After the game on Tuesday evening was postponed due to weather, Game 2 of the series between the Cincinnati Reds and Atlanta Braves will take place on Wednesday afternoon.
The Reds will travel to Atlanta, Georgia, to face the Braves at Truist Park. The game will start at 12:20 pm ET and air on the MLB Network, Bally Sports Ohio, and Bally Sports South.
The Cincinnati Reds ended their four-game losing streak with a 4-1 win in Game 1 of the series on the road against the Atlanta Braves on Monday. However, they remain in last place in the NL Central and are five games below .500 at 48-53, which puts them 9.5 games behind the Milwaukee Brewers for 1st place in the division and four games behind the New York Mets for the final Wild Card spot in the National League.
Cincinnati scored the first four runs of the game on Monday against Atlanta, including two runs in the 3rd inning, with one being a solo home run off the bat of Will Benson. Hunter Greene played a pivotal role in the win for the Reds in Game 1 as he pitched seven shutout innings while recording seven strikeouts to win his 7th start of the season and his 3rd straight quality start.
The win in Game 1 ended a two-game losing streak in the series for the Reds against the Braves; however, Cincinnati lost seven of the last ten games against Atlanta and an average margin of 1.1 runs per game in those contests. The Cincinnati Reds will look to secure the series win when they travel to face the Atlanta Braves for Game 2.
Despite suffering multiple key injuries this season, the Atlanta Braves lost another key player in Ozzie Albies for what will likely be the majority of the rest of the regular season; however, unlike Spencer Strider and Ronald Acuna, Albies will likely be back in time for the playoffs if the Braves qualify for a spot in the National League playoffs.
The Braves have lost three straight games while having been outscored by their opponents by an average of 2.67 to 6.33 runs per game in those contests, including Monday's 1-4 loss in Game 1 of the series at home against the Reds, which has dropped the record for Atlanta to 54-45 which puts them in 2nd place in the NL East, only behind the Philadelphia Phillies and gives them a three-game lead in the National League Wild Card race.
The Braves would not score a run in Game 1 until the bottom of the 9th inning when Marcell Ozuna scored off a sacrifice fly ball hit by Eddie Rosario. At the same time, Reynaldo Lopez had his worst start of the season after pitching six innings, allowing four runs, and recording five strikeouts, which was Lopez's first start this season, allowing more than three runs.
The Braves have dominated the series against the Reds, winning seven of the last ten and two of the previous three matchups. However, in those meetings, Cincinnati has outscored Atlanta 5 to 5.33 runs per game. The Atlanta Braves will look to even the series 1-1 when they host the Cincinnati Reds for Game 2 on Wednesday afternoon.
WagerWeb lists the Atlanta Braves as -157 moneyline favorites at home against the Cincinnati Reds for Game 2 of the series on Wednesday afternoon. Atlanta has won seven of the last ten games with an average margin of 1.1 runs per game and two of the previous three games in the series. However, the Reds have outscored the Braves by an average of 5.33 to 5 runs per game in those matchups.
Atlanta has won five of the last seven home games in the series and has the better record this season, with Cincinnati behind under .500 in the year and losing four of their previous five games. As a result, I am taking the moneyline for the Atlanta Braves when they host the Cincinnati Reds for Game 2 of the series on Thursday afternoon.
