Reds hope to wear down Cardinals
ST. LOUIS -- On the heels of a tough loss Friday night in St. Louis, Cincinnati Reds manager Bryan Price found a positive as he sat in his office at Busch Stadium.
"It was certainly good to see our guys come back and make that push in the eighth inning," he said.
The push of which Price spoke only turned a 7-1 blowout into a 7-5 loss, but it could definitely give the Reds a boost for the middle game of its three-game series with the Cardinals on Saturday.
The Reds rallied for four runs in the eighth against two relievers, even putting the tying run on base before Seung Hwan Oh induced a first-pitch popup from Billy Hamilton to end the rally. Oh cruised through the ninth for his sixth save of the season.
If nothing else, though, Cincinnati was able to wade into a St. Louis bullpen that was taxed for 7 2/3 innings Thursday in a doubleheader sweep of Toronto. The Reds could derive an advantage on Saturday if they can find a way to get to Mike Leake.
Their former teammate has been nails in April, going 3-1 with a 1.32 ERA, including a 6-4 win Sunday in Milwaukee in which he gave up three hits and two runs in six innings. Averaging nearly seven innings per start, Leake has so far performed a 180 from the pitcher who was pounded for a career-worst 4.67 ERA in his first season with the Cardinals.
Leake's former teammates have been hardest on him since his departure, battering him for a 5.64 ERA in five starts in the last two seasons as well as three losses. The third loss occurred April 7, although it was hard to fault Leake after he allowed six hits and a run in eight innings with a walk and six strikeouts in a 2-0 decision.
Bronson Arroyo has some history of his own that he hopes to avenge against St. Louis. The 40-year-old right-hander is 8-18 with a 4.84 ERA in 40 career outings, 38 of them starts, when facing the Cardinals.
Arroyo was treated harshly the day after Leake dropped his pitching duel to rookie Amir Garrett, giving up six hits and six runs in four innings of a 10-4 loss. Aledmys Diaz was Arroyo's biggest nemesis, walloping a solo homer and a three-run shot off him. But Arroyo has consecutive wins over Baltimore and the Chicago Cubs.
Of late, the St. Louis offense has looked like the one many thought it would in the offseason. It has collected at least 10 hits and scored at least five runs in seven of the last eight games.
The surge of leadoff man Dexter Fowler has keyed the attack, as he has nine hits in the last four games. His constant presence on base has put steady pressure on pitchers and infused the lineup with confidence.
"You never want to put pressure on any one guy," St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said, "but we've seen him take better pitches and get better counts for about the last week. Certainly he's one of the players who can change the feel of our offense."