The Cincinnati Reds (22-19) host the Washington Nationals (19-22) on May 12, 2026. First pitch from Great American Ballpark is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. EDT. The game will be broadcast on ARID.
The Reds are favored by -144 on the moneyline and by -1.5 on the run line. The Nationals are +122 on the moneyline and +1.5 on the run line. The total is set at 10 runs.
Find my MLB SGP and Nationals vs Reds prediction below.
Nationals vs Reds Odds, Spread, Line
| Nationals Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+1.5 -156 | 10 -110o / -110u | +122 |
| Reds Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-1.5 +130 | 10 -110o / -110u | -144 |
- Nationals vs Reds moneyline: Nationals +122, Reds -144
- Nationals vs Reds over/under: 10 (-110o /-110u)
- Nationals vs Reds spread: Nationals +1.5 (-156), Reds -1.5 (+130)
Nationals vs Reds Pitchers
| RHP Miles Mikolas (WSH) | Stat | RHP Brady Singer (CIN) |
|---|---|---|
| 1-3 | W-L | 2-2 |
| -0.5 | fWAR | 0.1 |
| 7.44 / 4.81 | ERA / xERA | 5.63 / 5.75 |
| 6.36 / 4.33 | FIP / xFIP | 5.49 / 4.54 |
| 7.5% | K-BB% | 9.0% |
| 52.7% | GB% | 41% |
| .288 | BABIP | .344 |
| 90 | Stuff+ | 92 |
| 114 | Location+ | 99 |
Nationals vs Reds Expert MLB Picks
Story: Back Nats’ Youngster on Tuesday Night
The Nationals head on the road for the first of a three-game set with the Reds at their home Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati.
Right-hander Brady Singer will take the mound for the Reds, while Washington righty Miles Mikolas is expected to be on the bump for the visiting Nats.
Below, I will provide a “same-game-parlay” selection that you can use as a betting angle when wagering on Tuesday night’s National League showdown.
Washington Nationals Player Prop: James Wood Over 1.5 HRR
For the first leg of our SGP ahead of Tuesday night’s content, I will be looking to target Nationals’ slugger James Wood to exceed his 1.5 HRR (Hits + Runs + RBIs) mark in a pitching matchup that should most definitely deliver many runs.
It has been a rather rough start to his 2026 campaign for Reds’ righty Brady Singer, who has recorded an atrocious 5.63 ERA to go along with a 1.64 WHIP thus far over the first six weeks of the season.
The 29-year-old is coming off an up-and-down first season pitching for Cincinnati in 2025, with Singer having finished his Reds debut with an ERA upwards of 4.00 on the season.
After several impressive seasons with the Royals, the Reds’ righty has had a tough time adjusting to his tenure in Cincinnati and will definitely be looking to reverse his fortune ahead of what will be Singer’s ninth start of the year on Tuesday night.
Though I do believe the second-year Red will bounce back from his troublesome start in the near future, I am still rather concerned about Singer’s matchup versus a Nationals’ lineup that boasts elite contact rates at the plate this season.
Amongst the names of Washington hitters who are off to a scorching start this season is Nationals’ 23-year-old superstar OF in lefty James Wood.
In his third season in the Big Leagues, Wood has picked up right where he left off last season, having blasted 11 homers and 28 RBI’s thus far in 2026 – ranking inside the top-15 in baseball in both offensive categories.
The Nats’ youngster has also posted an impressive .917 OPS thus far over Washington’s first 40 games – ranking inside the top-15 in that metric.
The 6 '6 lefty-slugger has quickly established himself as one of the premier power-hitters in the Big Leagues, and Wood gets a very favorable matchup on Tuesday night versus Singer, whom he has already faced on several occasions over his first two-plus years in the Big Leagues.
In two career plate appearances versus the Reds’ righty, Wood has gotten the better of the second-year Red, having ripped an RBI double in the process.
In a game I expect to have many runners on the basepaths for the majority of the contest, given the horrific WHIP of both starting pitchers, I think this is a great spot to target Wood, who should have several opportunities to score a Run or record an RBI in addition to finding success at the plate.
The Nationals’ young lefty boasts elite exit-velocity and barrel-rates inside the box, and has absolutely crushed right-handed pitchers who have had trouble with command – especially against four-seam fastballs.
While previously very effective, Singer’s off-speed arsenal (specifically sinker & slider) has been largely ineffective over his first eight outings this season, forcing him to rely on his fastball far more in 2026.
The Reds’ righty has allowed a career-high opponent batting average (AVG) on both his sinker and slider, and has walked far more batters in 2026 than previously with Kansas City.
For an elite heavy-contact power hitter with a 59.5% hard-hit rate this season, the Nats’ youngster presents a matchup nightmare for Sinner – and I feel great backing Wood to exceed his 1.5 HRR mark for the front-leg of our SGP ahead of Tuesday night’s National League clash.
Moneyline Picks: Reds Moneyline
If you read any of my SGP pieces throughout the college basketball season, you would know that I love to pair my preferred moneyline side with a player prop from the opposing team to extract max value out of a matchup.
Given the negative correlation between the two, it results in the SGP value being substantially magnified when doing so.
That said, I will be backing the Reds on the moneyline for the back-end of Tuesday’s SGP – which should result in a steep price increase when paired with the Nats’ James Wood to find success at the plate.
While the Reds’ singer is off to a worrisome start in 2026, the Nationals’ veteran right-hander Miles Mikolas has actually been far worse.
Over Mikolas’ first eight starts of the season, the 37-year-old has recorded a career-low 7.44 ERA thus far with a 2.53 WHIP. Across less than 33 frames this season, the Nats’ righty has allowed a whopping 29 runs to go along with nine homers.
In addition to an atrocious start to his 2026 campaign, Mikolas has a rather substantial previous history facing this Reds’ lineup, given that he used to play for the Cardinals in the NL Central, and has gotten absolutely rocked.
Mikolas has 123 collective plate appearances against this Reds’ lineup, having allowed 42 hits for an opponent BA of .341 – and an insane .953 OPS. The Nats’ veteran has also allowed 12 extra-base hits, five homers, and 15 RBIs across Cincinnati's nine hitters.
Mikolas has gotten dominated by the likes of Elly De La Cruz, Spencer Steer, Will Benson, Ke’Bryan Hayes – and has yet to face Reds’ young-slugger Sal Stewart, who is off to a scorching start in 2026.
Though I am definitely concerned about Singer heading into this matchup, I have far greater concerns for Mikolas, who has been one of the worst starting pitchers in all of baseball thus far, also having gotten demolished by the majority of this Cincinnati lineup.
While I think targeting some Reds player prop markets is a great approach as well, I favor playing the Reds moneyline on the back-end of our SGP, given I have more confidence in the entire lineup finding success at the plate compared to just one player.
Upon being paired with Wood HRR mark in the front-leg of our Tuesday night parlay, the Reds Moneyline rounds out what will be a great value play ahead of this National League battle.
- James Wood Over 1.5 HRR
- Reds ML
Parlay Odds: +172 (DraftKings)
