Pittsburgh @ Cincinnati preview
Great American Ball Park
Last Meeting ( May 25, 2010 ) Pittsburgh 2, Cincinnati 1
If the Pittsburgh Pirates can just keep it close until late in the game, Ryan Doumit will find a way to win it for them.
Doumit and the Pirates will be looking to take back-to-back games today when they face the Cincinnati Reds.
Pittsburgh has won twice in its last five games, and both times it was because Doumit hit a game-winning homer. On Sunday, the 29-year-old Doumit victimized Atlanta Braves right-hander Takashi Saito, blasting a walk-off solo shot in the bottom of the 10th to give the Pirates a 3-2 victory.
On Tuesday night, it was the Reds and right-hander Nick Masset on the other side, when Doumit drove another solo blast - this time in the top of the ninth - to give Pittsburgh a 2-1 lead. Octavio Dotel came on to pick up his 10th save in the bottom of the frame.
Doumit has been one of the few bright spots for Pirates fans this season, batting .293 with five homers and 19 RBIs. Unfortunately, like many fan favorites before him, Doumit could be one of the few selling chips Pittsburgh has at the trading deadline this year and might find himself with another organization by the time August rolls around.
The Pirates will be looking to coax a win out of right-hander Ross Ohlendorf today. The Princeton grad started out his 2009 campaign with three straight solid starts but could not think his way through a matchup with the Atlanta Braves last Friday, surrendering six runs on seven hits and three walks in 3 2/3 innings to suffer the loss.
Ohlendorf, 27, has had a problem with his command in four starts this season, issuing 13 free passes in just 18 2/3 innings.
He yielded four free passes to go along with three hits and one run back on May 10 against Cincinnati, lasting just four innings in his first start back after missing a month with back spasms. Ohlendorf has faced the Reds four times in his career - three starts - and compiled a 1-1 record with a 3.78 ERA.
The Reds will counter with veteran Bronson Arroyo, who has won each of his last three starts. The right-hander has dropped his ERA from 7.43 on April 23 to 4.85. Arroyo allowed four runs on seven hits in 6 2/3 innings last Friday but hung on to earn a win over the Cleveland Indians.
Arroyo has faced Pittsburgh twice already this season, getting pounded for five runs in six innings to suffer a loss on April 18 and besting Ohlendorf with seven innings of one-run ball on May 10 for a win.
The Pirates have always been a strong matchup for Arroyo, who owns a 5-4 record with a 3.34 ERA in 11 starts against the division rivals.