Pinnacle -1½ +139 BET365 -1½ +135 SportsInteraction -1½ +135 5DIMES -1½ +135 CoolBet -1½ +135

Posted at 12:35 PM EST.

CINCINNATI -1½ +125 over St. Louis

6:40 PM EST. The Reds are -155 today after the Cardinals knocked out the outstanding Sonny Gray in the very first inning last night. St. Louis went on to win 16-2 for its third straight win while the Reds have dropped three in a row. Cincinnati is not starting Gray again, nor are they starting Luis Castillo. The Reds are starting Tyler Mahle (LHP - CIN) and he’s -155 (at the time of this writing). That’s insane, no?

When something doesn’t look right, it sticks out. That Tyler Mahle and the Reds are -155 over the heating up Cardinals is absolutely going to attract the attention of the “man on the street”. How can Cincinnati be priced so high? Tyler Mahle isn’t exactly killing it. The Reds have lost four of his last five starts and he brings a decent but not elite 3.91 ERA to this start. He’s not exactly a household name either so buyers, be aware that the Cardinals might be the “sucker” bet of the day because they look so appealing as an underdog in this range after a 16-2 win last night.

Before we sign off on this play, here’s some information on the Cardinals starter today, Johan Oviedo (RHP - STL). The Cardinals $1.9 million bonus from 2016 has made the majors despite no Triple-A experience. 6’5” and 245 pounds, the native Cuban has a large presence on the mound and a bevy of interesting pitches. Oviedo’s best pitch is his plus 96-mph fastball that he can add or subtract from. The pitch plays up, as he gets extreme extension on the mound. His best secondary is a high-spin slider with a late bite that gets some swing and misses as an above-average pitch. There’s also an average curveball and change-up in here, but Oviedo’s below-average command hinders their effectiveness. The delivery can get out of whack and hinders the overall package right now, so it’s questionable how well he will handle major leaguers adept at laying off pitches out of the zone. If it all comes together for him, there’s a mid-rotation starter, but it is likely that is still some distance away. The Cardinals are desperate for bodies, so he’ll try and go as long as he can.

In 10 innings covering two starts at this level, Oviedo has walked four and struck out five with a 33% first-pitch strike rate, a 8.4 swing and miss rate and a batted ball profile of 36% grounders, 27% line-drives and 37% fly-balls. In his last start covering five full, he struck out one batter but only allowed one run. His xERA is 6.22 in a small sample size but just remember that dude skipped Triple-AAA and it is a rare breed that goes from Double-A to the majors and has success. Oviedo does not look like that guy.

---------------------------------------------------

A cheaper and better alternative to CABLE

TV Programming

A GREAT OFFER FOR SPORTSWAGERS READERS:

We’re offering a better and cheaper alternative to cable TV. You will literally save thousands of dollars. If you’re sick of paying a fortune for programming that you don’t even want or need, this is for you. All pro sports -- EVERY GAME, tons of college football and basketball games and tons of regular programming (non-sports). Over 2500 channels all in HD for a mere $20 per month. You have to be nuts not to get it.

Get all the details here