Cincinnati Reds vs. Diamondbacks Series Preview

The Cincinnati Reds will host the Arizona Diamondbacks in their second four game series in a row at Great American Ball Park starting Monday at 6:40 pm EST. The Reds are coming off a disappointing series loss against the Washington Nationals at home, losing three out of four games in that series. They have lost four out of their last five matchups.

The Diamondbacks are coming off a series loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates where they lost two out of three on the weekend. Arizona has won only two out of its last five matchups. They will hope to turn their luck around in their matchup with the Reds.

Let’s take a look at the matchup between the Reds and Diamondbacks as we look ahead to game 2 of this four game series.

Expected Odds

The Cincinnati Reds have home field advantage which has proved to be beneficial to them. They are now 10-15 at home and 8-20 on the road. The Diamondbacks are 14-16 at home and 12-13 on the road. 

I think these will be tight contests with two similar teams, but lean to give the Diamondbacks the edge on the odds because of their tougher division and better overall record.

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Divisional Standings Outlook

The Cincinnati Reds remain at the bottom of the NL Central at 13.5 games back from the first place Milwaukee Brewers with a record of 18-35. The Reds need to take advantage of these matchups at home to catapult them out of last place, a spot where they have been for the whole year. The St. Louis Cardinals, Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago Cubs round out the two, three and four spots in the divisional standings

The 26-29 Arizona Diamondbacks have not had much better of a season than the Reds. They are fourth in the NL West but still 9.5 games behind the first place Los Angeles Dodgers. They have a good chance to move up in the standings with a few crucial series coming up. The San Diego Padres are in second, San Francisco Giants in third and Colorado Rockies in dead last for the rest of the division.

Expected Pitching Matchup

Diamondbacks’ lefty Madison Bumgarner took the mound against Hunter Greene of the Cincinnati Reds in game 1. For game 2, the expected pitcher for the Diamondbacks is still TBD. Graham Ashcraft is the expected starter for the Reds. Ashcraft is 2-0 on the season with an ERA of 1.53 and nine strikeouts.

Expected Outcome

Although the Diamondbacks should have the advantage in most of the games in terms of odds, I think that this series will be split two to two because of how similar these two teams have played this season. The Reds will be looking to avenge their series loss against the Nationals and get back on the right page. The Diamondbacks are hoping to make up their deficit for an early playoff push.

This should be a good series between two teams that are trying to prove that their record doesn’t tell the full story to the talent on their team.