Baseball fans are in for a treat later tonight as the MLB has lined up a pair of blockbuster games that will no doubt tickle your fancy. Opening proceedings tonight is the much-anticipated National League Central showdown between the Cincinnati Reds and Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park.
Then, the Oakland Athletics and the Texas Rangers square off in a mouth-watering American League West clash. Read on below for a quick breakdown of these two matchups and while you’re at it, you can check out our World Cup quarterfinal previews of USA vs. China and Germany vs. France.
[sc:MLBArticles ]Cincinnati Reds vs. Pittsburgh Pirates (7:05 PM ET)
Line: Cincinnati Reds vs. Pittsburgh Pirates – view all MLB lines
[sc:MLB240banner ]Pittsburgh’s losing woes continued on Sunday as it suffered a humiliating 9-2 defeat to the Washington Nationals. The Pirates will look to return to winning ways when they host the Cincinnati Reds in their series opener tonight. Starting for Pittsburgh tonight is Jeff Locke (4-3, 4.74 ERA). He has been solid in his last two starts for the Pirates, allowing just two earned runs in 12 innings of action.
The Reds, on the other hand, will counter with right-hander Josh Smith. This will be the 27-year-old’s Major League debut. He is 1-3 with a 3.56 ERA in eight starts at Triple-A Louisville. With their 5-2 victory against the Miami Marlins on Sunday, the Reds have now won four of their last five games.
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Writer’s Prediction
Pittsburgh wins, 5-1.
Oakland Athletics vs. Texas Rangers (8:05 PM ET)
Line: Oakland Athletics (-130) at Texas Rangers (+120); total: 9.0 – view all MLB lines
The Oakland Athletics stretched their unbeaten run to two games with a thrilling 3-2 win over the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday. They will look to extend their winning streak to three games when they square off with the Texas Rangers in their series opener tonight. Starting for the A’s tonight is Jesse Chavez (3-6, 2.52 ERA). He was superb in his last start, allowing just one run on three hits in seven innings of action, in Oakland’s 16-2 win against the Texas Rangers on June 17.
He will have his work cut out for him later tonight, though, as he will face the red-hot Chi Chi Gonzalez (2-1, 0.90 ERA). The Rangers have won three of their last four games with Gonzalez as their starter. He has surrendered a total of just three runs in 30 innings of work this season.
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Writer’s Prediction
The Rangers win, 4-2. Create a betting account now and bet on the best games for tonight.
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