Ladies and gentlemen, are you ready for an epic battle between the Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds taking place at the batter-friendly Great American Ball Park? You'd better be. Now let's crunch some numbers and stats to predict the outcome of this game.
The Braves are sending Grant Holmes to the mound, a pitcher with a less-than-stellar ERA of 3.97 but a decent 9.3 K/9 strikeout rate. The Reds, on the other hand, are riding on Brandon Williamson who owns an excellent 2.93 ERA and 8.0 K/9 rate in his three appearances this season. Advantage Reds.
The Braves, however, have an excellent lineup. Marcell Ozuna and Ramon Laureano boast batting averages above .300 and Michael Harris II has shown serious home run power despite his lower batting average. On the Reds side, Tyler Stephenson and Ty France are hitting for high averages, and TJ Friedl is pumping in the runs, though with a lower average. It's a tight contest, but I'd lean towards the Braves based on stronger batting depth.
The Reds have been a thorn in the Braves' side in recent matchups, pulling out victories in three of the last five skirmishes. Not to mention, the Braves are nursing a few recent bruises while the Reds had some bounce in their previous games.
But let me tell you something - overall season records do talk, and Atlanta Braves are in a better place with 81 wins as compared to Reds' 73. Yes, Reds, that's how you play baseball.
Now that we've considered the spread, venue, roster stats, past encounters, recent results, and season records, it's time for the prediction. The scales are slightly tilting in the Braves' favor but expect a closely contested game. Don't keep your popcorn too far, folks.
Albert’s Prediction: Atlanta Braves by 2