Reds vs Brewers: Preview, pitching matchups and prediction

The streaking Reds host the charging Brewers in a battle for a postseason berth.

Nobody said it would be easy, Reds Country. Despite taking two of three from an excellent Chicago White Sox club, the Cincinnati Reds (27-27) managed to lose a game in the standings for the final playoff spot in the National League. Thanks for nothing Kansas City.

The Milwaukee Brewers (26-26) swept a three-game weekend series from the Kansas City Royals setting the stage for possibly the biggest series ever between the National League Central Division rivals.

One of the unique aspects of this year’s playoff positioning is there’s no play-in game should teams end their seasons with identical records. Currently, the Reds own the tiebreaker over the Brewers due to leading the head-to-head season series four games to three. If the Reds capture the series beginning tonight, they’ll remain in control should they finish the season with the same record as the Brew Crew.

However, since it’s the Reds, things are never that straight forward and easy. The San Francisco Giants (26-26) are sitting with a .500 record as well. Yet, the Reds own this tiebreaker as well based on the best intradivision record.

Entering play tonight, the Redlegs are 19-18 within the NL Central, while the Giants are 15-17 against their division rivals in the NL West. Our old friend Johnny Cueto is on the hill tonight for the Giants, and for the first time in my life, I hope he gets rocked. It’s strange times indeed.

Basically all of this is a long way of saying, if the Reds keep playing winning baseball, they’ll be in the playoffs. However, the road to their first postseason appearance since 2013 begins at Great American Ball Park with Milwaukee standing in the Redlegs way.