Cincinnati @ Colorado
Cincinnati -1½ +157 over Colorado

Posted at 1:15 PM EST. Odds subject to change.

Pinnacle  -1½ +157 BET365 -1½ +145 Sportsinteraction N/A 888Sport -1½ +140

Cincinnati -1½ +157 over Colorado

8:40 PM EST. Back to Coors Field tonight, where we are going to "stick with it" and back the Reds today after they lost a 9-8 decision last night. Such is life at Coors. Cincinnati will send the recently called-up Brandon Williamson (LHP - CIN) out for the first start of his big league career. Williamson is the Reds' second-best pitching prospect and ninth overall. Williamson has been described as a "pitch data darling" with his four-plus pitches. If you are looking for an MLB counterpart to what Williamson projects to bring to the pros, scouts have compared him to Blake Snell. Williamson brings upwards of 94 MPH heat, which he mixes with a mid-80s slider, mid-70s curveball, and a low-80s changeup. That starter's mix makes him a very interesting prospect, as all of those pitches are stuffed inside his large 6'6" frame.

The Rockies will answer with Chase Anderson (RHP - COL), whom the Reds saw enough of in his 24 innings in Cincinnati last season that they shipped him to Tampa Bay for cash. The Rays have the best record in the majors, but they quickly cut bait with Anderson after just 5.0 innings across two appearances. Anderson was then waived by Tampa and picked up by the Rockies out of the trash bin for pennies on the dollar. We'll note the Rockies are desperate for starting pitching, as they have a plethora of pitchers on the IL, most notably starters German Marquez (Tommy John), Antonio Senzatela (UCL sprain), and Ryan Feltner, who was drilled by a 92.7 MPH line drive on Saturday. Feltner has a fractured skull but thankfully was released from the hospital today.

Anderson had not allowed a run in his 5.0 IP in Tampa and even had a save, but the Rays cut him loose. Why? Nobody in this league lets quality pitching walk for nothing. Anderson wasn't even in Tampa's rotation, as they had used him exclusively in a reliever role. With such a small sample size, we're not going to put too much stock into Anderson's limited success on the surface. Instead, we are going to trust that the best team in the majors, with a front office whose keen eye for talent we greatly respect, saw something they didn't like. That speaks volumes and says more about this stiff than any prose we could put to paper.

Finnie

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Our Pick

Cincinnati -1½ +157 (Risking 2 units - To Win: 3.14)

Baltimore -1½ +124 over L.A. Angels
San Francisco +100 over San Diego
Toronto +120 over Tampa Bay
Washington +135 over Cincinnati
San Diego under 83½ -105
Boston under 79½ -110