The Cincinnati Reds continue their chase for a postseason berth and attempt to complete a sweep when they visit the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday evening for the finale of their three-game series. Cincinnati (67-60), which has won three straight overall after beginning this set with 4-1 and 6-4 victories over Los Angeles, trails the New York Mets (67-58) by one game for the third and final Wild Card spot in the National League.
Gavin Lux gave the Reds a lead they never would relinquish before an out was recorded in the series opener, belting his fifth home run of the season after TJ Friedl led off the game with a single. Noelvi Marte and Miguel Andujar each drove in two runs in the middle contest before Friedl lifted a sacrifice fly in the ninth inning to snap a tie and Lux followed with an RBI double.
Nick Martinez (10-9, 4.73 ERA) looks to win his fifth consecutive decision when he takes the mound for Cincinnati on Wednesday. The 35-year-old right-hander, who escaped with a no-decision in his last outing after surrendering six runs over 2.2 innings against the major league-best Milwaukee Brewers, is 3-3 with a 3.02 ERA in 13 career games — including five relief appearances — versus Los Angeles.
The Angels (60-66), who have lost four of five since sweeping a three-game series against the NL West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers and are 7.5 games out of a Wild Card spot in the American League, counter with Yusei Kikuchi (6-8, 3.52). The 34-year-old Japanese southpaw is coming off just his second defeat in 11 starts, a loss to the Athletics in which he yielded four runs over four innings. Kikuchi made his only career appearance against the Reds in 2022, giving up two runs across 4.1 frames of a no-decision while with the Toronto Blue Jays.
In addition to the Reds-Angels matchup, there are nine other games on the MLB evening schedule, one WNBA contest and four quarterfinal matches in the 2025 Leagues Cup.
Below is a snapshot of what to watch and bet for Wednesday, Aug. 20. All times Eastern
MLB best bets, where to watch
Reds at Angels
Time: 9:38 p.m. | Location: Anaheim, Cal. | TV: MLB Network | Stream: Fubo (Start watching, save $20!)
SportsLine pick — Model: Over 9 (-104)
The Reds have won four straight road games, and two of the last three saw at least 10 combined runs scored. Ten of the Angels’ last 13 contests have had 10 or more runs put on the board. The SportsLine Projection Model sees plenty being scored in the series finale, as it has the Over in more than 57% of its simulations.
Giants at Padres
Time: 9:40 p.m. | Location: San Diego | TV: MLB Network | Steam: Fubo (Start watching, save $20!)
SportsLine pick — Model: Padres -156
These NL West rivals split the first two contests of their four-game series, with San Francisco edging San Diego 4-3 in the opener and the Padres answering with a 5-1 triumph on Tuesday. That victory ended a four-game losing streak for San Diego, which trails the first-place Dodgers by two games in the division, but the Padres still occupy a wild Card spot. The model has the Padres winning in 62% of its simulations against Giants starter Landen Roupp, who failed to defeat San Diego in two starts earlier this season.
More MLB best bets
WNBA best bets, where to watch
Wings at Sparks
Time: 10 p.m. | Location: Los Angeles | TV: League Pass | Stream: Fubo (Start watching, save $20!)
SportsLine pick — Expert prop: Paige Bueckers Over 18.5 points (-120)
The Sparks won the first two meetings between these teams this year, both of which took place in Dallas. Bueckers leads the Wings in scoring with an 18.8-point average and topped all players in Dallas’ 97-96 loss to Los Angeles last Friday with 29 points. SportsLine’s Max Meyer sees Bueckers coming up with another productive performance in this matchup.
Leagues Cup best bets, where to watch
Inter Miami vs. Tigres UANL
Time: 8 p.m. | Location: Fort Lauderdale, Fla. | TV: FS1 | Stream: Fubo (Start watching, save $20!)
SportsLine pick — Expert prop: Tigres UANL Over 1.5 goals (+105)
Inter Miami did not post a clean sheet during the league phase of the competition and Tigres UANL scored at least one goal in each of their three matches. The club netted a total of seven tallies in those contests, leading all Liga MX sides. SportsLine soccer expert Brandt Sutton knows Tigres have been a difficult opponent for MLS teams and believes they will record multiple goals in this showdown.
Looking ahead: Stanford at Hawaii
Time: 7:30 p.m. Saturday | Location: Honolulu | TV: CBS | Stream: Paramount+
SportsLine picks — Model: Stanford +109 | Expert: Hawaii +2.5
The college football season begins Saturday with the five games, including a matchup between Stanford and Hawaii. Both teams struggled in 2024 as the Cardinal won just three of their 12 games and the Rainbow Warriors finished with a 5-7 overall record. Stanford is 4-0 in the all-time series, winning 37-24 in their most recent matchup two years ago.
Hawaii, which hosted all four of the previous showdowns, is a 2.5-point favorite for Saturday and the over/under is set at 50.5 points. But the SportsLine Projection Model, which simulates every college football game 10,000 times, sees the Cardinal winning outright with a projected final score of 28-24. Click here to see the model’s score and player projections for every FBS game on the college football slate Saturday.