The Cleveland Indians (5-5) and Cincinnati Reds (4-5) kick off a four-game, home-and-home series for the Ohio Cup, starting with two games at Great American Ball Park Monday at 6:40 p.m. ET. We analyze the Indians-Reds MLB betting odds and lines, with picks and best bets.
Indians at Reds: Projected starting pitchers
RHP Zach Plesac vs. RHP Sonny Gray
Plesac was impressive in his initial outing of 2020, spinning eight scoreless innings against the Chicago White Sox Wednesday, while allowing three hits and no walks with a career-high 11 strikeouts in a no-decision.
- Plesac threw 72 of 98 pitches for strikes in his first start, including first-pitch strikes to 17 of the 27 batters he faced.
- Plesac faced the Reds once 2019, his rookie season, allowing four earned runs, five hits and two walks with six K’s over 5 1/3 innings in a 7-2 home loss June 12, 2019.
Also see: BaseballHQ Fantasy Baseball
Gray will be making his third start of the season. He enters 2-0 with a 0.71 ERA, just four hits allowed, three walks and 20 strikeouts across 12 2/3 innings in home wins over the Detroit Tigers and Chicago Cubs.
- Gray is picking up right where he left off in 2019. He was a solid 8-3 with a 3.05 ERA and .210 opponent batting average in 85 2/3 innings across 16 starts at home last season.
- Gray last faced the Indians May 5, 2018, when he was a member of the New York Yankees. He allowed two runs over six innings in a win that day.
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Indians at Reds: Key injuries
(List of injuries around the league)
Indians
- OF Delino DeShields (illness) remains on the 10-day injured list after a positive test for the COVID-19 virus.
- OF Tyler Naquin (toe) remains out indefinitely due to a toe injury.
- C Roberto Perez (shoulder) is also out indefinitely due to a shoulder ailment.
Reds
- 2B Mike Moustakas (forearm) exited Game 1 of Sunday’s doubleheader against the Tigers after getting hit by a pitch.
- 1B Joey Votto (undisclosed) is on the 10-day injured list due to an undisclosed illness and his timetable remains uncertain.
Indians at Reds: Odds, lines, picks and betting tips
MLB odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full list. Odds last updated Monday at 12:10 a.m. ET.
Prediction
Reds 6, Indians 3
Moneyline (ML)
The REDS (-129) are a solid play in this Buckeye state interleague battle. The Indians (+115) are struggling to plate runs right now, cobbling together just four runs in their last five games, including being shut out twice. In fact, in 10 contests they’re scoring just 2.7 runs per game this season. Until the offense picks up, you should keep fading the Tribe.
New to sports betting? A winning $10 bet on Cincinnati (-129) turns a profit $7.75, while a $10 play on Cleveland (+115) fetches a profit of $11.50.
Run line/Against the spread (ATS)
The REDS (-1.5, +155) are an attractive play against the struggling Indians (+1.5, -189). The Reds won Game 2 of Sunday’s doubleheader by a 4-0 margin, and three of their four wins this season have been by four or more runs. As such, if you’re picking the Reds to win, you might as well tag the run line a bit, too.
Over/Under (O/U)
The O/U is 8.5 with -110 odds on both sides, but let’s back the alternate line of OVER 7.5 (-143). Four of the previous five Reds games at GABP have cashed Over. While the Indians are having trouble scoring, the Over is 5-0 in their past five interleague games and 8-2-1 in the past 11 trips to the ‘Nati.
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