Cincinnati Reds Starting Lineup 7/20/21 Reds Lineup
48-46, 2nd in NL Central
Confirmed Conf
vs NYM
11:10 pm GMT , 7/20
Cincinnati Reds 
The Cincinnati Reds were one of four teams to make the MLB playoffs from the NL Central. Ahead of any decision to limit wildcard teams back to post-2020 numbers, surprisingly Cincinnati is getting a lot of playoff attention. Nearly every sportsbook has the Reds within the top-10 for the NL Pennant. Last year's same four NL Central teams are projected to be part of a tight race for the division and whatever NL playoff format materializes. This after Cincinnati finished three games behind the first place Cubs, tied with the Cardinals, and two games ahead of Milwaukee. But was the Reds' success nothing but smoke and mirrors?
Reds Starting Lineup
Most Common Reds Lineups
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2021 Recent Reds Lineups
| Game | Score | Starting Pitcher | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7/19 vs NYM | L 11-15 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 7/18 vs MIL | L 0-8 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 7/17 vs MIL | L 4-7 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 7/16 vs MIL | L 6-11 | | | | | | | | | | |
| 7/11 @ MIL | W 3-1 | | | | | | | | | |
Cincinnati hit the seventh most home runs in baseball, but had the worst team batting average. The Reds were fourth worst in runs scored. A team with the 3rd oldest batters had the 7th best ERA in baseball. All of this would seem to make an odd combination for sustained success. It must have weighed heavily on the decision of Cincinnati's staff ace. Trevor Bauer took his team leading sub-2.00 ERA to the West Coast. A solid team ERA, which compensated for a lack of run production, took a huge hit. Oddsmakers seem at odds with Cincinnati justifying such a lofty preseason prediction. Statistical projection models insist the Reds are an average team at best. Cincinnati will need a few overachievers, plus some rekindled stats from a few aging bats to realize what appears to be suspect potential for success.
