#955 ASA TOP PLAY ON 10* Cincinnati Reds +110 over Chicago Cubs, Thursday at 8 PM ET - The Reds have had a solid road trip with a 3-2 record including taking 2 of 3 @ San Francisco. These 2 have split the first 2 games of this series and we like Cincinnati to take the finale. Despite the split thus far, the Reds have outhit the Cubs in both games piling up 24 hits so far in this series. We like the pitching match up here for Cincinnati with Ashcraft on the mound, a pitcher that none of the Cubs hitters have ever seen. Ashcraft was called up in late May and allowed just 3 ER’s through his first 4 starts. He then had a few rough outings but impressed us last week when he bounced back and pitched great @ San Francisco (8 IP, 2 ER’s, and 8 strikeouts). His ERA on the season is 3.27 and his xERA is actually a bit lower at 3.23. He’s make 7 starts this year and the Reds have won 6 of those games. We look for Cincinnati’s offense to have solid success today vs Cubs starter Hendricks. They faced him a month ago and put up 4 runs in 4 innings. The Cincinnati hitters should also be very comfortable facing Hendricks as they’ve had well over 100 plate appearances vs him with a lifetime BA of .328. Hendricks has won just 1 game at home this season and his ERA is north of 5.00. Both bullpens are poor (bottom 5 in MLB) so that’s a crapshoot but we expect Cincinnati to have a cushion heading into the late innings. Since starting the season 3-22, the Reds have actually played near .500 baseball with a record of 23-26 their last 49. The Cubs, on the other hand, are just 14-26 over their last 40 games and their home field advantage has been non-existent with an identical record of 14-26 this year at Wrigley. Take the Reds tonight as a slight money line underdog.