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The Milwaukee Brewers will take on the Cincinnati Reds Friday night. The Brewers were defeated by the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-4 Thursday, bringing their record to 57-48. The Reds are now 42-62 this year after losing to the Miami Marlins. Cincinnati has been a bad team away from home, holding just an 18-30 away record this year. They've also lost 12 of their last 15 when playing against the Brewers.
Milwaukee sends out righty Eric Lauer for Friday's matchup. He is 7-3 with a 3.75 ERA over 19 starts. The left-hander has been pretty good these last few weeks, holding a 2.96 ERA in his past five appearances.
The Reds offense averages 3.4 runs per game in their previous seven, which is low for them. They also average only 3.4 runs per game on the road. Lauer has also been excellent at American Family Field, sporting a 2.85 ERA at home this season in eight starts there. Look for the southpaw to keep pitching well in the series opener.
"Eric Lauer, Zoom balls." - Rob Friedman
On Friday, Robert Dugger will make his first start of the year for Cincinnati. He's made just three appearances this year for both the Tampa Bay Rays and the Reds. He'll likely be pulled early, meaning the Cincinnati bullpen, which has a 5.20 ERA, will be asked to record most of the outs.
"...He is scheduled to start tonight's game against the Brewers" - Reds
Look for the Milwaukee offense that has been averaging 5.6 runs in their previous seven to stay hot.
Milwaukee Brewers vs. Cincinnati Reds Match Details
Fixture: Cincinnati Reds @ Milwaukee Brewers
Date & Time: Friday, August 5, 8:10 p.m. EDT
Venue: American Family Field, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee Brewers vs. Cincinnati Reds Betting Odds
Milwaukee Brewers vs. Cincinnati Reds Best Picks
Eric Lauer has held the opposition to two or fewer earned runs in four of his last five starts. Expect that trend to continue against a Reds team that just traded away two of their better lefty-facing hitters.
Pick: Eric Lauer Under 2.5 Earned Runs Allowed (-125)
Milwaukee Brewers vs. Cincinnati Reds Betting Prediction
The Brewers are in the midst of a four-game losing streak that they'll look to put an end to on Friday. The bats should be able to get going against Dugger, who has a career 6.97 ERA and 1.67 WHIP. Back the home team to put up at least five runs in this one.
Prediction: Brewers Team Total Over 4.5 Runs (-145)
