San Diego Favored to Finish Off Sweep of Cincinnati

The San Diego Padres are 5-2 in their last seven games against the Cincinnati Reds including a 3-0 record through the first three games of this four-game series against them. The Padres can complete their sweep against the Reds with a win this Sunday afternoon in San Diego.

Sportsbook Odds Analysis

The Padres opened as -166 favorites in Sunday’s matchup and have been bet down slightly to San Diego -150. Cincinnati is going off as a +140 road underdog while the total has remained steady at 8.5 runs. The OVER is 7-3 in Cincinnati’s last 10 games.

Starting Pitchers Analysis

Luis Castillo had one of his sharpest outings of the season last Tuesday as he allowed only three hits and three walks with no runs in seven innings pitched against the Milwaukee Brewers. Castillo has pitched very well in his three starts in June with a 1.93 ERA and a 0.75 WHIP in 18.2 innings pitched. The 28-year-old went 0-6 with an 8.04 ERA and a 1.93 WHIP in six May starts.

Dinelson Lamet continues to pitch well despite his limited pitch count with a 3.33 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP in 27 innings pitched across nine appearances. Lamet has thrown an average of 75 pitches per start through his first three starts in June, an uptick from the 40.2 pitches per game he averaged in May. The Padres are being as cautious as possible with their young starter since he injured his arm this offseason.

Cincinnati News & Notes

The Reds were 6-0 in their previous six games overall and 8-0 in their previous eight road games entering this series after sweeping Milwaukee at the beginning of the week. But those winning streaks both came to an end on Thursday and have given way to three straight losses in this series.

Cincinnati had allowed only 2.33 runs per game over their 6-0 run. In this series against the Padres, the Reds pitching staff and bullpen has been torched for seven runs per game. The Reds got off to a strong start on Saturday with a 2-0 lead through the first two innings before allowing five earned runs over the next two innings of their 7-5 loss to the Padres. Cincinnati fell to 35-34 with the loss.

San Diego News & Notes

The Padres’ celebration for winning on Saturday was dampened by the fact that Fernando Tatis Jr. was forced to leave the game with a shoulder injury after diving for a ball. Tatis Jr. has been red-hot of late with a .333 batting average, 10 runs, five home runs and 11 RBI over his last eight games. The injury does not appear to be serious, but it could keep Tatis Jr. out of Sunday’s season finale as he is questionable to play and the Padres likely won’t want to take any chances.

San Diego’s 3-0 run against Cincinnati has been a welcome step back in the right direction for the Padres. After getting off to one of the best starts in baseball with a 34-19 record, the Padres went just 4-13 over their next 17 games before this recent three-game winning streak.

Betting Pick: Cincinnati +140