Cincinnati Reds vs New York Mets Picks and Prediction for Monday May 25 2026
The Cincinnati Reds travel to face the New York Mets on Monday, May 25, 2026, at Citi Field in Queens, New York. First pitch is scheduled for 4:10 PM ET with coverage available on MLB.TV. At the time of this writing the odds were not released. Be sure to check out our free MLB picks
Starting Pitchers Take the Spotlight
Cincinnati is expected to hand the ball to Nick Lodolo, who enters this game with a 0-1 record, a 7.20 ERA, and a 1.53 WHIP across 15 innings pitched. He has allowed 14 hits and four home runs while striking out 11 batters and walking nine. New York counters with Nolan McLean, who has posted a 2-3 record alongside a 3.57 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP in 58 innings. He has surrendered 43 hits while recording 69 strikeouts and allowing only six home runs this season.
Cincinnati Carrying Momentum Into Queens
The Reds enter this matchup with a 27-25 overall record and a balanced 13-13 mark on the road this season. Cincinnati recently won over St. Louis in an 11-inning battle by a 7-6 score after recently losing to the Cardinals 8-1 earlier in the series. The Reds also recently won over Philadelphia in consecutive games by scores of 9-4 and 4-1 before recently losing to the Phillies 5-4. Cincinnati has shown flashes offensively during this stretch, especially in games where the lineup has been able to capitalize early.
Offensively, Cincinnati is batting .227 as a team while scoring 229 runs with 396 hits and 66 home runs. The Reds carry a .310 on-base percentage and a .393 slugging percentage entering this matchup. On the mound, Cincinnati owns a 4.78 ERA with a 1.47 WHIP while allowing opponents to hit .249 against them. The pitching staff has also issued 244 walks while recording 402 strikeouts this season.
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One concern for Cincinnati entering this contest is run prevention. The Reds are allowing a .249 opposing batting average while carrying a 4.78 ERA and 1.47 WHIP as a pitching staff. While the offense has delivered timely production recently, the overall pitching numbers have remained inconsistent throughout the season.
Mets Hoping to Respond at Home
New York enters this matchup with a 22-30 overall record and an 11-13 home record this season. The Mets recently lost to Miami in back-to-back games by scores of 4-1 and 2-1 after recently winning over Washington 2-1. Prior to that, New York recently lost to Washington in consecutive contests by scores of 8-4 and 9-6. The Mets have struggled to generate consistent offense recently, scoring four runs or fewer in four of their last five games.
The Mets are batting .228 on the season while scoring 206 runs with 397 hits and 46 home runs. New York owns a .293 on-base percentage and a .352 slugging percentage. On the pitching side, the Mets have performed better statistically with a 3.84 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP while holding opponents to a .233 batting average. The staff has also recorded 481 strikeouts while issuing 188 walks.
A major strength for New York has been its pitching consistency compared to Cincinnati. The Mets hold a lower ERA, lower WHIP, and lower opposing batting average entering this matchup. New York has also generated significantly more strikeouts than the Reds this season, which could become important in a game where offense has been difficult to find consistently for both clubs recently.
Cincinnati Reds vs New York Mets Picks and Prediction
Cincinnati Reds vs New York Mets Pick
- Pick: New York Mets Moneyline
New York enters this matchup with the stronger pitching profile overall and also holds the advantage on the mound in this pitching matchup based on the provided numbers. The Mets own a 3.84 team ERA while Cincinnati sits at 4.78, and New York has also limited opposing hitters to a lower batting average. While the Mets have struggled offensively recently, their pitching numbers combined with the stronger starting pitching statistics make New York the preferred side in this matchup.
Cincinnati Reds vs New York Mets Total Pick
- Pick: Under 8
I would lean toward the under in this matchup because New York has struggled offensively during recent games while also carrying one of the better pitching staffs statistically in this contest. The Mets have scored only four total runs across their last two games, and four of their last five games have stayed relatively controlled offensively. Cincinnati has also relied heavily on sporadic offense recently, and with New York entering with the better overall pitching numbers, I see value on the lower-scoring side.
Final Score Prediction: New York Mets 4 – Cincinnati Reds 3
This prediction was written before the completion of game play on Sunday.
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