Cincinnati Reds vs San Francisco Giants Picks and Prediction for Monday August 24, 2026

The Cincinnati Reds travel to Oracle Park in San Francisco, California, to face the San Francisco Giants on Monday, August 24, 2026. First pitch is scheduled for 9:45 PM ET, with MLB.TV and FS1 providing coverage. Cincinnati enters at 62-68 overall and 30-32 on the road, while San Francisco is 52-77 overall and 29-33 at home. The Reds are coming off an 11-5 victory and have gone 2-3 over their last five, while the Giants have dropped three straight and four of their last five. Cincinnati also holds a 2-1 advantage in the season series. At the time of this writing the odds were not released. Bettors looking for more baseball predictions can check out our free MLB picks.

Starting Pitchers

Cincinnati is expected to start Chase Burns, who enters with an outstanding 14-2 record, 2.51 ERA and 1.11 WHIP through 136 innings. Burns has allowed 103 hits and 48 walks while striking out 159 and surrendering only 13 home runs. San Francisco counters with Carson Whisenhunt, who is 3-4 with a 7.03 ERA and 1.84 WHIP through 32 innings. Whisenhunt has allowed 39 hits and 20 walks while recording 23 strikeouts and allowing five home runs. This is the clearest statistical mismatch in the game, with Cincinnati holding major advantages in ERA, WHIP, strikeout production and overall effectiveness from its projected starter.

Cincinnati Has a Major Advantage on the Mound

The Reds enter Monday at 62-68 overall and have gone 2-3 across their last five games. Cincinnati's recent results have been volatile, with an 11-5 victory and a 5-4 win surrounded by losses of 9-0, 10-9 and 3-0. The Reds have been much more competitive on the road than their overall losing record might suggest, going 30-32 away from home.

Cincinnati is batting .227 with a .306 on-base percentage and .393 slugging percentage. The Reds have scored 534 runs, collected 978 hits and hit 169 home runs. Their pitching staff owns a 4.51 ERA and 1.41 WHIP while opposing hitters are batting .248.

The overall offensive profile isn't especially impressive, but Cincinnati's power stands out. The Reds have hit 169 home runs compared with 143 for San Francisco, and they have also scored slightly more runs despite recording significantly fewer hits. The bigger advantage Monday, however, comes from the starting pitching matchup, where Cincinnati has an opportunity to control the game from the opening innings.

San Francisco Searching for an Offensive Spark

The Giants enter at 52-77 and have struggled badly during their recent stretch. San Francisco has lost three consecutive games and four of its last five, scoring two runs or fewer in four of those five contests. The Giants are also only 29-33 at Oracle Park, meaning home field has not provided the type of advantage they would need to offset their overall struggles.

San Francisco is batting .247 with a .305 on-base percentage and .405 slugging percentage. The Giants have scored 519 runs on 1,082 hits while hitting 143 home runs. Their pitching staff owns a 4.35 ERA and 1.36 WHIP, with opponents batting .247.

The Giants actually own the better batting average and slugging percentage in this matchup, but those numbers have not translated into enough runs or victories. San Francisco has scored 15 fewer runs than Cincinnati despite collecting 104 more hits. That lack of run conversion becomes particularly concerning against a starter carrying a 2.51 ERA and 1.11 WHIP.

Cincinnati Reds vs San Francisco Giants Picks and Prediction

Pick: Cincinnati Reds Moneyline

Cincinnati is the preferred side because the starting pitching matchup is simply too significant to overlook. The Reds' projected starter enters 14-2 with a 2.51 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 159 strikeouts, while San Francisco's projected starter has a 7.03 ERA and 1.84 WHIP through 32 innings. Cincinnati has also been the better team overall, owns a nearly even 30-32 road record and has already won two of three against San Francisco this season. The Giants' recent offensive problems further strengthen the case for backing Cincinnati.

Pick: Under 8.5

Take the Under if the total is set at 8.5. Cincinnati's recent games have been extremely inconsistent offensively, but this matchup features one starter capable of dominating San Francisco's struggling lineup. The Giants have scored only nine total runs across their last five games and have been held to two runs or fewer four times during that span. San Francisco's pitching matchup creates some risk for the Under, but Oracle Park combined with Cincinnati's substantial starting-pitching advantage makes a lower-scoring game the preferred direction.

This game preview was completed prior to game play on Monday.