Cincinnati Reds host the Chicago Cubs in a division showdown

The Reds find themselves in an early 1-2 hole with the Cubs coming to town.

It’s safe to say payback is on the Chicago Cubs mind in 2020 as far as the Cincinnati Reds are concerned. Last season the Reds were victorious 11 times in their 19 meetings and, in the process, played a prominent role in the Cubbies missing the playoffs for the first time since the 2014 campaign.

Not only were the Reds a major thorn in the Cubs side, but bad luck also played a factor in failing to live up to their lofty 2019 expectations. The Cubs Pythagorean record last season was 90-72, a full six games better than what their final record showed. If the Pythagorean held true to form, the Cubs would have made another postseason appearance.

Both the Reds and Cubs shared a common enemy throughout the 2019 season and that was the inability to win one-run games. As Reds Country knows all too well, one-run contests were a constant source of frustration in the Queen City.  The Reds finished 24-33 in those games, while the Cubs had an even worse winning percentage going just 19-27 in tight contests.

However, there will be one significant new face in the visitors’ dugout Monday night. Gone is former skipper Joe Maddon who led the Cubs to their first World Series title in more than a century. The man responsible for completing the lineup card now is former Reds catcher David Ross. It’s going to be an interesting season on Chicago’s North Side.