The Cincinnati Reds (15-18) will host the Chicago Cubs (19-14) this afternoon, with Cincinnati looking to pick up a series win and the Cubs hoping to get the series split. The Reds will be sending Luis Castillo to the mound, while Chicago will counter with Tyler Chatwood.
Starting Lineups
Chicago Cubs
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Cincinnati Reds
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| Ian Happ – CF | Joey Votto – 1B |
| Anthony Rizzo – 1B | Nick Castellanos – RF |
| Javier Báez -SS | Jesse Winker – DH |
| Kyle Schwarber – LF | Eugenio Suárez – 3B |
| Willson Contreras – C | Mike Moustakas – 2B |
| Jason Heyward – RF | Jose Garcia – SS |
| Jason Kipnis – DH | Mark Payton – LF |
| David Bote – 3B | Shogo Akiyama – CF |
| Nico Hoerner – 2B | Tucker Barnhart – C |
| Tyler Chatwood – SP | Luis Castillo – SP |
The Reds have a clear advantage on the mound. Joey Votto will look to build upon his big day yesterday, and Eugenio Suárez will look to get back on the hot streak he was on before yesterday.
Starting Pitchers
| Pitcher | IP | ERA | WHIP | BB% | K% |
| Luis Castillo | 32.1 | 3.62 | 1.52 | 9.7% | 31.0% |
| Tyler Chatwood | 16.1 | 6.06 | 1.78 | 11.7% | 32.5% |
| Links: Luis Castillo’s Stats | Tyler Chatwood’s Stats |
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Luis Castillo
Still looking for his first win in 2020, Luis Castillo takes the mound today against the Cubs coming off of a start in Milwaukee where he struggled with his control.
2020 Splits
| Split | PA | H | 2B | 3B | HR | BB% | K% | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| RHH | 73 | 20 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 5.5% | 32.9% | .290 | .329 | .348 |
| LHH | 72 | 15 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 13.9% | 29.2% | .246 | .347 | .393 |
Pitch Usage in 2020
| 4-Seam | Cutter | Slider | Change | |
| Velo | 97.6 | 97.7 | 86.9 | 88.5 |
| Usage | 29% | 20% | 18% | 32% |
Tyler Chatwood
After spending most of 2019 in the bullpen, Tyler Chatwood will be making his 5th start of the 2020 season for the Cubs. He’ll be looking to get things going in the right direction, as he’s struggled to a 6.06 ERA in his first four starts that have gone just 16.1 total innings.
2020 Splits
| Split | PA | H | 2B | 3B | HR | BB% | K% | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| vsRHH | 30 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 16.7% | 23.3% | .375 | .467 | .667 |
| vsLHH | 47 | 11 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 8.5% | 38.3% | .256 | .319 | .419 |
Tyler Chatwood has shown some pretty huge splits this year, but it’s come in a very small sample size for both sides. And those splits aren’t exactly how things played out in 2019, either. Last season right-handed hitters had a .580 OPS against him, while left-handed hitters had an .823 OPS against him. He struggled to throw strikes to both lefties and righties in 2019.
Pitch Usage in 2020
| 4-Seam | 2-Seam | Change | Cutter | Curve | |
| Velo | 95.1 | 94.5 | 85.6 | 90.4 | 80.6 |
| Usage | 7% | 45% | 6% | 28% | 14% |
When and Where
- Game time: 1:10pm ET
- Where: Great American Ballpark, Cincinnati.
- Watch: Fox Sports Ohio, MLB.tv
- Listen: 700 WLW AM (Cincinnati area)
- Forecast: 77°, partly cloudy, 0% chance of rain
NL Central Standings
| Team | Wins | Losses | GB |
| Cubs | 19 | 14 | – |
| Brewers | 15 | 17 | 3.5 |
| Cardinals | 11 | 13 | 3.5 |
| Reds | 15 | 18 | 4.0 |
| Pirates | 9 | 21 | 8.5 |
News and Notes
Following the game last night, Aristides Aquino was optioned back to the alternate site at Prasco Park as the roster needed to be trimmed back down to 28 players.
Updated Playoff Odds
After splitting the double header on Saturday, the Reds playoff odds sit at 53.9% according to Fangraphs. Over at Baseball Reference the playoff odds for the Reds are at 29.5%.