The Cincinnati Reds and the Athletics will play Game 2 of their three-game set on Wednesday night, and with both clubs well into their regular seasons, they are heading in dramatically different directions right now.
Cincinnati sits at 51-50, hovering right around break-even with a scoring differential of -34 that undersells a lineup that's been streaky but capable of explosions — the Reds are averaging 4.2 runs a game while allowing 4.5. Oakland, meanwhile, is mired in one of the uglier stretches of its season. The A's are 45-66 with a scoring differential of -153, a number that speaks to just how lopsided some of these losses have been. Recent form makes the disparity even starker: Cincinnati has won four of its last five, including a 10-2 blowout and an 8-7 slugfest, both against Pittsburgh. Oakland has dropped five straight, getting outscored 32-7 in a three-game sweep by Detroit before falling twice more to Boston. This is a team searching for answers, and it won't find much relief walking into Cincinnati.
The series opener Tuesday is not detailed here beyond being Game 1 of the set, but Wednesday's Game 2 gives the Reds a chance to seize control with a series win in hand or pull even depending on how that opener shook out. For a Reds club treading water around .500, every series matters as they try to build any kind of sustained momentum in a crowded middle tier of the National League.
On the mound, it's Rhett Lowder for Cincinnati against Mason Barnett for Oakland — a matchup of two starters who've each had rocky returns to the mound this season. Lowder carries a 5.422 ERA, Barnett a 4.854 ERA, and neither number inspires much confidence that this will be a crisp, low-scoring affair. Expect traffic on the bases and quick hooks from both benches if things get out of hand early.
Cincinnati's lineup has shown real life lately. Nathaniel Lowe has been a driving force, posting a monster 37.5-point game in his last three outings alongside a 12.5 and a 14.5 — that's a hot bat by any measure. JJ Bleday has also caught fire, with an 18 and a 34-point game sandwiched around a quiet zero, showing the kind of ceiling that makes him a name to watch. Sal Stewart has been a source of thump too, with a 24.5 and a 41-point game in his last three, even if he cooled to 6.5 most recently. TJ Friedl and Eugenio Suárez round out a lineup that's deep enough to withstand some cold stretches from individual hitters — Suárez himself has been modest of late, with 2, 1.5, and 3.5-point outputs, but the supporting cast has picked up the slack.
The Reds will still be missing key infield pieces. Elly De La Cruz, Spencer Steer, and Matt McLain are all out with injuries, a significant dent in the middle of Cincinnati's order that has forced manager decisions on how to fill the gaps. On the pitching side, the injured list is even longer, with Nick Lodolo, Brandon Williamson, Graham Ashcraft, and Tony Santillan all sidelined in some form, further stretching a rotation and bullpen that already has its hands full.
Oakland's problems run deeper. Nick Kurtz, their most talented offensive piece with a 15.5 season average in fantasy points, has gone cold at the worst time, managing just 2, 2, and 3 points across his last three games. Lawrence Butler has been inconsistent, bouncing from 5 to 16 to 0. Jeff McNeil has shown occasional life with a 10 and an 8.5 in two of his last three, but a zero in the other continues a theme of unpredictability up and down this Oakland order. The absences pile up too — Brent Rooker, Shea Langeliers, Jacob Wilson, and Tyler Soderstrom are all unavailable, gutting a lineup that was already scuffling to begin with. On the pitching side, Oakland's rotation is similarly decimated, with Luis Severino, J.T. Ginn, Gunnar Hoglund, and Justin Sterner among those out.
Between an offense that's gone cold at exactly the wrong time, a bullpen and rotation stretched thin, and a five-game losing streak weighing on confidence, Oakland enters Wednesday with little going in its favor. Cincinnati, warts and injuries aside, has been finding ways to win, and pitching matchups like this one — where both starters carry ERAs north of 4.85 — tend to favor the team with the deeper, hotter lineup. That's Cincinnati.
Look for the Reds to lean on their recent offensive surge to take command of this series. Prediction: Reds 7, Athletics 4.