Two teams with their share of recent struggles will meet in Cincinnati this weekend as the Reds face the Baltimore Orioles in a three-game series starting Friday night.
Both teams are coming off wins that ended four-game skids.
The Reds on Thursday beat Jacob Misiorowski and the Brewers 7-2 to salvage the finale of the four-game series in Milwaukee. Baltimore had Thursday off after defeating the visiting Chicago White Sox 6-1 on Wednesday in the last contest of a three-game set.
The Orioles could be without closer Ryan Helsley for the Friday game and possibly longer. Helsley, 31, tried warming up to enter the Wednesday game but stopped after feeling something in his right (pitching) elbow.
Manager Craig Albernaz expressed some trepidation after the game.
“My level of concern, something like that, is always high,” he said. “It’s almost like you prepare for the worst and hope for the best. Hopefully everything comes out and he’s fine, but you’re always concerned when the bullpen calls out and says that he can’t go.”
Helsley was out from late April to mid-June due to soreness in the same elbow. Since returning, he is 1-for-2 on save chances while losing both of his decisions and compiling a 7.71 ERA in five outings.
Trevor Rogers (5-7, 4.99 ERA) will start the series opener for Baltimore, with the left-hander looking to continue his recent dominant stretch. In his past two starts, both wins, he allowed just one run in 13 1/3 innings. The 28-year-old yielded six hits and issued two walks while striking out 13 against the Los Angeles Dodgers and Washington Nationals.
The Reds perform better, though, against southpaws. They are hitting .243 with a .329 on-base percentage and a .432 slugging percentage vs. left-handers, compared to .224/.303/.379 when facing right-handers.
Rogers has faced the Reds twice, starting both times, and he allowed eight runs and 10 hits in 9 1/3 innings while going 0-1. He last went against Cincinnati on July 14, 2024, when he was with the Marlins. Rogers threw 5 2/3 innings, giving up two runs on two hits and three walks and earning a no-decision in a 3-2 Miami win.
Cincinnati is returning home after a 3-4 road trip. Manager Terry Francona’s team struggled in May and June but will look to build off the Thursday win against one of the game’s best pitchers.
Rookie Sal Stewart, who leads the Reds with 17 home runs and 60 RBIs, is riding an eight-game hitting streak. The corner infielder is batting .353 (12-for-34) during that stretch with three homers and six RBIs. He homered on Thursday against Misiorowski, the major leagues’ hardest thrower.
“That kid’s got pretty special stuff, but Sal stayed short to right field, and he’s strong enough to get rewarded for it,” Francona said about the right-handed hitter.
Brady Singer (3-7, 5.12 ERA) will start for the Reds, with the 29-year-old right-hander hoping to end a 10-start slump that has seen him win just once. Singer is 1-6 with a 5.21 ERA in that span. Most recently, he lost 9-4 to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sunday after surrendering five runs on nine hits in 4 1/3 innings.
Singer owns an 0-2 record with a 15.63 ERA in just 6 1/3 innings over two starts against the Orioles. Baltimore batters have racked up 14 hits off him but only one homer.
Reds ace Hunter Greene has yet to pitch this season but is expected to make his first start on Saturday. He is recovering after having bone chips surgically removed from his elbow in spring training.
–Field Level Media
