The 80-76 Cincinnati Reds have won five straight and are now tied with the New York Mets for the last NL wild card spot and hold the tie breaker over New York should the two clubs remain even at the end of the regular season. The Reds will look to keep it rolling when they open a 3-game set with the 67-89 Pittsburgh Pirates tonight at Great American Ball Park. The expected starter for the Reds is Brady Singer. Singer is 14-10 with a 3.86 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP. Over his last three turns, it gets better. He is 2-1 with a 2.04 ERA, a barely visible WHIP of 0.98, and Cincinnati is 6-0 in his last 6 home starts. The Bucs are expected to give the nod the Johan Oviedo, who is 2-0 with a 3.52 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP, but that’s over just 30 innings of work. The Big Red Machine have won the last two meetings with the Pirates who are a dismal 23-52 on the road and Cincinnati is 6-0 in their last 6 games at Great American Ball Park.
TONIGHT’S PICK: CINCINNATI REDS