average is dead last and the Reds rank in the bottom third in slugging percentage, on-base percentage, and runs scored.

Cincinnati mustered just four hits while getting shutout on Tuesday and has now scored four runs or fewer in eight of its past nine games. But still, even while sitting in fourth place, the playoffs are still in reach with three weeks to go and a momentum win against Darvish and the Cubs would be exactly what the doctor ordered.

If Cubs Are to Get Back on Track, They’ll Need Bryant to Get Going

The Cubs had a tough weekend series against St. Louis and now sit just three games clear of the second-place Cardinals.

They’re 5-5 in the last 10 but have recovered from their losing streak from the middle of August. The offense leads the way for Chicago and usually tells the story of the game. In their last five losses, the Cubs are averaging 2.6 runs. In their last five wins, they’re averaging 5.6 runs.

One thing that will have to change though, win or lose, is Kris Bryant. He’s had two multi-hit games in his last three games, which is a good sign, but his .194 batting average and .577 OPS are far and away the lowest marks of his career