MLB Betting Free Picks: Cincinnati @ Cleveland

Added on May 21, 2010 by Jack Thurman in

MLB

Sportsbooks will offer MLB betting action in Interleague play this weekend, and we’ll get things started with ‘The Battle of Ohio’ as the Cincinnati Reds visit the Cleveland Indians. The Reds suffered a brutal loss in Atlanta yesterday, blowing an 8 run lead to finally succumb to a walk off grand slam in the bottom of the 9th. That notwithstanding, its been a good year in Cincy so far and the Reds are contending for first place in the NL Central. The Indians, on the other hand, are mired in last place in the AL Central.

Cincinnati Reds at Cleveland Indians
May 21, 4:05 PM Pacific

The sheer length of the MLB sports betting season means that there are very few regular season games that are ‘circled’ or emphasized by individual teams. Obviously, teams know they need to win more than they lose and most will keep an eye on the standings but there are few circumstances that can be seen as ‘must win’ situations in individual games. For Cincinnati, this could very well be one of them. Having lost the worst 9th inning collapse in baseball in over a year, its essential that the team regain their confidence and not run the risk that Thursday’s fiasco in Atlanta will define their season.

The good news for the Reds is that they face a very beatable opponent in the Cleveland Indians. The Tribe enters this contest having lost 4 straight and with a 6-10 record at home. While Thursday’s collapse by the Reds bullpen sure isn’t a confidence booster, the Cincy starting rotation has performed well in the past couple of weeks. Bronson Arroyo has gone 16 innings in his last two outings allowing only 3 total ER so he could take the pressure off the bullpen. In contrast to many of their predecessors, this year’s Cleveland team is a light hitting bunch that is only averaging 3.8 runs per game. They’re also 9-17 -7.4 units against right hand pitching. Cincinnati has won 9 of the last 12 against their Ohio neighbors, and we’ll back them at a pick’em price today.

Bet Cincinnati (Arroyo) -110 over Cleveland (Westbrook)