Cincinnati @ Washington preview
Nationals Park
Last Meeting ( May 19, 2014 ) Cincinnati 4, Washington 3
Johnny Cueto can become only the second pitcher in 105 years to go seven innings and allow two runs or fewer in each of his first 10 starts on Tuesday when the Cincinnati Reds continue their road series against the Washington Nationals. The major league's ERA leader cruised to his fourth straight win after tossing a three-hit shutout against the San Diego Padres on Thursday. The outing left Cueto one game shy of tying Harry Krause’s historic 10-game run with the 1909 Philadelphia Athletics.
The National League leader in strikeouts (76) has also worked at least eight frames in each of his last six outings, becoming the first Reds hurler since Tom Browning in 1989 to accomplish that feat. The Nationals’ already-difficult task may be even more challenging after they dropped an extra-inning affair in Monday’s opener when Cincinnati’s Todd Frazier hit a tiebreaking two-run homer in the 15th inning. Despite the setback, Washington has won seven of its last 10 in Nationals Park against the Reds and hasn’t lost a home series to Cincinnati since June 4-6, 2010.
TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, MLB Network, FSN Ohio (Cincinnati), MASN (Washington)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Reds RH Johnny Cueto (4-2, 1.25 ERA) vs. Nationals RH Doug Fister (0-1, 4.76)
Cueto, who notched his second three-hit shutout and third complete game of the season against the Padres, has yet to allow more than two runs or five hits in any of his nine turns. The major-league leader in innings pitched (72) is also unbeaten over his last six starts and fanned eight San Diego hitters on Thursday, marking the fourth consecutive outing he has posted that many. Cueto is 3-0 with a 2.67 ERA in his last four starts against the Nationals since his last loss to Washington in 2009.
Rebounding from a rough season debut in which he surrendered seven runs (five earned) in 4 1/3 innings in a loss on May 9, Fister settled for a no-decision following Wednesday’s 5-1 victory against the Arizona Diamondbacks. The 14-game winner from a season ago yielded a solo home run to Aaron Hill among the five hits he allowed over seven frames while striking out six. Fister, who has surrendered four homers through two starts, will make his first home start of the year and face Cincinnati for the first time in his career.
WALK-OFFS
1. Cincinnati went 2-for-24 with runners in scoring position while Washington finished 2-for-18 in similar situations in the opener.
2. Washington is tied for third in the majors with 13 comeback victories and 19-1 when it scores at least four runs.
3. Reds 1B Joey Votto (strained left quadriceps) missed his fourth straight game on Monday, but RF Jay Bruce (knee) is eligible to come off the disabled list on Wednesday.
PREDICTION: Reds 3, Nationals 1