Bet This MLB Parlay at (+294) on Wednesday
Cincinnati Reds vs. San Diego Padres
Wednesday, April 20 at 4:10 p.m. ET at Petco Park in San Diego
Ice Cold
Form is evidently important in baseball. It's evident because it explains how long streaks like this one can form: the Reds have not scored more than three runs in a game since April 12.
Since then, they've scored three runs twice. In their last five games, they scored no more than two runs.
Two significant disappointments thus far include Joey Votto and Tommy Pham.
Votto is known for his good eye, but he has 18 strikeouts to five hits.
His BA this season is .119 while he's slugging .143.
As for Pham, his BA is marginally better than Votto's while he's slugging a paltry .353.
MacKenzie Gore
Padre starter MacKenzie Gore is a great candidate to help perpetuate Cincinnati's offensive woes.
Gore is a 23-year-old rookie who made his professional debut last week against Atlanta.
He was solid in that game considering the circumstances. Indeed, many pitchers would be nervous when making their MLB debut.
Perhaps Gore was nervous, but he nevertheless lasted 5.1 innings while allowing two runs.
Command is the first major thing that rookie pitchers usually struggle with.
But Gore was a confident strike-thrower and walked only two batters.
To make it to the big stage, a pitcher needs to have good stuff.
Gore is no exception in this regard: In particular, his slider produces whiffs at a strong rate.
Its horizontal movement and additional combination of depth and tilt make it hard for batters to even make contact with.
But he primarily throws a fastball. It averages 95.6 mph and he distributes it evenly throughout the strike zone.
Today, Gore matches up well against the Reds because Gore is a southpaw and they rank 23rd in slugging .288 against southpaws.
Vladimir Gutierrez
Red starter Vladimir Gutierrez is, similar to his Padre starter, somebody who you may not be too familiar with.
Gutierrez is, like Gore, primarily a fastball-thrower, although his arsenals more developed in that he throws other pitches at a higher rate.
Still, Gutierrez's fastball is decisive since he throws it well over half the time.
So far, he has had to face teams that hit this particular pitch very strongly.
Gutierrez enjoys a strong opportunity today because the Padres rank 27thin slugging against the fastball from righties.
Toronto Blue Jays vs. Boston Red Sox
Wednesday, April 20, 2022 at 7:10 p.m. ET at Fenway Park in Boston
Jose Berrios
As evident in his high ERA, Blue Jay starter Jose Berrios is struggling for form.
He has a long way to go until he reaches his desired level of command.
Overall, none of his favorite pitches are working well for him.
He throws a fastball, curveball, and sinker with over 25 percent frequency.
Opponents are slugging well over .700 against each of these pitches.
Today, Berrios is in a particularly bad spot because he is 0-3 with a 7.31 ERA in his career in Fenway Park.
This is precisely not the venue in which Berrios wants to pitch in order to reverse his bad form.
In addition to struggling already in general right now, Berrios has to pitch in a venue where he is historically awful.
Nick Pivetta
Boston starter Nick Pivetta's form is also poor as evident in how unsharp he's been.
But the best reason for fading him today is history.
Plenty of Blue Jay batters have proven that they can thrive when facing Pivetta.
Specifically, Bo Bichette, Cavan Biggio, and George Springer all slug well over .800 against him in at least seven career at-bats.
Moreover, Vlad Guerrero slugs .571 in 14 career at-bats against Pivetta.
The Verdict
Expect a pitching duel between Padre and Red starters while Boston and Toronto pitchers struggle to contain the opposing starting lineup.
Best Bet: Parlay Reds/Padres Under 8.5 at -112 & Blue Jays/Red Sox Over 9.5 at +108 at +294 odds with BetOnline
Cincinnati Reds vs. San Diego Padres
Wednesday, April 20 at 4:10 p.m. ET at Petco Park in San Diego
Ice Cold
Form is evidently important in baseball. It's evident because it explains how long streaks like this one can form: the Reds have not scored more than three runs in a game since April 12.
Since then, they've scored three runs twice. In their last five games, they scored no more than two runs.
Two significant disappointments thus far include Joey Votto and Tommy Pham.
Votto is known for his good eye, but he has 18 strikeouts to five hits.
His BA this season is .119 while he's slugging .143.
As for Pham, his BA is marginally better than Votto's while he's slugging a paltry .353.
MacKenzie Gore
Padre starter MacKenzie Gore is a great candidate to help perpetuate Cincinnati's offensive woes.
Gore is a 23-year-old rookie who made his professional debut last week against Atlanta.
He was solid in that game considering the circumstances. Indeed, many pitchers would be nervous when making their MLB debut.
Perhaps Gore was nervous, but he nevertheless lasted 5.1 innings while allowing two runs.
Command is the first major thing that rookie pitchers usually struggle with.
But Gore was a confident strike-thrower and walked only two batters.
To make it to the big stage, a pitcher needs to have good stuff.
Gore is no exception in this regard: In particular, his slider produces whiffs at a strong rate.
Its horizontal movement and additional combination of depth and tilt make it hard for batters to even make contact with.
But he primarily throws a fastball. It averages 95.6 mph and he distributes it evenly throughout the strike zone.
Today, Gore matches up well against the Reds because Gore is a southpaw and they rank 23rd in slugging .288 against southpaws.
Vladimir Gutierrez
Red starter Vladimir Gutierrez is, similar to his Padre starter, somebody who you may not be too familiar with.
Gutierrez is, like Gore, primarily a fastball-thrower, although his arsenals more developed in that he throws other pitches at a higher rate.
Still, Gutierrez's fastball is decisive since he throws it well over half the time.
So far, he has had to face teams that hit this particular pitch very strongly.
Gutierrez enjoys a strong opportunity today because the Padres rank 27thin slugging against the fastball from righties.
Toronto Blue Jays vs. Boston Red Sox
Wednesday, April 20, 2022 at 7:10 p.m. ET at Fenway Park in Boston
Jose Berrios
As evident in his high ERA, Blue Jay starter Jose Berrios is struggling for form.
He has a long way to go until he reaches his desired level of command.
Overall, none of his favorite pitches are working well for him.
He throws a fastball, curveball, and sinker with over 25 percent frequency.
Opponents are slugging well over .700 against each of these pitches.
Today, Berrios is in a particularly bad spot because he is 0-3 with a 7.31 ERA in his career in Fenway Park.
This is precisely not the venue in which Berrios wants to pitch in order to reverse his bad form.
In addition to struggling already in general right now, Berrios has to pitch in a venue where he is historically awful.
Nick Pivetta
Boston starter Nick Pivetta's form is also poor as evident in how unsharp he's been.
But the best reason for fading him today is history.
Plenty of Blue Jay batters have proven that they can thrive when facing Pivetta.
Specifically, Bo Bichette, Cavan Biggio, and George Springer all slug well over .800 against him in at least seven career at-bats.
Moreover, Vlad Guerrero slugs .571 in 14 career at-bats against Pivetta.
The Verdict
Expect a pitching duel between Padre and Red starters while Boston and Toronto pitchers struggle to contain the opposing starting lineup.
Best Bet: Parlay Reds/Padres Under 8.5 at -112 & Blue Jays/Red Sox Over 9.5 at +108 at +294 odds with BetOnline
