Cincinnati @ Toronto preview
Rogers Centre
Last Meeting ( Aug 20, 2023 ) Toronto 10, Cincinnati 3
After being swept and outscored 28-3 over three games against the Kansas City Royals, the Cincinnati Reds aim for a turnaround Monday night against the host Toronto Blue Jays.
The Reds finished a 3-3 homestand with an 8-1 loss to the Royals in the series finale on Sunday. Cincinnati opens a seven-game road trip on Monday.
"We're trying every day to find ways to get better and to score runs more consistently," Reds manager David Bell said. "We do believe in our guys. We know we have to continue to find ways to adjust to the league, adjust to the opponent and in some cases learn ourselves as hitters. There's no reason it can't happen now. There have been signs. But there have been stretches where it has been tough to score runs."
The losses to Kansas City followed Cincinnati's three-game sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Royals exposed Cincinnati's weaknesses.
"Defense would probably be No. 1," Reds catcher Luke Maile said. "If you play sound defense, you're always going to be in the fight, it seems like. From an offensive standpoint, when we don't play good, we just chase out of the zone a lot. There's really nothing else to say other than that."
He believes that the team can use the lessons it learned versus the Royals and make adjustments against Toronto.
"We got some pretty good feedback from a good team about where we stood in terms of executing what we need to do," Maile said. "We're going to have to take that information the Royals just gave us and do something about it. If we don't, we'll keep on just spinning our wheels."
Toronto will open a seven-game homestand Monday after completing a 4-2 trip with a 1-0 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Sunday.
Right-hander Kevin Gausman (11-8, 4.20 ERA) is scheduled to start for Toronto on Monday. He is 1-3 with an 8.39 ERA in five career starts against Cincinnati. He has not faced the Reds since 2021. Cincinnati had not named a starter.
Joey Loperfido's first home run as a Blue Jay in the second inning on Sunday was enough to salvage the finale of the three-game series with the Cubs. The outfielder finished the game 2-for-4, providing needed relief from a poor start with Toronto after being part of the trade that sent left-hander Yusei Kikuchi to the Houston Astros on July 29.
In his first 12 games (11 starts) with Toronto before Sunday, the outfielder was 6-for-43, hitting .140/.178/.186 with one RBI, one walk and 19 strikeouts.
After the game, he said he appreciated his teammates and coaches during his struggles.
"I feel like all these guys have had my back through what was a tough couple weeks there," Loperfido said. " And I knew they were all pumped up when I came back into the dugout (after the homer). To come through for those guys, especially in what ended up being a 1-0 game, it felt good. Not really knowing those guys too well, coming in here and struggling, and them having my back -- it means a lot to me."
Loperfido's homer stood up because right-hander Bowden Francis held the Cubs to three hits in seven innings followed by Ryan Burr, Genesis Cabrera and Chad Green.
Cincinnati claimed infielder Amed Rosario off waivers from the Dodgers on Sunday.
--Field Level Media