Series Preview: Reds vs Braves

The Cincinnati Reds are riding an 11-game winning streak, their longest since 1957. The Reds have won five straight series and are 14-6 in the month of June. They have also swept their last three opponents: the Kansas City Royals, Houston Astros and Colorado Rockies.

The Reds may be on the longest active winning streak in Major League Baseball, but the Braves might sill be the hottest team. Atlanta is on its own eight-game winning streak and is a staggering 15-3 in June. These might be the two hottest teams in baseball at the moment, and in a relatively weak National League, could be an NLCS preview.

One of these winning streaks must come to an end on Friday at Great American Ballpark. Whose will it be?

Pitching Preview

Cincinnati’s starting rotation is on life support at the moment. Hunter Greene was just placed on the 15-day injured list and Nick Lodolo has been out since mid-May. Graham Ashcraft has missed the past two weeks and was ineffective prior to that injured list stint. With that being said, the bullpen has had to make up for the starters’ lack of depth and it is beginning to take a toll.

Closer Alexis Diaz has begun to show serious signs of fatigue. While he is still a perfect 20-20 in save situations, Diaz has given up a run in two of his last three outings and looks exhausted. The Reds could seriously benefit from a series where each starter goes more than five innings so the bullpen can catch its breath.

The candidates to do that this weekend are Luke Weaver, Ashcraft and Ben Lively. Weaver has pitched more than five innings into a ballgame in just three of his 11 starts this season. Weaver has also given up 18 runs in his past 19 innings pitched.

Ashcraft will be making his return from the injured list in place of Greene. Over Ashcraft’s first six starts of the season, he averaged six innings pitched and gave up just 1.33 runs per game. Over the following seven starts, his averages slipped to just over four innings pitched and 5.86 runs allowed per game. Ashcraft’s return to early-season form will be vital to the Reds’ success in both the present and future.

Lively has been solid, but unspectacular. To his credit, Lively has pitched at least 5 2/3 innings in six of his seven starts this season. However, he has given up 16 runs in his last four starts. Lively’s best attribute right now is his ability to pitch relatively deep into ballgames. The Reds will need that now more than ever as the depth continues to be tested.

Expectations

The reality of baseball is that there will be at least a mild course correction for the wild winning streak the Reds are currently on. With the starting pitching injuries mounting and the National League’s best team coming to Cincinnati, this series could be the start of that correction. Now, the Reds have found different ways to win throughout this winning streak. But the Braves are likely the best team the Reds have played since dropping two out of three games to the Tampa Bay Rays in mid-April.

Even if the Reds lose the series against Atlanta, or the next series against a very good Baltimore Orioles squad, they have proven themselves to be legitimate contenders for the NL Central and more. Baseball has a way of humbling those who get too high or too low. With veteran leadership like Joey Votto back in the clubhouse, that should not be much of a concern, though.

The point being, the Reds are due to drop a series here soon. With the way the pitching aligns with the hot-hitting Braves coming to town, lean towards Atlanta.

Then again, these Reds have ignored the doubters all season.

Stay tuned for more breaking MLB content, including trade deadline information, power rankings and more news from every team.

Featured image courtesy of Reds.com 

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