Wild Card Preview: Snell & Greene Kick Off Wild Card Series at Chavez Ravine

LOS ANGELES, CA—The Los Angeles Dodgers’ quest to repeat as World Series Champions begins at Chavez Ravine with a potential three-game Wild Card Series versus the Cincinnati Reds, who miraculously caught the mighty New York Mets for the number six seed in the National League.

It’ll be Blake Snell for the Dodgers and young right-hander Hunter Greene taking the ball for the Reds in an ultimate pitching showdown between two of the best arms in the league.

The Dodgers had their way with the Reds this season, winning the season series 5-1, including a three-game sweep at Dodger Stadium at the end of August.

The Dodgers, as expected, are the overwhelming favorite, but don’t let the Reds’ eighty-three win total fool you; they’re about one of the most electric athletic teams in the sport, and with the starting rotation dominance this season, they can take on nearly anyone, especially in a three-game series.

Pitching Probables

Blake Snell (LHP) (5-4, 2.35 ERA) vs Hunter Greene (7-4, 2.76 ERA)

Rather than go with two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani or Yoshinobu Yamamoto in Game One, the Dodgers are going with their top free agent signing this past offseason, two-time Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell, and for good reason.

This season, the Reds rank among the worst against left-handed pitchers with a 76 wRC+, which ranks 26th in the league, despite having a right-handed-heavy lineup.

In Snell’s career, he has only one complete game, which came last year versus the Reds, where he tossed his lone career no-hitter, and in that game, Snell struck out eleven batters while only walking three.

In his career (two starts), Snell is 2-0 with a 1.80 ERA and eighteen strikeouts against Cincinnati.

Taking the ball for the Reds will be hometown star Hunter Greene, who, despite an injury-riddled 2025 season, still put together a solid campaign, finishing with a 2.76 ERA.

However, in his career, Greene has struggled against Los Angeles, including this season. In his career, despite not playing in the same division, Greene has given up seven home runs to the Dodgers, which ranks tied for the second most of any team.

Similarly, Los Angeles’ twenty-nine hits against Greene ranks as the fourth highest mark, just below Greene’s National League Central rivals, the St. Louis Cardinals (39), Milwaukee Brewers (33), and Pittsburgh Pirates (31).

However, the silver lining is that the postseason wipes all those stats away so Greene and the Dodgers get a fresh start, but it’s something to consider with the two squaring off tonight.

Who to Watch

While all eyes will be on the MVP trio atop the Dodgers lineup or even Blake Snell, the team’s Game One starter, I’m actually going with another name, and that is Andy Pages.

Pages came into his own this season for Los Angeles, hitting twenty-seven home runs and posting a 117 wRC+, all while improving on nearly every metric in his outfield defense.

However, against tonight’s starter for the Reds, Hunter Greene, Pages has had his number in their two previous meetings.

In his career, Pages is 3-for-5 against Greene, with all three of those hits being of the home run variety.

While Pages has always hit left-handed pitchers well in his career, he’s also never been a slouch versus right-handed pitching, and that remains true this season, with Pages having a slightly better OPS (.774) and wRC+ (112).

Where to Watch

The National League Wild Card round will be exclusively broadcast on ESPN, with this three-game series being commented on by Jon Sciambi, Doug Glanville, and Alden Gonzalez.

First pitch is slated for 6:08 PM PT at Chavez Ravine.

Betting Odds

The Dodgers are the favorites at -203, while the Reds, as underdogs, have +167 odds to cause an upset. Los Angeles is also favored on the run line with -1.5 and +110 odds. The total runs for the game have been set at 7.

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