Milwaukee @ Cincinnati preview
Great American Ball Park
Last Meeting ( Aug 30, 2010 ) Milwaukee 4, Cincinnati 5
Dusty Baker has the Cincinnati Reds on some kind of roll as they'll look to ride the momentum from Monday's come-from-behind win into Tuesday's contest with the Milwaukee Brewers.
The Reds (76-55) took full advantage of the St. Louis Cardinals' loss on Monday night by coming back to down the Milwaukee Brewers, 5-4, in the first game of the series. It was Cincinnati’s 37th come-from-behind victory and yet again, Jay Bruce was right in the middle of the action.
Bruce stroked his 18th home run in the first inning and then added the game-winning RBI single in the 10th to put away the Brewers (62-69) and move six games ahead of the Cardinals in the NL Central.
The outfielder is 8-for-15 with five home runs and seven RBIs in Cincinnati’s first four games of this homestand.
Meanwhile, Reds first baseman Joey Votto is working on a nine-game hit streak. He’s hitting .356 with 21 RBIs in his last 19 games.
Cincinnati sends Aaron Harang (6-7, 5.02 ERA) to the mound on Tuesday against Milwaukee’s Yovani Gallardo (11-6, 3.50).
This will be Harang’s first start in two months.
The veteran right-hander has been dealing with back spasms and went on the disabled list at the end of June. He had scattered seven earned runs over the three starts before he went on the shelf. Harang gave up 11 runs over 11 innings of rehab work at Triple-A Louisville and is 5-5 lifetime against the Brewers with a 4.51 ERA.
Gallardo (11-6, 3.50 ERA) has been giving hitters fits for most of the year, racking up 165 strikeouts over 149 innings pitched, but he has had a tough time lately.
The hurler has allowed 20 earned runs over his last four starts and just allowed six runs over 6 1/3 innings in a loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers - even though he struck out 10 before hitting the showers.
Gallardo was also the victim of an armed robbery following that game. He and a Milwaukee clubhouse worker were held up at gunpoint in a Milwaukee grocery store parking lot, surrendering money and jewelry to the thief.
The Reds called up rookie reliever Aroldis Chapman for Tuesday’s game. Chapman signed a six-year deal with Cincinnati worth more than $30 million last winter and he has been brilliant in the minors. The 22-year-old’s fastball has been clocked at 105 mph and routinely hits 103.
Cincinnati could use the help in the bullpen, which has a 4.18 ERA this season.