Cincinnati @ Pittsburgh preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 23, 2011 ) Cincinnati 3, Pittsburgh 4

THE STORY: Joel Hanrahan blew a save but wound up with the win as the Pittsburgh Pirates won the opener of a three-game set against the Cincinnati Reds 4-3 at PNC Park on Friday. The loss means the visiting Reds have to run the table to finish the season at the .500 mark, while the 70 wins is the most for Pittsburgh since 2004. The two National League also-rans square off again Saturday night with Travis Wood starting for Cincinnati against promising rookie Brad Lincoln, who was pounded in his last outing.

TV: 7:05 p.m. FSOH (Cincinnati), ROOT (Pittsburgh)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Reds LH Travis Wood (6-5, 4.62 ERA) vs. Pirates RH Brad Lincoln (1-3, 4.85 ERA).

Wood has worked out of the bullpen a bit recently and beat the Pirates in relief a couple of weeks ago. As a starter he’s had an erratic season. Opponents are batting .283 against him and he has a WHIP of 1.44. Wood is 2-1 lifetime against the Pirates with a 4.91 ERA, and he’s been a better pitcher on the road this season. He is 3-1 with a 3.42 ERA away from Cincinnati.

Lincoln had been pitching very well until his latest start, an embarrassment at Dodger Stadium. In that game Lincoln allowed six runs on eight hits in just 1 2/3 innings. Prior to that start Lincoln had not allowed more than three earned runs in any of his starts. He’s pitched just two-thirds of an inning against the Reds in his career, giving up one run. Lincoln hopes to become a fixture in the rotation next season.

ABOUT THE REDS (76-81): Cincinnati lost its chance of posting back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 2000 with Friday’s loss. The Reds tied the game in the ninth inning with two outs when Hanrahan hit Todd Frazier in the hand with a pitch with the bases loaded. But Ryan Ludwick singled with one out in the bottom of the inning to beat Bill Bray. Wood pitched five shutout innings in his last start but didn’t figure in the decision as the Reds lost to Houston 3-2. The last time Wood faced Pittsburgh, he had the shortest start of his career, 3 1/3 innings in a 9-3 loss on April 18.

ABOUT THE PIRATES (70-87): Garrett Jones homered for the first time in more than a month for Pittsburgh (70-87), which already had 13 more wins than a year ago. Jones’ blast was estimated at 458 feet. Hanrahan has had an outstanding season, saving 39 of his 43 opportunities. He’s still strong deep into the season and was clocked at 98 mph in his outing. Ryan Doumit continued to swing a hot bat by going 2-for-4 with a run and an RBI.

FINAL PITCH: The Reds announced that lefty Dontrelle Willis will start Sunday’s game. He has not pitched since Sept. 12 due to a back injury.