Tonight, the Reds and Indians kick off an Interleague series. The Reds are +123 and the Indians are -133. The under/over is 9.5 with the over being -115 and the under set at -105. This game could be called the “someone needs to win” series. Both of these teams are playing horrible right now. The Indians are coming off of a series at home against the Cubs were they took just 1 of 3. Ironically, the won the game Maddux pitched in. The Reds just finished a four game set with the Mets. They split the series.

The Reds were red hot to start the season, but they have slowed down. They are just 3-7 over their last ten games. They are 3-10 over their last 13 games. The wheels have basically come off, yet they find themselves just 4 back of first thanks to a hot start and a Cardinals team that went through a mini drought.

The Indians are fifteen games out of first place and showing no signs of life. They are 3-7 over their last 10. They are also 3-10 over their last 13. The good news is someone has to win this series. Six of those thirteen games were against the White Sox and Yankees. Perhaps a little forgiveness can be applied. The scoring has been sporadic.

Aaron Harang is pitching for the Reds tonight. He has a 3.92 ERA, but is 1.86 on the road. He has pitched against some good teams on the road—Colorado, St. Louis twice and Detroit. He is expected to give the Reds about 6 quality innings. His last outing was against the White Sox at home. He pitched 6.2 innings and gave up 3 runs over 8 hits and 2 walks. He did strike out 9.

Jake Westbrook is going to try and stop the Reds. He has a 4.35 ERA, but has shown his best pitching at home, 2.41 ERA. He has faced some quality teams at home—Boston, Texas, Chicago White Sox, and Oakland. All four are basically first place teams or very close. His last outing was against Milwaukee. He pitched 8 strong innings, giving up only a single run over 5 hits. He allowed no walked and struck out 8.

The under looks like a possible play. It’s at 9.5 and you have two pitchers who are in ideal situations for solid games.